One-of-ten Ariel Atom Mugen for sale
If the Atom Mugen wasn't special enough, this is the only one built to 3.5 spec - with just 739 miles on the clock
British sports car makers have rarely made fast cars the way manufacturers from other countries do. Lotus, as you know, turned the racing and sports car world on its head by prioritising lightness, not power, in its pursuit of performance. Many decades later, Noble burst onto the scene with the M12, a homemade rocket ship that gave all but the fastest, most unobtainable supercars a run for their money. Around the same time, a little company called Ariel came along and altered our perception of what a lightweight track car could be.
Or any car, for that matter. Because the only thing separating an Atom from a motorbike was an extra pair of wheels, a brace of seats and a steering wheel. The Atom’s tubular chassis doubled up as the exterior body, with the suspension, engine and cockpit all exposed to the elements. Various powertrains have been offered over the past 25 years, but the Atom really came into its own when it switched to Honda power. As you'd imagine, a Civic Type R engine strapped to some scaffolding was utterly bonkers, screaming to a sky-high redline while the wind rearranges your face. And because anything with a Type R engine usually attracts Honda specialists Mugen, it was only a matter of time before the Japanese tuner got its hands on it.
Built as a ten-year anniversary gift to Ariel, the Atom Mugen might just be the very best of its naturally aspirated cars. Using the legendary 2.0-litre K20 engine, Mugen set about dialling the power up with upgraded pistons and valves, racier cams and motorsport-grade spark plugs. That brought the Atom up to 270hp, which, granted, was only a 25hp bump on the standard car, but when you consider that’s 135hp per litre from an engine free from forced induction, it just shows what Mugen - and the K20 - are really cable of.
Work then turned to the chassis, which featured the suspension and limited-slip differential from the one-off V8, chunky Alcon brakes for even more ferocious stopping power, plus a close-ratio six-speed gearbox and a lighter flywheel. A kerbweight of 550kg isn’t hard to believe (there’s not much here to weigh it down), but its 490hp-per-tonne power-to-weight ratio and a 2.9-second 0-62mph time should give you an idea of the lunacy that awaits.
Happily it does without the questionable bodykit that traditionally comes as part of the deal with a Mugen tune (because, again, where would you put it?) though the red scaffolding and white wheels serve as a neat tribute to the Atom’s Honda connection. Only ten were produced, though this one’s believed to be the only example that’s been built to Atom 3.5-spec, which, if you really know your Ariels, was obvious from the newer headlight design.
It may just be the rarest Ariel production model, if you take the bespoke V8 and the soon-to-be-released Hipercar out of the equation. To get your hands on it, you’ll need a spare £49,950 and, preferably, a free weekend to enjoy it, because there are only 739 miles on the clock. Those are rookie numbers, especially for a quicker version of one of the best two-seat sports cars to come out of the drizzly island we like to call home. Anyway, it looks like we’re in for a hot one this summer, and this seems like the perfect way to make the most of it.
Everyone is different.
Everyone is different.
You have a finite amount of time, you have favourites, new ones are a novelty and to be honest, amazing though Atoms are, other than just driving it for the sake of it, they arent much use for anything else. Plus, stuff like this tends to get lodged in a lot behind other cars, or its raining, or the MOT has run out, can see how it happens, including what MotorMouth said.
We only have three and dont use them enough.
Put it this way trip to a country pub on a summers day in the Caterham, elise, westfield etc versus this I can see why so few miles were done but I suspect it's fun it's just as a second car not as usable an thus as part of a collection it's more track day on a trailer
I drove my GR86 1,700 miles last year. Total waste but I WFH mostly and when I do drive I have 3x cars to choose from and rarely take the GR86. Sometimes just don't have the time or thought to dig the 86 out the garage and exercise it as I've got so much going on in my personal life.
I drove my GR86 1,700 miles last year. Total waste but I WFH mostly and when I do drive I have 3x cars to choose from and rarely take the GR86. Sometimes just don't have the time or thought to dig the 86 out the garage and exercise it as I've got so much going on in my personal life.
other then that, its not a 1 car only car
ok when you have extra garage space to drop it there in between track days...
Personally I would not buy one, although tempting when you see one and thinking of how such car would be.
I would choose another car which is more road friendly and or a bit more weather friendly were you don't need a helmet etc.
I drove my GR86 1,700 miles last year. Total waste but I WFH mostly and when I do drive I have 3x cars to choose from and rarely take the GR86. Sometimes just don't have the time or thought to dig the 86 out the garage and exercise it as I've got so much going on in my personal life.
Although I could afford to buy and run one a few years old, I am wondering how often I'd actually use it. Plus there's the parking it, not being let out of junctions, vandalism, etc.
I know I'm being daft, a 911 isn't that rare or special, but when I had my old Volvo C70 convertible I had none of those worries and used it all the time.
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