Ariel Atom V8: The Fastest Accelerating Road Car On The Planet - Fifth Gear

Tiff and Jonny take on the Gurston Down Hill Climb in the ridiculous Ariel Atom V8.
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[@KnorpelDelux]

So this is basically a V8-engine block with a steering wheel? Awesome!

[@cmartin_ok]

It's also got a really sweet chassis

[@leonardleachman8136]

And brakes (**)

[@Fluke2SS]

No, it's a wheel chair with a V8 duct taped to the back basically.

[@venusreena2532]

its a street legal formula racecar

[@Nudel-nc1cp]

@@Fluke2SS Great comment :D

[@ericgeorge5483]

I can't imagine a bigger adrenaline rush than driving one of these things. I would love a go!

[@AWMJoeyjoejoe]

I drove one of these with the 240bhp vtec engine and that was bloody terrifying! couldn't imagine this 500hp one!

[@ericgeorge5483]

Awm Joeyjoejoe You are very lucky. I would love a go in one!

[@AWMJoeyjoejoe]

+Eric George it was on a track day at a local circuit. There was a special offer on. Keep an eye open at your local track day place and go when there's a good deal. Definitely worth it!

[@beefcake3131]

Try riding a sport bike.

[@SgtPickledic]

Drive a Shifter open wheel go kart.. You might take that back.

[@bobbyphillips2538]

A friend of mine bought an Atom, it IS breathtakingly freaking FAST! the lack of a substantial body enveloping your soft, fragile, human form, is a bit unnerving. Until you take a turn behind the wheel. This car instantly instills great confidence in its abilities. And more importantly, gives a driver confidence in his ability to keep the car under control. Yet it does not lure the less than professional driver to risk speeds or other challenges that are beyond his level of experience. You know what you can do in this car, without any overconfidence at all. It will stick in turns, probably I think(although I did not push to this degree) that its first warning you had crossed its limits of cornering,would be to slip a bit to the outside,equally,with both tires at once. A clear "back off a bit buddy"message to the driver. Again, not my car, so that limit was kept VERY DISTANT. But this car is utterly predictable in a way that tells even a driver of moderate experience, no car racing at all included, that has the understanding of an intelligent man with good common sense, just what to expect, and to count on from this great car. Just don't expect to enjoy it in the rain, and it had the same level of passenger protection from say, flying insects, as a motorcycle. No, less than. On the bike, at least you have the guy in front of you to absorb the bug strikes!

[@TheFunkyair]

Tiff is living legend and best over he is still on screen

[@MrNakedLandscaper]

+TheFunkyair Tiff? Who??

[@normie8895]

You mean Tiff the tosser who "as the co-pilot" isn't capable of changing a RAC Rally car tyre.

[@doctorno0070]

I saw this car close-up in an all-British field meet in Seattle about 15 years ago, with a supercharged Hayabusa engine. That looked terrifying and I can not imagine such a small race car with a V8.

[@zroysum]

The video's Ariel Atom has two Hayabusa engines next two each other in order to make a V8 that redlines at 10,500

[@thomasspratt5148]

that's not a car, it's basically a go kart on steroids

[@zach7161]

how

[@tebibyte2357]

Think Zack

[@tebibyte2357]

Right.

[@ArshdeepSingh-oc1oo]

Or a roll cage with wheels

[@KalLanPIDT]

@@jaxmediavlogs5673 Why would you say that? Usain is a snail in comparison.

[@pericleswanless5483]

my heart breaks every time I hear the price of the V8 Atom

[@lordflashheart8153]

Get doing the lottery pal.

[@pericleswanless5483]

You don't DO the lottery you play the lottery Pal

[@pericleswanless5483]

Way ahead of ya btw guy

[@quentonmillstid850]

lottery ? Expecting hand outs.. be real

[@7ieben963]

how much does ist cost ?

[@5a1tY]

man. just give the 30secs view from one angle. don't need this hyperactive 2 secs per shot

[@donald6815]

Many years ago, some smart-alec put a big motorcycle engine on a go-kart, and took it to the drag races. It beat all the 900 h.p. big v8's, and everything else. They outlawed go-karts. Problem solved. The Chrysler turbine was beating out all the popular v8's, so they outlawed turbines.

[@augustortiz]

Tiff really is a hell of a driver

[@flavoredsnacks9979]

Fun fact, he started in an F1 Race. Belgium 1980

[@styxwickorfrost811]

Well, he is a retired professional racing driver. Even if he's retired, the instinct of a driver is, more often than not, intact... not even hindered by age.

[@imaweerascal]

He also did quite a few races at Le Mans, and in touring cars and rallycross. He's a bit of an all-round racing start. My mate had a racing lesson with him at Thuxton as a 17 year old many years ago - he said he was a total nutter and great fun to be with!

