Experiencing a ride with Pagani’s test driver in a Utopia Roadster has forever changed my perspective.

      Jerry Perez

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      There really is nothing that compares to a Pagani. Not when it comes to craftsmanship, design, soul, and certainly not price. While performance is undeniably crucial for the boutique Italian automaker, it's not the sole focus—what truly matters is the essence of the machine and the emotions it evokes. This may sound odd, especially considering that I recently drove the Pagani Utopia Roadster, which boasts a 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12 engine producing 864 horsepower and 811 lb-ft of torque, accelerating like a rocket and sounding divine.

      My experience behind the wheel of this handcrafted $4 million hypercar will be shared in the upcoming weeks, but before I could take the wheel, I needed to spend some time as a passenger to adapt to the car, the narrow Italian roads, and the overall setting. This involved spending time with Matteo, one of Pagani’s development drivers.

      Matteo has been with Pagani for over ten years, and if I thought I had a compelling job, he definitely has me beat by a significant margin. Not only is he a charming guy, but he regularly drives various Paganis, conducts developmental tests, participates in Pagani-hosted events, and occasionally babysits a lowly journalist like me. That must be the least enjoyable part of his job!

      In the past, Matteo honed his skills under the guidance of a renowned development driver from another hypercar company (a French one). I was surprised to learn that he never became a professional racing driver, but upon reflection, it makes sense. These cars may be extreme, but they don’t always need to be driven like racecars when collecting data, testing components, or evaluating a test vehicle.

      As you can witness in this video, it doesn’t really matter whether he was a racing driver or not; the man knows how to drive. From my firsthand experience, the Utopia Roadster is quite a challenge to control, particularly with its dog-leg, seven-speed manual transmission. There’s a lot of torque to manage while shifting gears, and when the turbos kick in (which is quite audible), the low-and-wide car accelerates like a bat out of hell. Watching Matteo handle all of this with skill and finesse is truly extraordinary. I’m fairly certain that at one point, we actually caught air while cresting a bridge... while turning.

      It was a mix of the Utopia Roadster’s immense performance and Matteo's expertise that led me to tell Pagani’s public relations rep, “I’ve been ruined for life. This is it.” I truly meant it—this is an exceptional machine, and experiencing it with Matteo on the very roads where some of Italy’s finest cars are born was nothing short of magical. I am just thankful to have experienced it, and I felt all of this even before driving it myself.

      My conversation with Matteo was just as thrilling as the drive, as we discussed our admiration for Fiat Pandas and his everyday vehicle, a standard Volkswagen Golf. He also shared some interesting stories of memorable drives he’s had in Paganis through the Alps and on various racetracks across Europe.

      There's plenty more Pagani content on the way in the coming weeks, so stay tuned. For now, enjoy the incredible sound of the Pagani Utopia Roadster.

      Ciao ciao.

      Email the author at jerry@thedrive.com