In the flesh, parked at Pagani’s low-key booth, the Zonda R is every bit the demented racing car you’d expect it to be. This is the last in a great line of super cars, the logical conclusion to Pagani’s original car: the 1999 Zonda C12. Let’s go look inside its mid-mounted guts.

The headless person at the bar, resting behind a Zonda Cinque, can plop his ass in a Barcelona chair if he so desires, which is just as comfortable as it looks. At least in the short term. For long-term stays, you need thousands of dollars or the company of bankers and Zonda-owners.

The famous Gatling exhausts are back and they have never looked this great.

A key element of the car’s supposedly supple suspension.

The valve cover, until recently marked only with its donor AMG’s emblem, has gained some Zonda branding.

Not your mother’s tires.

The carbon fiber rim of a cooling duct exposed by removal of the carapace.

The Zonda is not light on carbon fiber by any means.

The periscope-shaped air ducts inside the cabin are made of, you guessed it, carbon fiber.

Hood scoop to feed all 7.7 liters of the AMG V12. It has a peculiar resemblance to the exhaust pipes of the just-announced Bentley Mulsanne.

Undoubtedly the world’s greatest looking rearview mirror. The shape was introduced in 2005 for the Zonda F to replace the earlier Zonda C12’s snail eye mirrors.

It is a gorgeous mirror. You have to wonder though what function the LED’s which look like turn indicators serve: the Zonda R is a track car. Although, as you’ve seen with the similarly track-only Maserati MC12 Corsa, Horatio Pagani is perhaps anticipating the gentle and high-speed bending of rules.

Gone are the triple headlights of the Zonda F for these elongated dual units. Surrounding them are a material made by curing cloth and resin in an autoclave commonly known as carbon fiber.

Buried deep in a non-descript Italian industrial park, the Pagani factory doesn't appear to be the birthplace of carbon fibered devils, but once you make it past the wrought-iron security fence that semblance of reality changes in an instant. The lucky guys at Speedhunters were given exclusive photographic access and a four hour personal tour of the factory including the assembly areas and managed to squeeze off some very delicious looking photos. Head on over to Speedhunters to check out their in-depth three-part article of their experience. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Photo Credit: Dino Dalle Carbonare [via SpeedHunters]

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Pagani Zonda R

Ray worships at the alter of this track-focused, ultra-light version of the Pagani Zonda. Somehow, that's the least disturbing thing we've found out about him this week.

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Infiniti Essence Concept

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2010 Audi A4 Allroad Quattro

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Frazer-Nash Namir by Giugiaro

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Spyker C8 Aileron

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This dark knight, just unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, brings the heat with a 739 HP 6.0-liter V12, weight chopped down to 2,360 pounds and a 0-to-60 time of three seconds.

Photo Credit: autoblog.nl

In case you forgot, the Zonda R is Pagani's supposed fair-thee well gift to the Zonda name to the tune of 739 HP from its 6.0 liter V12, good for a 0-60 time in three second and top speed of 233 mph. Start liquidating your assets now because the $1.8 million super car will go fast, both literally and figuratively.

[via WCF]

Must. Suppress. Dragons.

Photos via Carplatform

Highlights are at 30 seconds, 2:30 and pretty much everywhere in between. Make sure you have a sturdy book ready to um ... just get it ready.

We totally want to make dragon-love with those four exhaust pipes — Is that wrong?

[via Evo]

It's been a good run, the Pagani Zonda has stoked many a supercar fantasy and plasters the walls of garages and bedrooms everywhere, but all good things must come to an end. The Zonda R is that end and the Zonda is not fading quietly into history. Everything gets turned up to eleven with this final model, 739 HP 6.0-liter V12, 0-to-60 times of three seconds, and a blistering top speed of 233 MPH.

The car also spares no expense, wearing top shelf parts made of titanium and carbon fiber, and the price shows. Only 15 Zonda R's will be available to the public for a mind-blowing $1.8 million, and they're building one extra to keep at the factory. Guess if you're going to go out, you go out big.

[iMotorMag]

Why Cinque? According to the person who posted this news, and the picture above, only five of the beasts is to be made. We'll assume it's going to carry the same 7.3-Liter Mercedes V12 and will perform best at the track, though we'd still try and drive it down Lake Shore if given the chance. If the photo above entices you like it entices us we recommend buying lottery tickets. Now! (h/t to Joe) [TeamSpeed]