[@andyelliott8027]

imaweerascal He also drove in F1 in 1977 at Monaco and Belgium.

[@Kasmuller]

@@flavoredsnacks9979 and monaco

[@sergiocortez7600]

"...strapped to a pair of ladders" that was HILARIOUS! lol

[@sanghoonlee5171]

Watching this video reminded of something. ....Atom has two seats. I always assumed at the back of my head that this thing has a single seat in the center like F1 cars. But it can seat 2 people. It really is a road car.

[@ilmaio]

You use the second seat to get an instant Divorce, if need be. Just imagine...

[@TheRealTaco]

Thats a big ass go-kart

[@productplacement4743]

TheRealTaco lol

[@orangeusername1792]

TheRealTaco i really want one but if you get in a crash with that thing, yea don't think your going to repair that

[@fishgutzy]

A street legal go kart :D

[@mituc]

Jonny was driving quite well and screaming at the same time... This is the absolute car fun! Hat off to you guys!

[@Starfishcentral]

I only drive the standard Ariel Atom and my top speed and acceleration were restricted by my instructor. Still a fun car to drive and the nearest experience to doing karting again.

[@rarinkaz]

My dad bought me a Homebuilt racing car for the street, Cromolly tubing V-8 1900 pounds! And that’s exactly how I’ve always described the car... it’s like owning your own personal roller coaster!

[@Tonys_training]

I had the pleasure to drive one one of these last year and I’m telling you there stupid fast loved absolutely every second

[@GranDaddo]

Tiff is marvelous!

[@MikeysRC]

+Reptilius Maximus So is ELMO!

[@dustind292]

MikeysRC ...Elmo isn't marvelous, Elmo is ticklish.

[@aaaaaaaaaaaaaa4151]

No he is not!, I know some one that use to build race engines for "Tiff", hes a right wanker!

[@GTChucker86]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaa Sure mate.

[@ir4kk]

lol i always love seeing pro driver drive with these car channel guys and get impressed and stoked while theyre hitting a corner like a badass

[@tadficuscactus]

This is one of the coolest cars ever made.

[@WhipAddictYoutube]

What a great turnout. Plenty of top whips!

[@chevy383jt]

I spent $10,000 upgrading my 1990 GMC pickup to modern standards. For $12,000 total investment, my truck can do 0-60 in under 3 seconds. It does better through autocross than a C8 Vette and stops faster as well......for $12,000 total.

[@bolt-action9470]

3:38 When the good stuff starts.

[@winterdragon1362]

My dream car, shame they discontinued this wonderful v8 version :(

[@kristijonasstasaitis3453]

its like driving a 25bhp gokart on a track thats ment for 5bhp gokarts

[@jayaline]

Tiff and Jonny, great show !!

[@TRYHARDMG]

At 3:26 you can see a man on the left get startled.

[@eduardosampoia5480]

OCD much?

[@dnromeoalphayankee13]

A true racer will race every occasion. Tiff 👍🥂

[@ellenorbjornsdottir1166]

I might go to the hill climb with a pushbike. "Can I race a pushbike here? Average power 125 watts. That's watts, not horsepowers. One watt is about one seven hundred and fiftyfirst of one horsepower."

[@gemspotting6252]

Amazing drive from Jonny Smith - never knew he was so talented 👌👌👌

[@onkardighe1701]

Fifth gear should really showcase some good formula student cars once in their show.

[@cigarobsession]

You guys sure get some sweet cars over there!

[@Vampirebear13]

+cigarobsession If you're in the USA, Atom's are built in Virginia and there's dealers across the country and there's many updates to the car since this video was made, like bodies, windshields and engines and they start around $75,000

[@ZepG]

+Vampirebear13 The only one I've in seen the USA was in San Francisco while on vacation, I live north of Virginia and they never show up on the street lol.

[@Vampirebear13]

I didn't say they 're commonly sighted on the road. But that there are dealers across the USA. TMIAutoTech Inc. is the American manufacturer and they're located in South Boston, Va. You can find any info you want at www.ArielAtom.com

[@chefgiovanni]

Great info, thanks for the tip. Time to cook.

[@stivi739]

@@Vampirebear13 does it have aircon

[@Biggeo7]

Absolutely brutal. I love it.

[@matthewsykes4814]

Ah Tiff........ I have missed your way of driving and presenting. I still remember you 'playing' with a GTR R34 like it was a toy, then the stonking McLaren F1..... But that Atom....... stunning car

[@Whitelightnin76]

Me: I wanna watch Top Gear. Mom: we have top gear at home

[@Eveseptir]

Just watching this car gives me shivers.

[@shadhubler4947]

such a headscratching appearance n price as well....imagine seeing someone pulled in to the gas station in this n u never knew about it

[@frankspencer6935]

I want one, must check my lotto numbers.

