Mabie
Elite
Smile on Your Face. Bugs in Your Teeth.
THE Ariel Atom 3 has the performance of a Ferrari, the style of a Formula racecar and all the luxuries of a Razor scooter.
Standard features of the two-seat sports car are neck-snapping acceleration and a head-turning look. But doors, windows and a roof are nowhere to be found — even on the options sheet.
For driving enthusiasts willing to sacrifice comfort for high performance, this minimalist recipe bakes up a tempting treat. The Atom weighs only 1,400 pounds, making it 500 pounds lighter than the tiny Lotus Elise and some 1,400 pounds trimmer than a Mini Cooper. As a result, the Atom 3 has go-kart reflexes and supercar acceleration.
According to Ariel, a supercharged Atom sprints from a stop to 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds. Only the world’s fastest exotic cars, like the $2 million Bugatti Veyron, can do better.
A naturally aspirated 197-horsepower Atom starts just under $50,000; a 245-horse version is $51,705. Adding a supercharger bumps the horsepower to 300 and pushes the price to $57,151. Depending on your point of view, this makes an Atom the performance steal of the century — or a bucket of bucks for a car that won’t keep you dry in the rain.
You don’t need to watch an episode of “The Biggest Loser” to know that extreme weight savings requires serious sacrifices. The Atom has no windows or fenders, no stereo, no heater or air-conditioner. Climate control is a matter of checking the weather forecast and dressing accordingly.
There are no air bags, antilock brakes or stability control — omissions permitted for low-volume manufacturers.
A small wind deflector seems intended to reduce the number of bugs in your teeth. For those uninterested in entomophagy, an actual windshield is offered this year as a $2,850 option.
I took an Atom 3 on a memorable loop from lower Manhattan to the Hudson River Valley. Getting in is a challenge, ungracefully accomplished by stepping over the side, directly onto the base of the seat. With both legs in the car, you slide down into driving position — especially awkward, one supposes, in a skirt. A stout tubular steel frame is all that separates you from the outside world.
Despite the rollbar that framed the air intake over my right shoulder, I was handed a helmet before my drive. While not strictly necessary, the helmet offers an extra level of safety along with the only privacy available when maneuvering a totally exposed open-wheel sports car though New York City.
Before I’d even shifted the 6-speed manual into second gear, I was pelted with questions from other drivers. I shouted muffled responses through the helmet padding while keeping an eye out for cabs unwilling to cede space to this otherworldly (and very low) car.
On the West Side Highway and then the Saw Mill River Parkway, the supercharged growl of the 2-liter 4-cylinder engine rose an octave as the revs climbed and the speed increased. Surrounded by nothing but air and steel tubing, the first few miles in an Atom are pure sensory overload.
It is both thrilling and terrifying to watch a New York highway blur past in an open car, the pavement so close you could hang your arm out and file your nails. You watch the front wheels and suspension components hard at work, bouncing and weaving with every pothole and expansion strip. The ride was firm but not brutal, though the pummeling of the wind — and my eagerness to embrace any opportunity to send the car darting on a dime — knocked my helmeted head around like a rag doll.
It’s tempting to view every straightaway as an Indy 500 fantasy, so if you’re planning to register an Atom for street use you’ll wish the options sheet included a spare driver’s license.
In Europe, fans of elemental sports cars have been enjoying the Atom’s simple charms for nearly a decade. Ariel Motor of Crewkerne, Somerset, has built about 100 Atoms annually since 2000. Sales in the United States began in 2006, initially through Brammo Motorsports of Oregon. Since 2008, TMI AutoTech has been assembling Atoms in Alton, Va.; it now distributes and markets the cars nationwide.
Because owners enjoy pushing their Atoms to the limit, TMI organizes track days at racetracks around the country. “It’s the fastest car on the block at these events,” said Mark Swain, TMI’s vice president for marketing and sales. Despite this kind of punishment, Mr. Swain credits the Atom’s 2-liter Honda engine — the same one in the Civic Si — with excellent power and reliability.
While an Atom is built for speed, ordering one requires patience. Production of an American-spec Atom can take four months. TMI says it works with each owner to ensure that the car meets legal requirements of the state it will call home. But registering one for street use — many are reserved for the track — is easier in some states than others; in New York, the Atom can be registered only as a “homemade or unique” vehicle, requiring that the chassis be bought separately from the powertrain.
