Ariel Atom for Track Days?

**CR500** · November 28, 2017, 12:59 PM

Does the SRA give up anything to the street version?

I know it doesn't have the wings or supercharger but was there anything like one of the brake options on the street version that was better?

Could the wings / supercharger be added to an SRA?

How about a windshield on an SRA?

Thanks

**cvjoint** · November 28, 2017, 02:12 PM

Originally Posted by CR500

Does the SRA give up anything to the street version?

I know it doesn't have the wings or supercharger but was there anything like one of the brake options on the street version that was better?

Could the wings / supercharger be added to an SRA?

How about a windshield on an SRA?

Thanks

Most of the safety bits slow the car down. It's a tradeoff, though it does make the car safer on the street as well.

The car is so light that brakes are hardly something worth worrying over. Not only is there very little weight to stop but the front tires rarely get enough heat to really grip and test the endurance of the brakes.

With enough money you can add wings, supercharger, windshield, etc. There is no real bolt in option for the supercharger on the SRA, most wings I believe do bolt on.

**2/3rdsCobra** · November 28, 2017, 11:28 PM

Originally Posted by 9and3

https://www.pca.org/driver-education-minimum-standards

"While non-competitive, safety equipment is still required as outlined in these rules. All cars entered in the event must have fenders attached to the vehicle body at all four corners."

You will have some difficulty finding it but they consider the Ariel Atom an open wheel car. A Caterham is also considered open wheel. If you read the rules it says the car must have fenders that are permanently mounted to the body of the car. Since the Atom is mounted to the hub, it does not qualify. If you can prove otherwise, I would appreciate your telling me as I love running with those guys.

Good to know. I'm close friends with one of the PCA event organizers here in Fresno CA. I don't believe he would exclude me from one of their events given our friendship however I will pose the question when an event comes up that I want to attend. This kind of the same crap the USCA http://driveusca.com/wp-content/uplo...18.6_final.pdf has when it excludes "kit cars" even if they are licensed for street use. I really wanted to run this series in my Atom but unfortunately I'm not able to. Shame really, the level of modification these "street cars" reach often exceeds what would be allowed in some race series and in some cases my Atom may be out matched.

**2/3rdsCobra** · November 28, 2017, 11:59 PM

Originally Posted by sector: 4

OK, both links point to the same issue - the adjustment thimbles. Yes, this is serious design flaw, but I actually sell longer rod end bearings which fix this problem...
https://www.arielatomchat.com/forums/thread3036.html
They bolt right in. Easy fix. Problem solved.

I plan on getting a set soon. They appear to be nicely made and competitively priced with Aurora's AM series rod ends with the major advantage of full thread engagement into the adjustment thimble even @ modest (street) camber settings. These will save me from having to "fix" the thimble issue. FWIW, I did have chromoly thimbles fabed up to replace the stock ones. These coupled with your extended shank rod ends should make the weak point the control arms themselves. I don't plan to go any larger than a 255 rear tire in an Hoosier A7 so the current suspension design should have no issues with the variable forces that the control arms will see under load.

Originally Posted by sector: 4

I think there's a much bigger problem with the Atom 3 suspension. It uses a rod end bearings loaded in BENDING as ball joints, lol. This is a MAJOR no-no and MUCH more difficult and costly to fix. Brammo had the good sense to use a proper ball joint instead, so the Atom 2 is superior in this regard.

Agreed. Plus, alignment adjustments (camber for the front and camber/toe for the rear) are considerably easier on the Atom 2. Admittedly, getting a wrench around the jam nuts to loosen or snug them can be a bit of a pain.

Originally Posted by sector: 4

Yes, some Atom 2 parts are "hard to get". Sometimes you have to have parts specially fabricated, just like Brammo did, or substitute different parts.

As for a full roll bar, Atom 2's came with one as an option, you know - just like the Atom 3 does. I took mine off.

Many of the Atom 3 parts fit the Atom 2 with some modification. There is even an Atom 2 owner on this forum who swapped in a Honda K motor in place of the Ecotec. Truth is, while no one like to hear the words "kit car" when they refer to the Atom, it is in fact a kit car so fabrication/adaptation is going to be the norm, not the exception. I believe that is one the traits that makes the Atom such a special car. FWIW, I took my roll bar off too, it's hanging on my overhead winch for the day I start tracking my Atom. Next year I plan on getting to know Capt. Proton (Yes I named my Atom, sue me. I'm a Star Trek fan and I felt that this name fit the Atom nicely) at the local SCCA and PCA auto crosses before I head to the track.

**sector: 4** · November 29, 2017, 01:19 AM

Anybody can feel pretty comfortable buying and maintaining an Atom 3 since you can still get parts and there's some degree of support. To me, owning an Atom 2 is the next level of exotic car ownership. It takes more guts. Fortunately, nothing has happened to my car so far that I couldn't fix myself, but if I can't figure out how to fix something, there are several exotic car repair shops locally who are willing and able to work on it.

One nice thinking about the Atom 2 is that Brammo didn't actually make any special parts that they could just purchase off the shelf, so it's easy to get many items. I guess the Atom 3 is the same way. The custom made parts aren't regular wear items, and most of them aren't too difficult to make anyway, if you had to.

I wouldn't know personally, but I understand that adding bigger or stickier tires can expose weaknesses in the wheel uprights. I know there are a couple of companies that have offered stronger machined ones, including Palatov Motorsport.

I only street drive my car for now. The day I brought it home, a neighbor came over to see it, put his hand on the roll-over bar and said "It kind of looks like a dune buggy!", so I took the roll-over bar off right away, lol. Now hopefully it looks more like an Indy car. I need to get some wings on there too.

**FourFather** · November 29, 2017, 07:34 AM

I have a 2012 Ariel Atom3 that has the 8,500 rpm supercharged Honda K20a engine, (NOT the lower rpm 2.4) and look how it performs against Open Wheel racecars, starting from the front row in the Open Wheel final at Hallett.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgUNet7Rfz8&t=58s

Mine is actually for sale, but I have not done an ad yet-

Cheers,

Eddie

**CR500** · November 29, 2017, 01:04 PM

Good to know. Windshield is important to me because of all the deer strikes at Summit Point. I was there last month (of course, there was a deer strike) and they were suggesting people run with their face shields down even with a windshield!

I asked a few of the PCA groups I've run with and they all said no to allowing an Atom at their events. All of the non-PCA groups I contacted said they absolutely were allowed.

**sector: 4** · November 29, 2017, 02:03 PM

Originally Posted by CR500

Good to know. Windshield is important to me because of all the deer strikes at Summit Point. I was there last month (of course, there was a deer strike) and they were suggesting people run with their face shields down even with a windshield!

I asked a few of the PCA groups I've run with and they all said no to allowing an Atom at their events. All of the non-PCA groups I contacted said they absolutely were allowed.

A windshield might get you on the track, but don't fool yourself into thinking it's going to do anything for you if you hit a deer but imbed a bunch of glass in your face. An Atom windshield doesn't even have a full frame. It's good for bugs and pebbles.

**cvjoint** · November 29, 2017, 02:28 PM

As a shield against rock debris a windshield would be nice. A windshield might also help with the buffeting. At 125 mph my helmet lifts big time. That said it also adds weight and takes away from the experience so I'm going with an aero helmet, small card size wind deflector, fenders, and visor tearoffs. No organization ever asked me for a windshield but half of them do ask for fenders.