300-hp! Less Than 1500 lbs! Ariel Atom Hits The Track

[TheWolfram23]

What does he mean it's a cobalt engine??? The original used a K20 from a Civic Type R, and the second supercharged version is the same engine... then they did a V8 using Hyabusa bike engines for the 500hp version.

[longtimecharliesfan]

its made in the uk by edmonds enginnering



[lowriderlildude92]

its made in america

[2bidfilmsguy]

its a 2 liter honda engine dont know what he was smokin 

[paulhojda]

it´s not a gm engien dumass. it´s a honda civic type r engine

[MrCarGuy20]

@paulhojda Not in the USA "dumass"

[paulhojda]

@MrCarGuy20 well that means that we get the better engine. sorry...:P

[aqnfx]

imported from england? It says on their website made in america.......

[whlzdenis]

@aqnfx it started in england maybe thats why...

now they do it in america i forgot which company was it... i heard also the new engines got something to do with gm

[kimepetersen]

Most of the comments on here are wrong. The original GM Ecotec engine was later replaced in the US by the Honda K20, which is available in three versions: 1) 205 hp; 2) 245 hp; and 3) 300 hp - via a supercharger. The Ecotec is no longer available for the Atom.

[WITHAMF]

i had a ride in one of these recently in england - the acceleration is so brutal its like getting smacked in the face!

[ClickClackClickClack]

Cobalt SS turbo is nothing to sneeze at. It costs like 10k over the base Cobalt. I think the atom's street legality varies by state. I wouldn't want to take it out on the street - too small to see in some cars.

[ClickClackClickClack]

Nothing wrong with the direct injected turbo charged ecotec engine.

[NeoQuello]

i wish it was powered by VW or Merc...

[Corveette]

Street legal?

[Wiegieboard]

@Corveette In the UK it's street legal. One of my clients drives one to work in the summer.

[mabisfab77paintball]

@Wiegieboard what summer lol

[Wiegieboard]

@mabisfab77paintball lol very valid

[veyronman]

@Corveette yes

[marshknute]

Why would anybody want a car that shares an engine with the Chevy Cobalt? I recently had one as a rental car, and it was the worst car I have ever driven. The interior was a sea of horrible plastics, the engine was underpowered and it refused to accelerate. Its 0-60 time isn't measured with a stopwatch, but rather a calendar. Chevy deserves to go bankrupt for producing something as bad as the Cobalt.

[marshknute]

@marshknute Never mind, disregard my angry rant. I just checked Ariel's website, and the new US models come standard with the Honda Civic Type-R engine.

[rossisaurus]

a qualified "Like" ... as rofLopolous and julianleeho ask, why did they change the engine?!

[ZerostarMedia]

from wikipedia

" a supercharged 2.0 litre, 300 hp (220 kW) GM Ecotec engine."

He even says ecotech in the video if you listen closely lol. There are ariel atoms with Honda motors, just not this one.

[noodleninjaa]

What purpose does the wheel fenders serve?

[numerocro]

What can power of Dream Honda give ? Ariel Atom :)

[ZerostarMedia]

@numerocro Hahahahah what are you talking about its an ecotech engine from CHEVY.

[numerocro]

@ZerostarMedia hmmm, then home page of ariel atom writed wrong name of engine, and on wiki too....i didnt read there that this is chevy engine....

[masterpatric07]

i go all the way with the honda engine.

[m55js]

ecotec ftw

[idontcare80]

@m55js Ariel ditched the Ecotec. Ecotec FTL, as always.

[RWTFska8te]

500hp Ariel Atom 3 vs. Bugatti Veyron 16.4? That'll be EPIC

[tytig94]

I wonder how much it cost to make that contraption?

