Photography by Jan Morgan
Collection Gift Guide: Atomic Energy
December 1, 2005
Ariel Atom 2
Automotive journalists often describe a purpose-built sports car as a “four-wheel motorcycle” and extol its less-is-more attitude. But even the lightest, most nimble car struggles to duplicate the open-air feel, the instantaneous response, and the intimate contact with the road that today’s powerful sportbikes offer; and less weight frequently translates to less power. The lusty Ariel Atom 2, however, actually is a four-wheel motorcycle with a naked design and a powerful engine to prove that less is more.
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(Click image to enlarge.) So spare is the Atom that this study in vehicular minimalism appears incomplete without a driver at the quick-release, small-diameter steering wheel—its only padded surface. The hard plastic seats, molded as a pair, are bolted in place to suit the driver’s height. The simple SPA instrument panel includes a tachometer and speedometer, along with a digital readout for engine temperatures and pressure. Ariel limits road equipment to turn signals, taillights, and brake lights—just enough to make the Atom road legal.
The chassis features large-diameter tubes and perfect welds, and the attractive, extremely rigid bridge truss imparts a solid feel to the car. Its robust 2-liter Honda
i-VTEC engine, producing 245 hp, was originally installed in the Japanese-market Civic Type R and has just over 1,000 pounds to push—slightly more than one-third of the Civic’s weight. It is mounted at the rear of the skeletal chassis and mated to a 6-speed gearbox and limited slip differential. The Atom bristles with mechanical components such as the Tilton pedals and rocker arm suspension with double adjustable alloy damper sourced from formula racers.
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