Driving this Pagani test car was probably thrilling right up to the point where it careened into the trees.
If you ask most hardcore car guys and car girls if they would like to have a job test driving the likes of a Pagani supercar, their answer would almost certainly be “yes”. There are few jobs that sound as enjoyable as racing around the European countryside in a high-priced, high performance supercar, but the job is probably a whole lot less fun when you crash.
Pagani Wrecked in Germany
According to Jalopnik, the Aalen police headquarters in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, Tweeted the image above on June 22. The caption crudely translates to “Ride with high-end Pagani sports car ends at the tree”, and even without the words – it is clear that this test drive has gone horribly wrong.
More coverage of that initial accident came from the German newspaper Stuttgarter Nachrichten, explaining that the Pagani in the picture was being driven by a 37-year old man when the test car came upon sort some of construction zone. When given the go-ahead to continue past the road work, he hammered the throttle, lost control and sped off of the road, down an embankment and into some trees.
The picture above shows where the Pagani came to rest after the driver failed to control the power on a hard launch.
The Final Toll
The good news is that both the driver and the passenger were unharmed in the crash. According to Road & Track, the driver works for one of the Italian automakers German partners and this car was “an evolution of the Huayra Roadster.” The Huayra Roadster (shown below) is motivated by a twin turbocharged 6.0-liter V12 that delivers 754 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque, so it is understandable how it could get out from under an inexperienced driver – but you would expect a test driver to possess the skills necessary to handle a machine like this.
Finally, while there was no damage to the driver or passenger, the newspaper report states that the damage to the car “amounts to several hundred thousand Euros,” which is equal to roughly $350,000 U.S. dollars. So, this accident is going to be an expensive one to address for the company at fault.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
