FK8 Type R power and it’s also ADR compliant!
When the first Ariel Atom was launched in 2004, it soon became one of the most recognisable cars of recent memory with its exposed tubular skeleton frame, rear-mounted engine, and featherlight weight that resulted in the kind of acceleration and handling you'd only might have access to in a million-dollar supercar, or a high performance motorcycle.
Just ahead of the 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed, the small UK manufacturer - which now makes the Nomad off-roader and Ace sports bike - has revealed the Ariel Atom 4, its fourth full iteration and one that’s been completely redesigned. In fact, over the car it’s going to replace, only 3 parts have been carried over.
The deliciously analogue formula has been kept very faithful to the ’04 original, and exemplifying this is the powerplant at the heart of the 4th-generation Atom. Where the first version used a 2.0-litre or 2.4-litre high-revving VTEC out of the Hondas at the time, which was fitted with an aftermarket supercharger kit, this new Atom has the 2.0-litre turbocharged unit from the present day FK8 Civic Type R.
Like the previous Honda engine used, this new motor was chosen primarily for its compact dimensions, reliability, high potential output, and minimal weight penalty. Despite running a custom tune by Ariel, its 238kW and 420Nm output is only slightly off the Honda hot hatch. Critically, the new Atom 4 offers 40 percent more torque over previous Atom 3.5R.
The move from supercharging to turbocharging does mean a more brutal power curve, if one that's a little less linear. And it’s enough, says Ariel, to propel the new car to 100km/h from rest in just 2.8 seconds. That is, assuming you can row through the 6-speed manual gearbox quickly enough. Like the Atoms that have come before, nowhere is it more evident that the driver is the weakest link in the chain. Keep the throttle pinned and 160km/h flies past after just 6.8 seconds before topping out at 260km/h.
Partly responsible for that cartoonish acceleration is the Atom's next-to-nothing weight but also down to the fact that the engine and transmission, and therefore much of the inboard mass, is mounted just above the rear axle, pressing those sticky Avon ZZR tyres into the ground. Oh, and surely the new launch control system does help a ways.
Aside from the powertrain upgrades, the Atom 4’s body is now 15 percent more rigid thanks to larger diameter tubing, and there’s a new digital instrument cluster behind the new suede-lined steering wheel which controls a quicker rack that features a much improved turning circle.
There’s also some comfort-oriented improvements enabled by the full redesign, not least of which is the generally larger passenger cell and independently adjustable seats as well as a full length wind-deflector. With a larger fuel tank of 40-litres, the Atom can also go longer between fill ups now.
Its suspension has received a significant upgrade too, applying the lessons learned from the Atom V8 and Nomad buggy. Each wheel, 16-inch front and 17-inch rear, is given a double wishbone setup with dual-rate Eibach springs and Bilstein dampers. Brakes are supplied by AP Racing with a set of carbon ceramics being optional.
Even better news is that this Ariel Atom 4 is the first version of the car to be designed to meet European Series Type Approval (ESSTA) and Australian Design Rules (ADR) standards, meaning Ariel's order books are soon to be populated customers from many more countries.