[@ahmadsholahudinalhasany7346]

This is more enjoyable than a new season of top gear 😂

[@guardrail2897]

The new Top Gear is awful. I tried to watch but it made my eyes bleed. Bring back Jeremy and crew.

[@toob247]

Never thought I'd say Im getting hooked on the Needell.

[@Marshall1174]

The Atom is a very fun car to drive, especially when it gets turbocharged and larger size race slicks are added.

[@BeezerWashingbeard]

What kind of cars are those Formula 3 looking ones in the beginning? 0:21

[@xander1052]

maybe old Formula fords? not entirely sure to be honest.

[@RobClarkeRacing]

That’s a ralt rt34 an old formula 3 car. A bit heavy for hillclimb. The lightweight single seaters are around 280kg

[@revrocks3]

It's the Vette Cart!

[@future_phonk]

The soul patch and camera quality looks like this video is from the early 2000s

[@TommyNitro]

Looks like an absolute blast. Great presentation, too.

[@shibinmiqbal]

Atom; 0-60 under 2.5 seconds. Tesla: hold my charge

[@Chris-Brauch]

BORING! Put them on a track or twisty road and Tesla is left behind

[@superbad1585]

Love you Tiff. Great character and driver.

[@geoffreyanderson4719]

Tiff is a pro driver though. That's what is required here.

[@pompeymonkey3271]

Yaay! We're going to Gurston on Sunday! :)

[@subby4226]

I've had a ride in this. you can feel the pressure

[@kenshinhimura9387]

I've seen a few of these at the Woodward Dream Cruise here in Michigan.

[@hyperchuk]

I think Adam Ferrera said it best when he said it's like a rocket powered paper clip

[@TheLateBrakeShow]

Remember that day well. A lot of fun. Many horsepowers.

[@britbajan5496]

Cool, practically in my backyard of Swindon.

[@BENZ007]

Awesome video !

[@OJB42]

The original Atom was bad enough, but the V8 model is insane!

[@mpoll1016]

I'd love to have a go in that mini

[@stgraves260]

These are amazing cars!!! There is one driving around Lewisville Texas.

[@odom2142]

stgraves260 Greetings from Dallas! I saw an Atom on Preston a couple months ago.

[@adriantsui1689]

Any good tracking place around Dallas area?

[@Tailspin80]

5 years on, it would be interesting to see how a Tesla Plaid would do, with 0-60 in 2 seconds.

[@marodrey]

What just happened??!! There it goes!! Is it back already????

[@louf7178]

I'm surprised the wheels aren't covered more so wind doesn't get under them easily at high speed. Does the wheel rotation counter that well enough?

[@charlesvan13]

It made me want to buy that car, until he said it cost 150,000 lbs. You can buy a 1000 hp Mustang for that price.

[@427ci3]

charlesvan13 you can get a gt1000 shelby for less than 100k, 1000 hp ,8sec 1/4 mile.

[@cabelas1987]

150,000 lbs of what?

[@WralthChardiceVideo]

@@cabelas1987 150 thousand pounds of the united kingdom

[@andilowe9526]

Diese Video wurde wegen der ewig langen Werbung NICHT angeschaut! Der Atom Ariel ist allerdings ein bombastisches Fahrzeug.

[@olis_garage]

Any chance you guys have the full video of Tiff's run? With no music!

[@bootkungus6270]

This is what happens when Mario wins the lottery and decides to make a go kart

[@cassianbaker5793]

4:43 says "this must be the most precise motorsport ever invented, one small mistake and your times useless" like in the iom it's one small mistake and your lifes gone. Nothing says precision like having to push extremely far while having detrimental risks.

[@kingawags]

I'd love to see the full run.

[@jauntynile9355]

it literally looks like you are fast-forwarding the video how fast that beast is moving.

[@Skidz1818]

i know the V-8 is faster but i like the supercharged civic type R motor one better. also seems like it would handle better due to the reduced weight

[@michaelvickers89]

Did this video come out a few years back ?

[@timeisnow7676]

Crazy how it doesn't sound like a V8, I don't know the layout of this v8, but the V8s made by my country are all cross plane, so maybe I'm just used to the sound of that instead

[@hOtneO]

This is what you drive if you really want to turn heads. Most people have never even heard of it much less seen it.

[@Pingandlucky]

Heck yeah, go Tiff!

[@jonathanarmer2445]

Welp... Now there's the Tesla plaid... although damn I bet this is such a blast to drive

[@RedfishCarolina]

I guess the next step is one of those bigass Merlin alcohol engines they put in Monster Trucks.

