Launching a follow-up to the award-winning Zonda supercar was never going to be an easy feat, but despite the bar being set so high, Horacio Pagani and his team at Pagani Automobili have done the impossible. They have come out with a worthy successor, the new Huayra supercar.

Named after an ancient South American god of wind, the Huayra marks the first car Pagani will be marketing to a U.S. audience. Unfortunately, Pagani fans in the U.S. will have to wait a little while longer as the company tackles EPA and CARB regulatory certification.

How long will that be? According to Pagani, the first Huayras should be delivered to customers by June of next year.

As is the case for most supercar manufacturers, the U.S. is still the most important market, though China and the Middle East are close on its heels. Emphasizing that importance, Pagani has already presented the Huayra at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance twice, first in 2011 and again this year.

At the most recent event, Horacio Pagani reaffirmed his company’s plans to start deliveries of the Huayra by the middle of 2013.

“The welcome we have received by the American audience and car enthusiasts in 2011 made us eager to return in 2012 with an even stronger presence and we cannot wait to see the first US-spec Pagani Huayras on North American soil in mid-2013,” he said.

Numbers are limited due to the regulations, and at present Pagani’s U.S. allocation slots are filling up fast. Given the performance stats and some of the early reviews, it’s easy to see why there’s so much interest in the Huayra.

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

The design of the Huayra has been influenced by the combination of art and science. This can be seen directly in the aerodynamic shape of the body, which has been designed to mimic the pattern of flowing wind. Under this complex mix of streamlined panels and sharp creases is an amazing technological showpiece.

Its powerplant is a V-12 engine hewn by the tuning gods at AMG. Thanks to the efforts of a pair of turbochargers, the engine delivers a hefty 700 horsepower and 811 pound-feet of torque. Drive is sent to the rear wheels via a single clutch seven-speed automated Xtrac gearbox, and when combined with a lithe 3,064-pound curb weight, will hurtle the Huayra to 60 mph from rest in just 3.2 seconds and see it reach a top speed of over 235 mph.

In case you’re interested, the Auto Gallery of Beverly Hills and British Motor Cars of San Francisco are listed as dealers. Pricing is expected to start at around $1.4 million.

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