THE Ariel Atom 3 has the performance of a Ferrari, the style of a Formula racecar and all the luxuries of a Razor scooter.
Standard features of the two-seat sports car are neck-snapping acceleration and a head-turning look. But doors, windows and a roof are nowhere to be found — even on the options sheet.
For driving enthusiasts willing to sacrifice comfort for high performance, this minimalist recipe bakes up a tempting treat. The Atom weighs only 1,400 pounds, making it 500 pounds lighter than the tiny Lotus Elise and some 1,400 pounds trimmer than a Mini Cooper. As a result, the Atom 3 has go-kart reflexes and supercar acceleration.
According to Ariel, a supercharged Atom sprints from a stop to 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds. Only the world’s fastest exotic cars, like the $2 million Bugatti Veyron, can do better.
A naturally aspirated 197-horsepower Atom starts just under $50,000; a 245-horse version is $51,705. Adding a supercharger bumps the horsepower to 300 and pushes the price to $57,151. Depending on your point of view, this makes an Atom the performance steal of the century — or a bucket of bucks for a car that won’t keep you dry in the rain.
You don’t need to watch an episode of “The Biggest Loser” to know that extreme weight savings requires serious sacrifices. The Atom has no windows or fenders, no stereo, no heater or air-conditioner. Climate control is a matter of checking the weather forecast and dressing accordingly.
There are no air bags, antilock brakes or stability control — omissions permitted for low-volume manufacturers.
A small wind deflector seems intended to reduce the number of bugs in your teeth. For those uninterested in entomophagy, an actual windshield is offered this year as a $2,850 option.
I took an Atom 3 on a memorable loop from lower Manhattan to the Hudson River Valley. Getting in is a challenge, ungracefully accomplished by stepping over the side, directly onto the base of the seat. With both legs in the car, you slide down into driving position — especially awkward, one supposes, in a skirt. A stout tubular steel frame is all that separates you from the outside world.
Despite the rollbar that framed the air intake over my right shoulder, I was handed a helmet before my drive. While not strictly necessary, the helmet offers an extra level of safety along with the only privacy available when maneuvering a totally exposed open-wheel sports car though New York City.
Before I’d even shifted the 6-speed manual into second gear, I was pelted with questions from other drivers. I shouted muffled responses through the helmet padding while keeping an eye out for cabs unwilling to cede space to this otherworldly (and very low) car.
On the West Side Highway and then the Saw Mill River Parkway, the supercharged growl of the 2-liter 4-cylinder engine rose an octave as the revs climbed and the speed increased. Surrounded by nothing but air and steel tubing, the first few miles in an Atom are pure sensory overload.
It is both thrilling and terrifying to watch a New York highway blur past in an open car, the pavement so close you could hang your arm out and file your nails. You watch the front wheels and suspension components hard at work, bouncing and weaving with every pothole and expansion strip. The ride was firm but not brutal, though the pummeling of the wind — and my eagerness to embrace any opportunity to send the car darting on a dime — knocked my helmeted head around like a rag doll.
It’s tempting to view every straightaway as an Indy 500 fantasy, so if you’re planning to register an Atom for street use you’ll wish the options sheet included a spare driver’s license.
In Europe, fans of elemental sports cars have been enjoying the Atom’s simple charms for nearly a decade. Ariel Motor of Crewkerne, Somerset, has built about 100 Atoms annually since 2000. Sales in the United States began in 2006, initially through Brammo Motorsports of Oregon. Since 2008, TMI AutoTech has been assembling Atoms in Alton, Va.; it now distributes and markets the cars nationwide.
Because owners enjoy pushing their Atoms to the limit, TMI organizes track days at racetracks around the country. “It’s the fastest car on the block at these events,” said Mark Swain, TMI’s vice president for marketing and sales. Despite this kind of punishment, Mr. Swain credits the Atom’s 2-liter Honda engine — the same one in the Civic Si — with excellent power and reliability.
While an Atom is built for speed, ordering one requires patience. Production of an American-spec Atom can take four months. TMI says it works with each owner to ensure that the car meets legal requirements of the state it will call home. But registering one for street use — many are reserved for the track — is easier in some states than others; in New York, the Atom can be registered only as a “homemade or unique” vehicle, requiring that the chassis be bought separately from the powertrain.
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