[@tyfon4429]

Your familiar juwlary ? Sorry Dutch here. But still. Heard you 🙏😁😂2:15

[@mpharr2]

Should have run Hoosiers A7 compound, times could have been closer to 29.5

[@stronzer59]

150K Pounds and 100 million Pounds worth of fun

[@lorcanmaher3531]

Tiffs a legend

[@jacknotts6008]

Love tiff he’s a proper gent

[@adamgm84]

ready to see a turbo'd one now

[@bbruce995]

why is it only rear wheel drive?

[@jamesk3889]

Lol, "my heart is in my backdoor""

[@spillow762]

that flat plan v8 sounds exactly like a 4

[@NyckLP]

Technically the engine is made by 2 small 4 cylinder bike engines... so even though there are 2 of them it still kinda sounds like a 4. And it revs so high that the v8 rumble is lost completely

[@lesliehorwinkle]

Pretty sure it's still flat plane......so, flat plane V8....no rumble with those even at idle.

[@atranimecs]

v8 hartley engine, two hayabusa heads with a custom center crank. Their 4-cylinder variant even says based on hayabusa motor...here's the spec sheet. www.h1v8.com/30-bolt-v8.html

[@labarone8910]

V8 rumble!? Keep up Nyck..keep up.

[@asorjvideochannel3895]

actually, the fastest car acceleration from 0 to 60 is ford rs200 in just under 2 second 0 - 100 in 3-4 seconds 0 - 140 mph in 6 seconds and the Average linear acceleration is greater than 1g

[@cascadeconnerie]

WTF are you saying ? It's not thé rs200 AND YOU HAVE GIVED THE WAY TO PROVE IT. Ariel Atom 0-60mph is done in ~2.3s rs200 in 3.4... also 1g in accelerating is not very high, It's the average for a sport car. Hypercar or car with huge acceleration car hit near 2g

[@joevarga5982]

Tiff saws at the wheel like a lumberjack.

[@DaveWuzHere]

I was looking for a second hand one, they hold their value too well because they are quite rare.

[@Datsun510zen]

Atom was The Fastest Accelerating Road Car On The Planet. Now it's the 2017 Tesla Model S P100D. 0-60 in a face pealing 2.28 Sec. Plus you get a back seat, a very nice stereo, a 17" touch screen display full of gizmos, and you'll never have to stop at a gas station again. Except maybe to relieve yourself after going 315 miles on a single charge.

[@diegoaaronzapataaguilar7160]

Asphalt 8 Airborne: Shortened Just The Ariel Atom V8 It Was Added In Fall Out Boy Update As a High-End Class D Car

[@awt9805]

It's basically just a F1 with legal tires and clearance

[@lucylovitt9583]

Elon: hold my beer while I get my Plaid.

[@garronah]

Johnny wasn't giving the redline much work, was he.

[@HayMaker-tv2dm]

Why not a BMW V8 from the latest M-3 version this little kart will just fly and you now you have a quality piece.

This video was banned from the USA because GM couldn't compete... smh...

[@Miatacrosser]

+Jon Watt f*ck GM. Ford is king everywhere in the world. It is just that we have so many low IQ people here in America that GM is still in business.

[@Miatacrosser]

Jon Watt If you ever get a chance to ride in a Mustang Shelby GT350R I think you'll be changing your mind about American cars cannot corner. And to be fair the C5-C7 Corvettes and '05 Ford GT would thoroughly convince you that what you just said is nonsense. PS I live in USA so what ban on this video are you talking about.

[@Miatacrosser]

Jon Watt Maybe back in the 1950's and 1960's what you say is true. But this is 50 years down the road and that just does not apply to them anymore. Have you driven an American Ford Lately? Sure a Merc or BMW is refined but they still have bad problems about them to go with that "refinement". No machine is perfect but your opinion(and that is all it is, your opinion) of what an American car is smacks of elitist ignorance.

[@Miatacrosser]

Jon Watt It is interpreted only by you that way. What are you, hitting on me? You see, disturbed little boy, people who accuse others of being this or that ARE what they accuse people of. So you just showed the whole world you're nothing more than a little basement mommies boy, obsessed with being gay, who cannot win any argument on an intellectual level . In other words, a pimply faced school boy who wants to be bent over some table and fudge packed. SAD. Now go troll for a boyfriend somewhere else.

[@derriklee287]

Steve S lmao ok, did I read that Americans have a literacy rate of 10 per cent, or did you mean 10 percent mr smart guy? Lol go fuck yourself dude

[@ryhol5417]

God I want an atom so bad.

[@enigmaPL]

What I would do to get to ride alongside Tiff on a road course or hill climb like this.... Or even drive him around and get some pointers.... sigh

[@suntzu5836]

Who makes the engine and what is the displacement...…..

[@Ziggyziggy1]

Ariel atom!!! With a name that reminds you a washing powder!! But it will run rings against pretty much Anything in 4 wheels.... astonishing

[@vd1721]

Enter 2021 Tesla model S Plaid says hold my beer

[@BradyBunting]

it came out a couple days ago