Ariel Atom 4 review

It’s the Ariel Atom, the evergreen giant slayer. The lightweight that can take down any heavyweight. Except in the arena of social media, where it’s all about high end hypercars and how they’re the fastest things on God’s (less) green earth – conveniently forgetting that, while social media may have changed, physics hasn’t.

A basic Ariel Atom 4, yours for a fortieth the cost of most hypercars, still weighs less than 600kg. It’s low, wide, has chubby tyres and oodles of power. Even the entry-level one goes around the Top Gear Test Track quicker than a Bugatti Veyron. The new flagship 4RR is the fourth fastest road car that’s ever been round.

But is it just a track car?

The daft ones, the ones with splitters and wings and carbon wheels, are. But the ‘ordinary’ one isn’t. The regular Atom 4 is just about the most fun you can have on a B-road. Or any other type of road come to that.

You do need to be a particular type of person though, to see masochism as a calling, to relish the claustrophobia that only a crash helmet can bring, to love the very particular tingle that is a stone pinging off your bicep. Of course, if you want more protection there's always the Nomad…

You do need... to see masochism as a calling, to relish the claustrophobia that only a crash helmet can bring

Daily driver it isn’t – although it’s as light and easy to drive as a Corsa and does have enough luggage space under the nose cone for, ooh, a pair of driving gloves. And perhaps a pair of bicycle clips to stop the wind blowing up your trouser legs.

Talk me through a bit of Atom history.

The first one came out in 1999. A quick glance might convince you that nothing has changed since – this fourth generation car still has the two elements that made the original so recognisable: the lattice work profile and the airbox between the seats.

Originally fitted with a 125bhp Rover K-Series engine, this got upgraded to Honda power in 2003 when the Atom 2 came along. But the chassis, packaging and so on remained largely the same. Sure, the handling was tweaked over the years, but the steps were small, evolutionary.

The Atom 3 arrived in 2007 and the range expanded with the addition of the Atom 500 V8 and the supercharged Atom 3.5R. But 2018’s Atom 4 saw the most thorough and complete overhaul of the Atom in its 20-year history. Only four components (the pedal box, the fuel cap, the steering wheel and top six inches of the steering column) were carried over.

So what changed?

Technology got involved. CAD, CFD, aerodynamics. New chassis with thicker tubes, all-new suspension design, a completely rethought dash.

But the engine is still at the back driving the rear wheels through a Honda Civic’s six-speed manual gearbox (as before the whole 2.0-litre four cylinder turbocharged powertrain is Honda’s, from gearbox to catalyst pack). Ariel has to run its own ECU, and has opted for three switchable engine maps that vary power between 220bhp, 290bhp and 320bhp.

Peak power-to-weight is 538bhp/tonne (better than a Ferrari 296 Speciale) and there’s 310lb ft of torque at 3,000rpm. Acceleration is predictably vivid: 0-60mph in 2.8 seconds and 0-100mph in 6.8s. A top speed of 162mph is achieved by a huge reduction in aero drag.

That’s just the base model right? What about other variants?

Two are currently available and they conform to track type. In 2023 Ariel launched the Atom 4R, with 400bhp and 369lb ft, and made it available with a host of track features, including carbon wheels, splitter and rear wing.

Then last year along came the even more intense Atom 4RR (imaginative naming is a key company strength). This gives the engine a complete inside and out overhaul resulting in outputs of 525bhp and 400lb ft in a car that weighs under 700kg. 0-60mph takes 2.4 seconds, 0-100mph 5.1s.

How much does all this cost?  

As ever the more speed you add, the more exponentially the price goes up. If you can resist the options list you can have a basic Atom for less than £50,000. The Atom 4R starts at £77,940 – but we should emphasise the ‘starts’ as most buyers find it impossible to resist upgrading suspension, brakes, aero, wheels, seatbelts and a whole heap of other goodies.

The 4RR is full-on supercar money: £249,600. For that you get just about the most extreme road legal experience you can have.

Does the Atom have any rivals?

Yes, and they're not all British. We recently drove the Donkervoort P24 RS – a Dutch take on the Caterham 7 formula, and if you want to spend 4RR money, they have got you covered. It's £312,000. Lesser models are available.

This is a game the British invented

But really this is a game the British invented. And like most games we invent (we’re thinking conkers rather than cricket), we’re the only ones that really play it. Caterham continues to offer a wide range of 7s that start at under £30,000 and do have more luggage space – but an even more cramped cabin – than an Atom.

But, contradicting what we just said, sadly that is about it these days. A company called Longbow is trying to establish a lightweight electric sports car, but Zenos is long gone, Elemental is in hibernation and the Emira is the lightest thing Lotus builds. GBS emerged from the ashes of Robin Hood Engineering and makes the Zero, but their traditional base is into self-builds not turnkeys.

These days British engineering talent is being poured into restomods, rather than all new cars. Makes sense, there's far fewer legal hoops to jump through.

There’s a strong case for the Atom 4 being the most comprehensively designed and engineered lightweight car ever. As we mentioned above, there are very few of them left now, but a drive in one is a reminder of how relevant, exciting, involving and absorbing they are to drive.

By class standards the Atom 4 is broadly capable and usable car. Colossally fast, with ridiculous grip, but it now has a calmer approach to life than earlier models thanks to its redesigned suspension. Unless you choose to add more power of course.

The 4R and 4RR are for committed track types only. But they do broaden the Atom’s reach. There is very little indeed quicker than they are around a track – and nothing whatsoever if that track is tight and twisty.

But it’s the regular Atom that continues to impress us most. It’s easy to forget amongst the noise of social media and passion for hypercars that there’s more to having fun with cars than being parked at a Cars ‘n’ Coffee, or seen on a Duke’s lawn. Because if you actually value driving and want to have fun at all speeds, to feel the car move and operate, then there’s nothing that beats a lightweight. And there's no lightweight to beat the Ariel Atom 4.