Pagani celebrates founder with roofless V12 and gated shifter

Pagani, the hypercar manufacturer based in Modena in Motor Valley, has joined Ferrari in embracing the manual transmission for a new generation of ultra-wealthy buyers. The Huayra 70 Derecho, unveiled this week according to Motor1, pairs a twin-turbo AMG V12 engine with a gated shifter—a mechanical rarity in modern supercars that appeals to collectors who prize the tactile engagement of heel-and-toe downshifts over automated paddle systems.

The roadster is the second of three limited-edition models created to celebrate founder Horacio Pagani's 70th anniversary. By removing the roof, Pagani has positioned the Derecho as a companion to Ferrari's recently announced 12Cilindri Manuale, another manual-transmission supercar built in the region. Both manufacturers are betting that a shrinking cohort of drivers will pay premium prices for mechanical complexity in an era of electrification and autonomous systems.

The move reflects a broader anxiety in Motor Valley about the shift toward hybrid and electric powertrains. While Lamborghini has hedged its bets by developing hybrid models, Pagani and Ferrari are doubling down on petrol and tradition, signalling that the region's prestige carmakers believe their customers value heritage and mechanical purity over environmental compliance or technological novelty.

The Emilia-Romagna region has long built its reputation on the marriage of engineering precision and sensory experience—values that extend from its food culture to its supercars. Pagani's decision to pair a roofless design with a gated shifter echoes that philosophy: the car is engineered to be felt and heard, not merely driven. For a manufacturer based in a region where artisanal craft traditions remain culturally embedded, the manual transmission is not a backward step but a statement of values.

The timing is significant. As European regulations tighten and battery technology matures, carmakers across Motor Valley face a reckoning. Pagani's limited-edition approach—building only three anniversary cars—allows the company to sidestep volume production while catering to collectors who view manual transmissions as increasingly scarce. The Derecho joins a narrow category of contemporary supercars where mechanical engagement trumps efficiency, a posture that Modena's hypercar makers can afford to maintain precisely because their production runs are small and their margins vast.