The Ariel Atom – The Naked SuperCar
The Ariel Atom is absolutely the most impractical car you’ll ever lust after. It has no trunk, roof, windshield, doors… hell, even the seats are made of plastic. But none of that matters, because it is the third fastest production car on Earth. And it’s cheap.
My favorite quote from Jeremy Clarkson’s road test of the Atom:
Over the years I’ve flown F-15 fighters and done power-slides in airboats and straffed the desert in helicopter gunships, but for sheer excitement this thing is off the scale.
The Ariel Atom has received great media interest, most recently when it was featured on the Discovery Channel and tested by Jeremy Clarkson on BBC motoring television program Top Gear, where it lapped their test track faster than a Lamborghini Murciélago and a Porsche Carrera GT. Here is that video:
In an issue of Track and Race Car magazine, a comprehensive test was performed on a range of cars, from the Porsche 911 Carrera S, Ford GT, BMW M5 to the Caterham CSR 260. The Supercharged Ariel Atom 1 won the 2005 0-100-0 mph test by a clear margin, reaching 100 mph and then stopping in 10.88 seconds, ahead of the Caterham CSR 260 (11.41) and the Ford GT in 4th (13.17).
The following year, they won Autocar’s 0-100 mph challenge with the new Ariel Atom 2 300 bhp Supercharged edition achieving a time of 6.86 seconds, and then stopping from 100 in 3.8 seconds.
The British newspaper The Sunday Times measured its average acceleration from 0 to 60 at 2.89 seconds, making it the world’s 3rd fastest accelerating production car available today after the $1.3 million, 1001 bhp Bugatti Veyron which reaches 0 to 60 in 2.46 seconds and the Ultima GTR, which reaches 0-60 mph time in 2.6 seconds.
If you’ve got $500 for a half day, or $1,500 for a full day, you can take your turn in an Ariel at a track near you courtesy of the Ariel Atom Experience.
Specifications
- 0-60 mph : 3.5 sec. (2.7 sec. Supercharged)
- Top Speed: 140 mph, 225 km/h (155 mph, 249Km/h Supercharged)
- Power: 220 bhp (300 bhp Supercharged)
- Weight: 600 kg (~1,320 lb)
- Transmission: Honda 6-Speed w/ Reverse
- Price: Base model – £35,000/ Race package – $92,570 (more) (less)
More Information:
- Official Ariel Atom Website
- Official British Ariel Atom Website
- Here is a fantastic article on Edmunds about the Ariel.
- Here is what Automobile Magazine had to say about the Ariel.
- And here is an Ariel Wallpaper Gallery, and another.
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Its all good… really good. Except the price to drive it and what it does to your face!
That was totally awesome – I just watched it twice! Once by myself, and then once with my son – I had to show him! I can’t wait to show my old man and my other son! That thing ROCKS!!!
$500 for half a day on that thing, count me in :D
I’m a little confused by the price? Doesn’t 2 half days = a full day? bu tthen that would only be $1000 right? Normally things get cheaper if I buy in bulk, Why can’t I just buy 2 half days and save $500.
Maybe I’m just missing something, not that I have that kind of $ to spend anyway.
$500 is an awful lot of beer and $1550 is even more!!!
I think I will stick to the beer and watch the video in stead a few times :)
Kim:)
hahaha i love how Jeremys face reacts to the wind, what an amazing car! They should race this against that battery powered prototype!