[zoneracer]

eco teach you go to the Ariel Atom website they say its a 300 hp civic type r eng

[drtyfknmouth]

You know, I'm REALLY surprised that it doesn't corner even better than it does. Don't get me wrong, it's damned good, but my 1984 Corvette did .95 Gs on the skid pad from the factory & according to Motortrend, the Ariel does .90. Also as light as it is, it doesn't stop as fast as the ZR1 (60-0 in 96 ft ZR1, 99 ft Atom). ZR1 has ceramic brakes, but w the weight diff, that shouldn't matter. I would absolutely LOVE to own an Atom, though! Gotta start digging deep for THAT toy :). Fantastic car!

[LiveLarger]

This car will totataly rape your Corvette on the track. It rapes a brand new ZR1 with the original honda engine. Can't understand why they replace one of the best engines ever made with this one.

[JcmMagNoo]

the atom is the faster car at a fifth of the price than a Zr1

[drtyfknmouth]

@JcmMagNoo A FIFTH OF THE PRICE?!?! Have you ever looked up the price of the 2??? Try that first, then come back and give me your opinion, pal. An Atom is more than half the price of a ZR1.

[JcmMagNoo]

UMM YES I SAID A FIFTH OF THE PRICE!!!

THE ONES BUILT HERE IN THE USA, ONE FUCKING FIFTH OF THE FUCKING PRICE OF A FUCKING ZR1. AND BTW ITS NOW THE ATOM 3. SOcal can make better atoms than the brits can make!!! USA!

[Diddstarpure]

@JcmMagNoo yeah allright then americans make good cars okay then mate when you wake up call us europeans and the japanese too.

[bigbjs100]

@JcmMagNoo According to the website the newest version starts at $50K and since the ZR1 is $100K....that's not exactly one fifth....and you get a windshield !! Plus a view other things...

[HerrMueller93]

@bigbjs100 i wouldn't pay $50,000 for a windshield though. haha would you? i think i'll take the atom, and the atom 500 when it comes out...

[LiveLarger]

Think I'd rather have it with the original engine. One of the best engines ever made.

[tommysch]

They had one on top gear and it had less body cover and used a supercharged Civic Type-R engine making 300HP.

[tc0nk]

Yeah this is the Atom II. The one on Top Gear was an Ariel Atom III, they upgraded to the Civic Type R Engine.

[gw15100]

this is no gocart?? gr8 brit car

[backintack]

I think of it as the worlds fastest gocart lol

[07HONDA400EX07]

why does it sound like a powerwheel? those little electric car things for kids at like 1:24? LOL!

[qball141]

that's the sound of a supercharger

[Hahu10]

Best Place To Be -> glinkai.mybrute. com

Have Fun^

[rofLopolous]

why did they change the civic 2 litre engine out for this one from the cobalt?

[Energonorama]

There are a number of other changes from the British domestic model too. I assume it's cheaper to send all the bits to a builder in the US who sources a similar engine and makes the necessary modifications for the US market. It's possible that the tuned Honda engine doesn't pass Californian laws, but it's more likely that a deal has been struck with the US goverment and a US supplier. i.e "you can sell them here so long as we put them together and use our surplus engines".

It's a road car here.

[rofLopolous]

oh right. so its not just the motor thats different....yea ur explanation would make sense then.

cheers! And i think its road car in the UK as well.

[Energonorama]

hey no problem, they are only minor differences, the cut-off switch and extinguisher etc. Im sure if you asked Ariel they could add extras wherever you live.

Im in the UK and it's definately a road car here, but I'm not sure about in the US. I heard it was track only or a kit car or something? Maybe you have to build it yourself!

[SmerfTeam]

@rofLopolous Atom is produced in both USA and England. The English ver. has civic type r engine and the USA spec has cobalts enging

[theleadinbrumie]

@SmerfTeam True, they had to apply for a liscnece off of ariel atom in the UK to legally produce them in the US and the US 1's dont have the Type R engines because the company couldnt get hold of enough

[skyykloudz]

@rofLopolous the end result even with the ecotec from the cobalt ss was still identical as the uk ones with the civic motor, but they still switched back to the civic type-r engine for their current models

[odalV]

@rofLopolous some of them still have it but its limited to a few cars most of them will be ecotec

[bix134]

it's road legal!!

