The question of which vehicle inaugurated the use of a carbon fiber monocoque involves several stories of engineering and ambition. In 1984, Horacio Pagani, an Argentine engineer residing in Italy, was working at Lamborghini. Pagani possessed vast technical knowledge and creativity, characteristics that led him to implement a bold idea that his superiors did not support.
Pagani decided to equip the Lamborghini Countach with a body composed mainly of carbon fiber, including Kevlar parts, aiming to increase structural rigidity, reduce weight, and improve performance. This was the first step toward his goal of creating a supercar with a carbon fiber monocoque and body.
The Lamborghini Countach Evoluzione model featured only aluminum fenders and doors, while the rest—hood, roof, wheel arch moldings, and transmission tunnel—was made of composite material. The result was a car weighing only 950 kg, significantly lighter than the standard Countach, and capable of reaching 100 km/h in 0.4 seconds faster, while maintaining the 5.2-liter V12 engine with 455 hp.
To realize this project, Pagani took an extreme risk: since he could not secure company funding to acquire an autoclave, necessary for curing the carbon fiber panels, he obtained a bank loan and financed the equipment personally. After completing the Countach Evoluzione, Pagani tried to convince Lamborghini, but received a refusal: 'If Ferrari is not using carbon fiber in their cars, why should we?' Disheartened, Pagani resigned, taking the autoclave with him, as his future projects would be based on carbon fiber.
Later, in 1990, Lamborghini approached Horacio Pagani to use carbon fiber in components of the Diablo, the successor to the Countach, recognizing his pioneering work. However, Lamborghini missed the opportunity to launch the first supercar with a carbon fiber monocoque, something Pagani only achieved in 1999 with the Pagani Zonda.
Pioneering work, in this context, unexpectedly emerged from the Principality of Monaco. In 1989, Fulvio Ballabio founded Monte Carlo Automobile (MCA) near Sant’Agata Bolognese. Ballabio, who had experience in racing such as Formula 2 and Formula 3000, wanted to create a company capable of competing with big names like Porsche, Ferrari, and Lamborghini. The MCA headquarters were in Fontvieille, but the focus was Monaco.
Ballabio planned to develop the first supercar with a carbon fiber monocoque. To do this, he hired specialists such as Guglielmo Bellasi, Perluigi Corbari, and Carlo Chiti. Bellasi and Ballabio designed the body and the carbon fiber monocoque, Corbari handled the dynamics, and Chiti prepared the engine. Unlike Pagani, MCA sought an autoclave at Pianfei Compositi in Naples, Italy.
The resulting vehicle used the Lamborghini Countach's V12 engine, tuned by Carlo Chiti to produce 502 hp at 5,200 rpm and 58.1 kgfm of torque at 3,800 rpm, coupled with a six-speed ZF manual gearbox. This allowed for 0 to 100 km/h acceleration in 4.4 seconds and reaching 300 km/h in a straight line. Initially named MCA Monegasque, the car was renamed Centenaire in tribute to the 100th anniversary of the Monaco Automobile Club.
Ballabio's initial plan was to produce 100 units, but due to economic difficulties in the early 90s, only five Centenaire units were manufactured between May 1990 and 1992. Ballabio eventually gave up and sold the company to Aixam, which created the Méga sub-brand, resulting in the Méga Track, an off-road supercar with a Mercedes engine.
Another common claim attributes the pioneering role to Gordon Murray's McLaren F1. Although Murray was innovative, his car was launched in 1992, two years after the MCA Centenaire. However, the Centenaire was not purely composite, as it used steel subframes and reinforcing aluminum plates, as noted by Road & Track in April 1992, which raises doubts about its absolute pioneer status.
This puts the title in dispute with the Jaguar XJR-15, announced in November 1990. Unlike the Centenaire, the XJR-15 was born with a racing structure, being a street version of the Jaguar XJR-9 prototype, which won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1988. Developed in partnership between Jaguar and Tom Walkinshaw Racing, it featured a central monocoque and an entirely carbon fiber and Kevlar body, without steel or aluminum reinforcements.
The XJR-15 maintained racing dynamics, with pushrod suspension and a 6.0-liter V12 capable of delivering 456 hp, weighing about 1,050 kg. Manufactured in only 53 examples between 1990 and 1992, it consolidated its status as a rarity. Proponents of the XJR-15 point to its construction being more faithful to the pure composite concept. Furthermore, Peter Stevens' design for the XJR-15 served as the basis for the later McLaren F1.
Curiously, the XJR-15 was culturally overshadowed by the Jaguar XJ220, which arrived later. While the XJ220 became the brand's commercial icon, the XJR-15 was seen as excessively raw and restricted, being used in races such as the Jaguar Intercontinental Challenge in 1991. Technically, while the XJR-15 embraced carbon entirely, the XJ220 used a honeycomb-shaped glued aluminum chassis.