Atom 4 on Top Gear

[AlanP]

I have a lot of 3.5R reviews on my phone. I remember 'I don't think I've driven anything more exciting on a track' I don't remember 'this thing won't go round corners'

But he is a bit full of it, getting off with driving into a stationary truck was quite a thing. Apparently unavoidable and speed wasn't an issue??

Can't find the flabbergasted emoji.

A

[Anon]

It certainly looked like a handful, you can see he can't get the power down and it's almost pedestrian around the slower sweeping bends. Probably running on ZZR's in the cold damp does not help of course.

[Trigger]

I was really disappointed by it. I rate Harris but this seemed very half arsed tbh. Yes on cold tyres the front will understeer on the old car but get some heat and that's over. The old crew loved the Atoms and enthused about their positives - Harris seemed to just be very off hand abt it. Worst of all they seemed to cheapen the whole thing by dropping a Metro off a dam (big cohones Freddie though!) in order to say to accelerate as fast as the Atom you just need a Metro and drop yourself off a dam.......strange. BUT when the original review was done by Clarkson many years ago it led to a massive rise in orders - atleast this shouldnt - the waiting list is long enough !!!

T

[DMZ]

Agreed. His review was all over the place. I can't get enough of it, it's a mid life crisis, you should definitely buy one, it's expensive, it's a bargain, ... At least the visuals were impressive.

The track stuff (and the video was really bad, I've seen way better created by people here)... come on, can't Top Gear organise a go-pro video session some day when the weather is more suited? Like when they shot the video for the show itself.

[DMZ]

It certainly looked like a handful, you can see he can't get the power down and it's almost pedestrian around the slower sweeping bends. Probably running on ZZR's in the cold damp does not help of course.

From what I can see, that car is fitted with Yokohama Advan A052's. I don't know if that's Ariel's preferred wet/cold weather tyre.

[Trigger]

I think the lap time was daft - when you have a modern car with all traction aids the time difference maybe smaller but on an Atom wet/damp/cold destroys lap times ! Watching the Stig put me back to when i was at Goodwood in the wet and it felt like it was just aquaplaning all the time !! He was backing off all the time - just nowhere near its potential.

[CAG3D]

It’s an Atom 4, it has all the Traction Aids


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[DB Atom]

It certainly looked like a handful, you can see he can't get the power down and it's almost pedestrian around the slower sweeping bends. Probably running on ZZR's in the cold damp does not help of course.

Was that the Stig or Freddie driving it. Seemed to be a very half hearted attempt at a quick lap (albeit in the awful heavy version of a great car ...... wind up moment )

My money is on the Stig having been on holiday the week they had the car there!

[MingtheMerciless]

I’m going to get a “Crippling mid life crisis” T shirt to go with mine.


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[Anon]

Is it possible to have a mid life crisis at 40??

[speedmachine]

Is it possible to have a mid life crisis at 40??

If you’re driving atoms, you probably way past mid life
I’m 38 and i am experiencing what people call midkife crisis for years, its more like all life crise

[Trigger]

It’s an Atom 4, it has all the Traction Aids


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Good point - the way he was driving really assumed they were turned off as he kept backing right off and really wasnt using any power at all - maybe the traction control is very limited Or the Stig as a standard turns all that stuff off ??

T

[cvjoint]

The Atom 4 looks quite good in Chris's hands. It appears to be as slideable as a Caterham, no small feat for a car with the balance of an old 911. You get the go fast abilities of mid/rear engine with the flexibility of an FMR platform. This is my overall impression from the short clip, and seems very positive.

I don't disagree with Chris that the Atom 3 is understeer prone, but I do disagree with him that it makes for slow cornering. I prefer the understeer bias and the laptimes back it up. Chris is applying the same recipe for balance for all cars, and that's where he is wrong. The Atom is better off with mild to moderate understeer. It requires specialized driving skills that when acquired are highly rewarding in terms of speed. He needs more track time in an Atom to understand it.

Between hating on all SUVs and calling a super light a mid life crisis he is tailoring his choices too narrowly. The fame is making him a bit stubborn and uncompromising. Makes for some drama and good TV though, at least he's honest.

[ace_cox]

I enjoyed seeing it on Top Gear but was also 'put out' by the mid-life crisis comment - I think it's more that you can only really get to afford a 'fun' car once you have a bit more finance behind you! Although I probably agree with the too scared to buy a motorbike LOL!! I'm considering buying a 4 and its good to hear the positive feedback! I rate Chris Harris!

[CAG3D]

I rate Chris Harris, as a tXXt!!

I didn’t realise how many people took such an interest in me owning an Atom. And they all think they’re the first to tell me about my Mid Life!! Roll on the sunshine, I’m gonna strap each and every one of them in, one at a time and take them all out to share my Mid Life Crisis...... and watch them all cry


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