Ariel Atom 500

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wonder how JC's face will look driving this :lol:
Ariel has announced the latest version of the Atom – the Ariel Atom 500, powered by a small V8 engine.

With over 500bhp in a 500kilo package the Atom 500 will boast one of the highest power to weight ratios ever for a production car.

The Atom will have over 1000bhp per tonne (compared to a Bugatti Veyron’s 521bhp/tonne) and will be built in limited numbers.

The 500 started life as a one off special project with RS Developments in 2007 and features the Russell Savory designed 2.4 litre V8 engine coupled to a 6 speed sequential Sadev gearbox.

Developing over 500bhp at 10,000rpm the supercharged engine features all alloy construction, 5 valves per cylinder and a dry sump.

The gearbox will have flatshift capability, a paddle gearchange with manual override as well as launch and traction controls.

The new car is recognisable by twin rear intakes for intercoolers and will feature a unique colour scheme for chassis, wheels and bodywork combined with carbon fibre panels and carbon fibre aerofoils.

Other features will include chromemoly aerofoil wishbones, integrated function steering wheel, Alcon 4 pot caliper brakes and Dymag magnesium wheels.

Simon Saunders, Director of Ariel, said: ‘This is an interesting project for us and an experimental departure from what we normally produce.

'For a few customers the Atom 500 will be the ultimate expression of lightweight performance and represents the outer limits of what is achievable in a road registered car.

'We also use this sort of project to explore the possibilities of how we can improve our standard cars.

'The Honda engined production cars already combine all the elements that we want in an Atom and by pushing the envelope to these sorts of extremes we can further improve the breed.’

The Atom 500 will be produced in Somerset at the new Ariel factory with the first car available from Spring this year.

Prices have not yet been finalised and expect performance to be earth shattering…
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No sane person could think that the existing supercharged version of the Ariel Atom is lacking in urge – but the Somerset-based sportscar maker has decided to raise the bar regardless, with a V8-powered version of its skeletal roadster.

The “500” refers to both the supercharged 2.4 litre V8 engine’s claimed power output of 500 bhp and the target weight of 500 kilograms. Which, to spare you the maths, translates as a power-to-weight ratio of 1000 bhp / tonne. Both power and weight figures are identical to those claimed by Caterham for its forthcoming supercharged Levante. Unsurprising, as it turns out – as the Ariel shares the same Russell Savory developed motor as the Caterham.

The bike-derived V8 engine weighs just 90 kg and produces peak power at a dizzy 10,000 rpm. Drive is delivered through a sequential gearbox controlled by paddle shifters. The Atom 500 will also feature both launch and traction control.

The 500 will be distinguished from lesser Atoms by major twin air intakes for the intercoolers, plus a gold colourscheme for the wheels, chassis tub and bodywork. Vast carbonfibre wings sit at each end and will be capable of producing serious aerodynamic downforce.

No performance figures or targets are have been released yet, but the 300 bhp Atom Supercharged blitzed all competitors in last year’s 0-100-0 challenge. According to Ariel boss Simon Saunders, the 500 should be substantially quicker and is clearly targeted at breaking records:

“This is an interesting project for us and an experimental departure from what we normally produce. For a few customers the Atom 500 will be the ultimate expression of lightweight performance and represents the outer limits of what’s achievable in a road-registered car.”

The Atom 500 will go on sale in the spring. Prices have yet to be finalised, but Ariel promises it will be “competitive on cost as well as performance.”
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What the...figures sound exactly the same as the latest Caterham...coincidence?

I'll have a Caterham though, the Atom never looked anything car-like in my opinion...
 
Wow. Just, wow.

This gets the award for epic-ness, but I'm unsure if its more than the Caterham from the other thread?
 
Oh, great. Caterham produces a deathtrap, and now Ariel has to produce one, too. at least The Ariel will have more downforce, but I don't want to try driving either, espeically on a wet/damp track.

But what are all these cars aimed at? the Top Gear track record?
 
American peeps - forget about getting an Atom for a little while. Brammo, the company that had the rights to build and sell the Atom in the US, has ditched production and sold the rights to Canadian company Trak, who have just gotten the Atom itself legalized in America's Hat. I think it will take a bit to turn over production to the manufacturer, and also importing cars from Canada to the US will be tricky too.
 
Not that I'd consider getting one without a wetsuit. Or waterproofed leathers.

(Mark Twain once said "If you don't like the weather in Illinois, wait 30 minutes; It'll change. With weather THAT unpredictable, I'd at least want a car with a covered roof, and bodywork around my legs, even if it's just a weekend blast.)

On the other hand, this thing will break "production" car records everywhere it goes. I look forward to The Stig's lap.
 
I bet it's deemed undriveable in any and all car reviews.

Serious, those wheels ain't all that wide and that engine is alot of weight on those back wheels compared to what seems to be very little on the front.
 
two things...

