How close can you get to perfection? In the case of the new Pagani Utopia Roadster, it seems that the answer is very. Based on only the third production model from Pagani after the Zonda and Huayra, the Utopia evolves the formula that the company has been working on since the late 1990s with a mixture of advancements in materials, production techniques and customer feedback shaping the new hypercar.

Plenty of brands say that they value the opinions of their clients, before continuing to ignore calls for physical controls to return to interiors - but that’s not the case with Horacio Pagani’s operation. Customers had been asking for a manual transmission, so the manufacturer obliged, installing three pedals and seven gears for drivers of the Utopia to enjoy using. A 7-speed Xtrac automated manual dispenses with one of the pedals but adds two paddles behind the steering wheel for faster and more consistent shifting. 

Regardless of which transmission is selected, the engine pumping its performance towards it is a hand-built engine from Mercedes-AMG. This 60o biturbo V12 has been specifically developed for Pagani, and continues the long collaboration between the two companies that stretches back to the very first Zonda. Codenamed M158, this engine differs from what used to be found in the AMG 65 models - and the current Mercedes-Maybach S 680 limousine - by having a dry sump layout, smaller turbochargers and a bespoke ECU which create a monumental output of 863 bhp and 811 lb ft (1,100 Nm). Peak power is reached at 6,000 rpm while maximum torque is available from 2,800 to 5,900 revs, so performance should be effortless from tickover to the red line, to say the least.

With a dry weight of just 1,280 kg and performance heading exclusively to the rear wheels, the Utopia Roadster makes use of an electronic differential, a dynamic control system and advanced traction control to “eliminate any tendency to understeer” along with ensuring “flawless movement despite the enormous power supply available.” Active damping will no doubt be able to flip from a comfortable touring setting to a maximum attack preset at the flip of a switch. As well as monitoring what the wheels are doing, the car’s brains will be able to take data directly from the tyres themselves with Pirelli’s Cyber Tyre tech that sees sensors in the rubber sending information to the stability control systems. Information can be fed to the ABS, ESP and traction control, directly from the tread of the tyres.

There are eight suspension triangles that are made of aircraft-grade aluminium and there are multiple interior features milled from metal too, but the majority of the car’s structure and body panels are made from composites. These would usually be described as carbon fibre as a catch-all term, but Pagani says that there are over 40 formulas of composite materials used in the construction of the Utopia Roadster.

The monocoque is made from a mixture of carbon and titanium, allowing for high levels of inherent rigidity while doing away with the need for additional strengthening when removing the roof from the car. To put it simply, the Roadster has the exact same dry weight as the Coupé, and this is no accident; both variants of the Utopia were developed in parallel, with the aim of offering the often thought as “compromised” convertible version with no compromises in terms of handling, performance and weight. Having the exact same monocoque explains why the car has butterfly doors on both body styles, as opposed to the Huayra which had gull wing doors on the coupé and traditional side-opening doors on the roadster.

There is only one image of the Utopia Roadster with the solid roof in place, and that’s a close-up showing the single pane of glass which differs from the twin-pane layout of the coupé. Every other image is roofless and the car looks just right to my eyes with no metalwork- sorry, carbon-work above the cabin. There is no electromechanical automatic raising or lowering of the roof, and indeed there is not enough room anywhere in the car for the hard top to be stowed. According to Pagani, “When one wishes to travel under the open sky, the hard-top can be placed on a stand, transforming it into a piece of design to be looked at and admired.” And to think everyone mocked the Citroen C3 Pluriel for needing to leave its roof bars behind for the proper roof down experience…