Tuesday 6th January 2015

Ariel Nomad - full details, pics and vid

235hp, 670kg and £32K; all the details of Ariel's 'off-road Atom' [Updated with vid!]

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"If we can put a smile on people's faces, on road or off it, we have done our job." That's Ariel boss Simon Saunders' ambition for his company, one it aims to enhance with the fantastically crazy Nomad. You sense somehow the smiles will continue...

Extreme scrumping, Somerset style

Apparently the concept of an 'Atom with knobbly tyres' has been in consideration for a while between both staff and customers. The Nomad therefore uses the recognisable Ariel perimeter space frame, of course now with roll over protection and a cage. Ariel claims 'enormous structural rigidity' for the Nomad and, if you don't fancy orange, the space frame can be painted any colour you want.

Ariel's longstanding powertrain relationship with Honda has been utilised for the Nomad as well. It uses the 2.4-litre engine already found in some Atoms with performance characteristics tuned 'for use in an off-road vehicle'. Tweaks to the inlet and exhaust have yielded 238hp (235bhp) and 221lb ft. Weighing just 670kg, a 0-60mph time of 'around 3.5 seconds' and a top speed of 125mph are claimed. Power goes to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox and limited-slip differential (other diffs will be available depending on intended use).

Yes please, yes please, yes please...

Ariel claims the low weight of the Nomad will give it an advantage over four-wheel drive rivals and of course makes it less complex too. Furthermore, it has been tested on rally stages, rock falls and off-road race tracks to prove its credentials. Ariel says the Nomad has 300mm of ground clearance with front approach and departure angles of 71 and 82 degrees respectively. Outboard dampers developed with Bilstein have been valved for road comfort with off-road ability too but are easily adjustable as well. Five tyre choices (road, all terrain, mud terrain, gravel/forest rally and sand/paddle) are available with wheels from 15- to 18-inch. Track day on a Saturday and off-road on a Sunday?

What bodywork the Nomad has is designed to be 'virtually unbreakable' and the interior can be hosed down as well. It's ready for whatever you can throw at it! If a customer is so inclined, a windscreen and full weather equipment are available. The zippable roll up protection for over and around the car is a big step for the company - it will be the first Ariel with a roof!

It's a Tamiya buggy you can drive yourself!

One final thing, just in case the Nomad hasn't won you over yet. Ariel wants to race it. The possibility of rallying, autocross and rallycross are already being considered which would surely make for an incredible spectacle. Head of Nomad development Henry Siebert Saunders said: "It's early days but I want to see Nomads competing in as many forms of motorsport as possible, from local club racing to international level." This we need to see.

Ariel will show the Nomad at the Autosport show this week and will take orders ahead of production beginning in the spring. The cost? £27,500 plus VAT and before any of the options. We will be begging Ariel for a drive as soon as possible!

Official Ariel testing video here

[mrclav]

That looks waaaay cooler than the rendering previously shown. Want.

[MB 1]

So where can you actually use one of these?

Not like you can pop to your local forest!

[phil_cardiff]

My lottery win list just gained another line.

[red_slr]

Want. Want badly.
The first time in recent years any of the "kit car" (sorry) type producers have made anything and the second I saw it I thought YES!

[j90gta]

Doesn't everyone need one!!

[soad]

MB 1 said:

So where can you actually use one of these?

Not like you can pop to your local forest!

Rallying in Wales?

[dukebox9reg]

MB 1 said:

So where can you actually use one of these?

Not like you can pop to your local forest!

Well i'm assuming its road legal if it can be specced with road tyres.

This would be a huge giggle on the road and if you want to go if the rough stuff plenty of disco/defender owners seem to find muddy places to play in.

[gsuk1]

So much want one of these.

Not 100% convinced about the non four wheel drive though.....
I understand the reasoning but that seems like a problem for an offroad car.

[Watchman]

Needs longer mudguards but I want one regardless with all the weather kit.


I could see me using one as a daily driver to banish the dull commute.

[soad]

Mighty Ariel Atom spawns a 'mucky brother'!

No V8 option?

[mrRush]

Phenomenal - I see your quadbike and raise you a Nomad! Wonder if I could get away with it as a station car

[JDMDrifter]

YES! Looks seriously good fun, having driven an Atom i can only imagine this is madness down a twisty SS.

[RobM77]

What a superb idea! Looks like a right laugh.

For those talking about road use though, the standard Atom would be better in every way, in the same way that a 5 series is better on the road than an X5.

Where would one actually use this car? Genuine question - I'm not knocking it. Most off road places that I know of are for really low speed exploration in a Land Rover and the like, and most rallies and other such competitions have strict homologation rules, unless there's a free/invitation class the Atom could be used in?

[Lordbenny]

So, is it road legal or not? If it isn't they won't sell half as many as a car that can actually be driven to green lanes and the like. I'm sure they don't want to go through all the complications of crash testing and stuff

[kambites]

Lordbenny said:

So, is it road legal or not? If it isn't they won't sell half as many as a car that can actually be driven to green lanes and the like. I'm sure they don't want to go through all the complications of crash testing and stuff

Even if it's road legal it wont be type approved.

[soad]

gsuk1 said:

So much want one of these.

Not 100% convinced about the non four wheel drive though.....
I understand the reasoning but that seems like a problem for an offroad car.

A dune/sand car/buggy, and just about every racing truck uses 2WD, right? If it works for them...

[PhantomPH]

COMPLETELY fantastic. I love it.

If you're still not convinced, visit this link and watch the video: http://www.arielmotor.co.uk/nomad/

[soad]

Does it come with these?

[PhillipM]

gsuk1 said:

but that seems like a problem for an offroad car.

Damn, I wish someone had told me earlier

[scubadude]

MB 1 said:

So where can you actually use one of these?

The article suggests it will be road legal so for a start- on the road and all tracks suitable or legal for motor vehicles... frankly it looks like a bit of a hoot