[iPodTouchReviews09]

i hoping to get an Ariel Atom, once i have finished university, this a really silly question, but is it road legal

[iPodTouchReviews09]

..or is a track only car

[BotterbrodtGE]

WEbsite selling terms says the car is for off road racing track use only, it is not supplied with a 12 digit vin # so it can't be registered.

[slydewinder]

I have heard you can register them as a kit car and be legal, but I don't know how involved that would be.

[YNWAIJOSEPHICFC]

yes its road legal

the person that lives next to me has one

[iPodTouchReviews09]

ok thanks

[TripleCraft]

Yes it is

[iPodTouchReviews09]

thanks

[ToroQ3000]

The Honda AND the GM engine have had reliability problems with this car because people push the Atom so much (because it's so easy to do so) along with a supercharger. Even the x-bow's VW engine have had its reliability problems. Arial, or Brammes, needs to develop their own engine or make a production model based off a single-seater series like the F2 Audi engine.

[adam0900909]

The proper one is still better, and american cars as a rule are shit compared to european ones. They do have the odd one that is good though. And PLEASE stop going on about lap times, do you live on a track?NO. You spend 99% of your time on the road where european cars rape pretty much all us ones.

[mightymiget27]

So the fastest car in the world is europeein? oh no thats right right its made by the far superior Americans...

[geovora043]

yet "far superior" americans can't spell

[a2k00]

It does, It has a K20A2 Civic Type R engine that is supercharged, This Yank is talking out his ass

[blasimatt]

dumb ass maybe you should check the history of the car, when it was originally made available in the US the company that had the rights to the car changed from the Honda to the GM motor. So you are the one talking out of your ass....yes it does no use the Honda motor and the International version always did but the US version did not.

Also Jay Leno is one of the ones who had the idea and helped to push through the GM motor as the used powertrain.

[a2k00]

Mate i couldnt give a fuck what the Yanks did with a good design of a car, Its up to them if they want to put a shit engine into it. General motors have gone under allready, American cars are shit

[blasimatt]

Really "Mate" because the Cadillac CTS-V kicked both the BMW M3 AND the M5 on the Ring, The Corvette still competes quite competitively and some of the fasted Australian cars are using GM LSX motors....

Easy to talk shit when you have no idea what your talking about. And that GM motor you think is shit has been proven to hold over 600bhp for a 4 cyl that is not bad at all.

If you think American cars are shit well you obviously don't know shit.

[a2k00]

American cars are shit... JDM all the way

[blasimatt]

I also like your only response to not knowing what the fuck your talking about is to say "i couldnt give a fuck" really not a great argument.

Oh and the platform worked well but with both motors, Honda is not the best motor manufacturer but they are a CHEAP one.

[2jzgtejza80]

@blasimatt

Ariel Atom US:

Brammo Ecotec 2.2 NA, 145bhp >>> 35,000$

Brammo Ecotec 2.4 NA, 170bhp >>> 38,000$

Brammo Ecotec 2.0 SC, 170bhp >>> 40,500$

Honda K20 (USDM K20Z3, 201-215bhp >>> 40,000$

Honda K20A Supercharged (also available, but not in all North America, i know only in Canada) >>>>> 45,000$ >>> rated power is 295-305bhp

And you still think that GM have better, more powerful, more quality, and durability engines than Honda??? Look the prices, GM engines are overpriced. END!!!

[blasimatt]

@2jzgtejza80 Your correct in that the options now in the US on the Atom 3 are the K20 motor, what I said was when it was first brought to the United States it was the Ecotec for US versions of the Atom 2. It was then switched back to the K20 or the Atom 3 after Brammo stopped producing them in the US and TMI Ariel Atom picked it up, now based in southern Virginia at VIR.

[2jzgtejza80]

@blasimatt

And yes, Ariel Atom 1 has used the Rover's engine and 2 GM's, 3rd using GM and Honda engines.

And GM has put the offer 2.4L Ecotec SC with 220 + bhp, which will be installed in the Atom with a price higher than Honda's K20A SC model.