Grippy tires.
Wings.

Yeah, It'll be difficult to drive. Lots of power, not much weight...But it'll be easier to drive than it's Caterham counterpart, to be sure!!!

I'd like to see those two in a comparison test.
 
There's MB AMG models with bigger tyres and alot more weight that struggle to make traction with that sort of power.

And wings to sweet f-all when your trying to get off the start line.
 
I think they need to put wider tires on it. What good is that wing going to do if there isn't enough rubber to put all the power to the ground?
 
ExigeEvan
There's MB AMG models with bigger tyres and alot more weight that struggle to make traction with that sort of power.

And wings to sweet f-all when your trying to get off the start line.
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I fully agree with you. I think this has gone way too far. There's no way this thing is drivable like at all. Ya fast, but useless if all it does is just push you back into your seat ridiculously and just powers forward way too fast for its own good. There's a point where you gotta draw a line.
 
MustangSVT
Ya fast, but useless if all it does is just push you back into your seat ridiculously and just powers forward way too fast for its own good.
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Yes but we already know the Atom can turn too. Power delivery is clearly the biggest problem here, and I think someone will have to drive it before we can have any idea of how this machine actually works. Just saying the tires look too narrow to put the power down doesn't make them the wrong choice. I'm sure they've driven the car themselves and made any appropriate changes. We'll just have to wait a bit.

And who else could see this coming? They've always been dancing around with powerplants in the Atom, it was just a matter of waiting for something ludicrous like this to get shoved in there.
 
Now the battle is on....

Ariel Atom 500 vs. Caterham RST-V8 Levante
:D :drool: 👍

Both cars are on a similar level such as a 1000bhp per ton as well as having a 500+hp V8 engine and a rev of 10'000rpm. Its quite interesting as to whether each car is crazy enough lap around a circuit similar to the Caparo T1's time. TG better make a segment for both of these cars next season..... 👍
 
^ Well, have just to wait either EVO, Car, Fifth Gear, and Top Gear TV to have a great comparison.
 
ExigeEvan
There's MB AMG models with bigger tyres and alot more weight that struggle to make traction with that sort of power.

And wings to sweet f-all when your trying to get off the start line.
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You say that as though weight helps with traction????

The wheels will spin when they're trying to push a 2 ton car off the line.

They won't have much problem pushing a 500kg car off the line.
 
Well, In the AMG's case (and in the much lighter 427 Cobra's case) Torque is the problem. I don't see a huge amount of torque coming from a 2.7L V8, nothing that little "Trackday slicks" can't handle.

The AMG SHOULD get better traction than said Cobra with the same tires, at least off the line. Friction is directly proportional to weight, after all. However the Cobra also has less weight to push forward, so while it produces less friction, it takes less force to get going forward, which may mean it could get to a speed where it'd hook up quicker.

A better example might be a diesel locomotive: those used in slow drag services tend to be heavier than those for high-speed services. The Drag locos are heavier for the extra traction, while high-speed locos are lighter to reduce forces on track. Since the electric drive motors make their highest effort at low speeds, traction is more important with a slow, heavy train, than a faster one of slightly less weight.
 
All this talk of putting the power down would really only affect the car under low-speed turns though, and starting off. Give it a fast track and it'll be flying...

I'd actually think comparing this to the newest Cat, the Caterham would behave a bit more predictably during cornering. Under acceleration it's weight balance will be something at least close to neutral, where as the Atom will end up all Porker-like. I'd think the Atom would take the lap record over it, though.

And then the Caparo would beat it.

I actually thought this would be the engine in the Radical, or the Caparo, but apparently not? I don't remember either being five-valvers. We need more small-capacity V8's around 👍
 
DQuaN
You say that as though weight helps with traction????

The wheels will spin when they're trying to push a 2 ton car off the line.

They won't have much problem pushing a 500kg car off the line.
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Friction=uR . R being the normal reaction acting on the object, "u" is the coefficient of friction.

So yes, extra weight will improve traction. It won't help acceleration sure, which is what you are trying to get from the traction, but extra weight over the axel will improve traction reducing mad wheel spinning.
 
