2009 Atom2 on Ebay

[sluggoslinger]

Saw this one recently on ebay, anyone know of this car/owner? Haven't heard back from my message on ebay to the seller but i only sent it a matter of hours ago.

What do you guys think on price? To me it seems about right for a CA registered atom. Would be curious to get some of the more knowledgeable members thoughts on it. 27,000 miles seems pretty high for an atom, are there some high wear parts i'd need to worry about?

I'm thinking i might pull the trigger on it if it is in fact a "good deal". Thoughts would be greatly appreciated. If this is the wrong location for this post, please advise.


Ariel Atom 2 | eBay

[Terry Kennedy]

Saw this one recently on ebay, anyone know of this car/owner? Haven't heard back from my message on ebay to the seller but i only sent it a matter of hours ago.

What do you guys think on price? To me it seems about right for a CA registered atom. Would be curious to get some of the more knowledgeable members thoughts on it. 27,000 miles seems pretty high for an atom, are there some high wear parts i'd need to worry about?

It isn't a 2009. It is a 2006, even though it was probably built in 2007. It is a Brammo Ecotec, relatively late production. Many of the Brammo issues were sorted out by then, but they also had new issues getting parts when they were discontinuing production. A previous owner seems to have installed a cold air intake, so they may have addressed some / all of the Brammo issues. I'd suggest talking to the owner and getting an idea of the history of the car (and, if they aren't the first owner, see how much of that history has been lost).

CARFAX has no records on that car with the VIN listed in the auction (which is the same one Brammo built it with). There's a picture of the California SB100 label which shows they typo'd the VIN, using a U instead of a V. CARFAX shows 1 record for the VIN with the U. That would seem to imply it is a one-owner car.

[McFred]

I agree not 2009. That VIN predates mine. Mine was 'built' in 2006 but was delivered in 2007. Personally, I don't see 27k as high mileage, though it is higher than mine. From outward appearances it looks like it's in great condition. Maybe check that the rod-ends are the correct ones and for play and that the axles/hubs are tight and it'll be fine. It appears to have the stock mid-range-robbing ram-horn header that cracks at the welds and melts the flex-piping which'd be located behind the plate. It's been de-badged too. No Decals on the bonnet or rear cowl, no Ariel URL on the tub. So it could have been repainted. Being that it looks like it was generally well-kept and SMOGged $55k is probably a good price.

Follow Terry's advice on talking with the owner about the history.

Other options:
"road race" lighting package
wing package
bubble screens (funny that he mentions not wearing a helmet, the bubbles suck)
CF mirror upgrade
rear tow hook
battery cutoff (and probably the 12v outlet too)
track Koni suspension (middle option)
track brake package with parking brake (middle option)
I can't see the pedal set, could be Tilton or Wilwood.

[sluggoslinger]

Great info guys, I really appreciate it. Was supposed to be heading down to San Diego this morning to check it out but some family stuff got in the way. And now I won't be able to make it down there for at least two weeks so hopefully it will still be available.

From speaking with the owner, he seemed like a solid guy and knew his stuff. He did scare me a bit about the dangers of the car and how quick things go go wrong, etc. I consider myself a great driver but admittedly have no seat time in any rear engine race car. I don't plan to track the car, I'm just gonna do the occasional canyon runs and screw around town with it.

Couple questions
Ballpark cost to update the headers/exhaust?
Ballpark Axle / hub replacement costs
Change out from the bubble screen to the full windshield?

[Terry Kennedy]

Ballpark cost to update the headers/exhaust?
Ballpark Axle / hub replacement costs

These parts are no longer available (as far as I know) from TMI or any of the prior aftermarket suppliers (Sector 111, Palatov, Unique Fabricating) so these are likely to be custom, one-off items. The aftermarket suppliers might be willing to make some from established CNC templates, but you'd have to ask them.

Change out from the bubble screen to the full windshield?

TMI offers (or at least used to offer) a kit for this. It involved replacing parts of the nose assembly as well as installing the windshield. You can contact TMI for more info. I believe a number of forum members here installed the upgrade kit.

[McFred]

Given that wrecks with stationary objects like concrete bollards, trees, poles etc. tend to become difficult to survive after ~30mph and the Atom can get to 60mph in less than 3 seconds, ya, you can certainly harm yourself or others if you let the car get away from you. This same reason is why people who ride motorcycles are told not to get a 1000cc superbike as their first one. It can end badly if restraint is not practiced.

There should not be an issue with the hubs or axles. If the axles are loose the bearings may have seen some unnecessary wear. One of the 'upgrades' was to replace the washers under the nuts that hold the hubs on with a hardened ones. If it's never been tracked it probably never had reason to loosen up.

There is no off-the-shelf exhaust fix for it. You're in California. A custom header/exhaust should not be difficult to commission. Of course if the car's rarely ever driven in anger it's possible the stock exhaust is fine and will continue to be ok (the muffler has been replaced already though).

[CR500]

Now this is some good info!!

I had been looking for Brammo Atom2 but will be tracking the car. If these are weaknesses that need to be fixed but parts are not available, should I really be looking for an Atom3?

Thanks

[McFred]

No one can answer that for you.

If you have the car's history then you may find all the preventative maintenance has been performed already. If you're mechanically inclined then none of the little issues are insurmountable, if you want to write a fat check and go drive your toy, then I suggest that you go buy one new off the lot.

[silver]

driveshaft shop probably still has half shafts on their shelves, they seem to have been on ebay since 2006, they probably made too many and couldn't sell them due to no demand...only time people broke their half shafts was when they put a slick on it, and drag raced the car, after adding more power

I would ask about the tuning, intercooler, injectors, these were things he may have upgaded along with the air intake, which IF he has, that's a huge bonus of the buyer.

[FourFather]

Here is a helpful guide for Atom II issues.

Ariel Atom Chat - Used Ariel Atom 2 (Ecotec) Inspection Guide

This is not a complete list, and I don't remember now if we (the Atom community) ever put a complete list all in one place. If any of you regular contributors are reading this thread, do you recall a complete list? If not, should we, as a community, get one complete list together, for the new guys just now looking?

The "thimbles", or camber adjusters on the Atom II, are a critical safety issue, in my opinion, for instance, and these don't appear on this list. I did a permanent fix on my Atom II and put the fix up on the forum back in the day.

The rear upright failures that I and Randy Lamp and others experienced, on our Atom II's on track, with slicks, are also not mentioned in the list in this post. We installed custom rear uprights ~$2,000 fix, if I recall correctly, which is a permanent fix, but I'm not sure they are still available.

The Atom 3, built by TMI, don't have any of those, or any other, issues, that I am aware of, and I have raced several of them, from 2010 until now.

I hope this may be some help.