[xllegend]

K20A2 is not a Type R engine. The K20A2 is from USDM RSX-S 2002-2004. The type R is just K20A

[a2k00]

Wrong again. The K20A2 lump is the UKDM civic type R EP3 engine 197BHP, The K20A is the JDM civic type R EP3 engine producing 212BHP

[2jzgtejza80]

@a2k00

I read on one site that the team from Best Motoring tested the Ariel Atom and said that the version that the UK has a K20A engine that develops 240-245bhp @ 8600rpm, which is used in the Honda Civic Mugen, too. Supercharger was added to the 300 version.

[darkshadowscene]

i thought it had a honda civic supercharged

[blasimatt]

Not all of them did when it was originally brought to the US it was being built with a GM Ecotec motor. It was decided for availability and was not a bad motor.

[EvoIXfan]

5-speed gearbox? I thought it was 6+reverse

[routhoula]

this would pawn in underground races

[omarspence]

Why a crap GM engine? the Honda is way better, I hope there really is a Honda option in the states, but if not I would rather import it from the UK myself.

[Towelman20]

I want this car.

[xsilviadrifterx]

since when did they change the ariel to the ecotec ? it used to be a k20a supercharged

[smashedgnome]

you get the ecotech in North America but the Honda is still a option i think

[xsilviadrifterx]

yeah i saw something on it on my classic car at jay leno's garage they make the ecotec in america but over sea's they put the honda engine in it.

[shircle]

the atom 2 has the ecotec engine, but the new atom 3 went back to the civic engine. they did it because of smog regulations i think but now i guess they got the type r engine smog legal in the us

[julianleeho]

thought this has a type r engine!? why did they change it?

[xboxstrwrs55]

Emissions couldn't make it in the U.S.

[julianleeho]

wtf? really? i thought the k20 is a green engine

[kasdri]

No no man ! xboxstr does not know what he's talking about. Think about it the Type R was sold in america and met all BIN emmission standards. The reasons that there is a chevy motor in it is because to import it into america there had to be "american content" in the vehicle. Just type in "Aerial Atom" and "Top Gear" and you will see that the engineers of the atom prefered the Honda engine. There is a video on YouTube that states all this.

[julianleeho]

thanks man! who doesnt prefer the honda engine?

[quuaa1]

There was availability issues the Civic Type R engine. That model car isn't sold in North America, they would all have to be imported. However, Chevy should have a good stock of ecotec engines. The reason why, is because car companies are required by law to keep spare parts for 10 years after a car is manufactured, that includes engines, whether or not they sell.

[togosjoe]

It is actually an Ariel Atom 2 which is made by Brammo Motorsports. They went over the whole British model and improved everything they could. the Atom 2 is about 2 inches wider.

[jonnyknight1988]

Shame about the gear box lol

[hcvhcvhcvhcv]

@julianleeho more torque

[veyronman]

@julianleeho probably something to do with stupid american laws

[julingy]

@julianleeho they seem to need to put pointless horrible american engines in things or else there will just be a whole bunch of shit engines lying around, and americans out of jobs

[inagod]

@julingy Its a really good engine,maybe not as good as the Honda,but very capable of producing big horsepower and living.

[600SELV12]

saturn engine? WTF??? What happened to the supercharged type-r 300hp engine?

[TopSpeedCGT]

Yeah they switched the engines when importing to the US. I think it was something to do with emissions, quite the step down compared to the supercharged type-R engine.

[quuaa1]

Also, we don't have the Civic type r in north america, and the si does not compare to the type r's specs. With that in mind, how the fuck would they get the engines from that car? This engine takes premium gas instead of 110 octane also, which means you can actually fuel it at any gas station you come across.

[kemuksigak]

The ecotec is a nice engine and can handle alot of power, but they should have used to the newer turbo version for the car. It's not the screamer and rev monster that the Type-R motor is, but it's a torque monster with great potential.

[3naCria]

wow where can i get one!

[AxLstyle]

they are made in uk so you may be able to get one anywere in europe

[quuaa1]

No, they're made in the US now.