SlipZtrEm
All this talk of putting the power down would really only affect the car under low-speed turns though, and starting off. Give it a fast track and it'll be flying...
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You'd be wrong. Anything over about 400 hp in a Atom will spin the wheels in ANY gear if you put your foot all the way down. The Atom also is a brick. Aero is NOT it's strong suit. The wings help to a degree but the rest of the car is totally open. I froze my tookis off in Nevada less than a month ago driving one from Virginia City to Fernley. :) We were in Cali supporting a buddy who took his 425hp Atom to the UTCC at Buttonwillow last month. And coming in 8th place out of about 30 cars invited was good. Had the 10th fastest lap of the day. Several of the other laps that were counted were in the same car by drivers driving multiple cars and or/changing the numbers out (which I still haven't seen a explanantion of). Those guys had hundreds of laps at Buttonwillow which our guy didn't. He didn't even have hundreds of laps in his Atom at the new power levels (up from 245hp). He had to go with custom Atlantic-derived slicks just to try and get traction. More track time would've improved his results but as it was only his second trip to Buttonwillow (1st time lapping) and the car just came together I think Peter aquitted Atom-owners quite well.
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SlipZtrEm
I'd actually think comparing this to the newest Cat, the Caterham would behave a bit more predictably during cornering. Under acceleration it's weight balance will be something at least close to neutral, where as the Atom will end up all Porker-like. I'd think the Atom would take the lap record over it, though.
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Most Crate vs Atom comparisons comes down to driver experience. With 2 equal drivers and equal HP in each, the Atom has the edge as it's a more modern vehicle. The crate still uses a live axle and other 30 year old technology from the Seven (although the green one at the UTCC had a sweet sequential gearbox in it). The Atom has fully independent and F1 derived geometry's with its' suspension. As far as behaving like a Porker, maybe to a small degree. But unlike the rear engine, rear wheel drive Porsche the Atom is a Mid-Engined vehicle. Setup properly it handles much more neutrally. Just don't lift in a corner, the weight bias is still more to the rear. :)

SlipZtrEm
And then the Caparo would beat it.

I actually thought this would be the engine in the Radical, or the Caparo, but apparently not? I don't remember either being five-valvers. We need more small-capacity V8's around 👍
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The Caparo, if it can stay running long enough, obviously would win as it has downforce and a even larger power to weight ratio. The Radical uses a huge LS lump out of the Vette. The Caparo from what I've read is a complete custom high $$ V8. And sexy as hell. 👍 Before I'd go to a Ultima though I'd go to the Factory Five GTM and a LS7 lump.
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Now one thing NOBODY has mentioned here is the addition, in the case of the Crate and the Atom, of traction control to the new 500hp cars. That'll change things. Too soon to tell in real life. Also wider tires DO NOT HELP on cars of this weight unless they are rated for a 1200lb car. And even those tires (slicks) expect to see hundreds of pounds of downforce to help get heat into them. That's hte hardest thing to source: A street or even track tire that works on such a light vehicle.

It is telling that the Ariel has been in the top 5 of Top Gears leader board for years now (set on a foggy, damp day when all the others in the top 10 were on dry sunny days). Recently pushed down to #6 by the Ascari. The Caterham is nowhere to be seen. The Atom also matched the Guinness world record attempt for quickest car but Andy's Atom lost the clutch that day (it had been smoking since the first pass). Put a fresh clutch in one and the Atom should easily topple that 16 year old record.

Yes, I'm a fan of the Atom, have driven them several times. Just wanting to clear up some misconceptions I've seen here.

PS: Trak Motorsports (TMI) is building the new Atom at V.I.R. No import issues to deal with there.
 
DriverSS
You'd be wrong. Anything over about 400 hp in a Atom will spin the wheels in ANY gear if you put your foot all the way down.
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To be fair, on the road an Atom 300 is no quicker than a 245 - simply because it's not possible to get it onto the deck. You can pull away from rest in 6th gear in any Atom 2 or 3...
 
From Autoblog but much more info and many more photos in this thread at The Atom Club forum

One day it will be mine :D

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Ariel Atom celebrates 10 years, shows off Atom 500 V8 to lucky few

The Ariel Atom is a lightweight, high-performance sports car which started life as a design project by then-student Nik Smart. Ten years later, the Atom has progressed through three iterations, and there are plans to expand the Atom family with the creation of a motorcycle and the upcoming Ariel Atom 500 V8. The bike is still being developed, but some lucky Atom owners got a sneak peek at the V8-powered variant.

To celebrate their 10th anniversary, Ariel invited owners from around the globe to converge on their Crewkerne, Somerset headquarters. Forty-five Atoms gathered in the parking lot while owners were treated to food and drinks inside. Thanks to John Scherrer of the AtomClub.com forums, we're able to get a feel for the festivities, the highlight of which was the unveiling of a completed Ariel Atom 500 V8. But this particular Atom wasn't put together days or weeks before the event – four Ariel employees started with a bare chassis at 10:15 AM and by 3:30 PM, they had a fully built Atom 500 V8, complete with fluids and an alignment. Impressive.

Initial reports stated that the Atom 500 would feature a 2.4-liter supercharged V8. However, the car is instead being fitted with a naturally aspirated 3.0-liter unit. The current Atom 3 is capable of sub-three-second 0-60 times and will hit 100 miles per hour in less than seven seconds, so it's safe to imagine that the Atom 500 V8 will be the first road-going car to reach Ludicrous Speed
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