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[zirax]

I do want one. One day I will have one, mark my words. Now weather this will be a Westie or an Atom will be a question for a few years time

[Broomies Mate]

Phew, at least someone mentioned the Atom!  Now THATS a weekend toy....... once a year when we have a dry weekend. 

[henryd]

Phew, at least someone mentioned the Atom!  Now THATS a weekend toy....... once a year when we have a dry weekend. 

I'll have this one thanks    http://www.evo.co.uk/news/evonews/256843/ariel_atom_500_v8.html

[Kevin Wood]

I do want one. One day I will have one, mark my words. Now weather this will be a Westie or an Atom will be a question for a few years time

Getting caught in bad weather in a Westfield is bad enough. It must be real fun in an Atom.

Kevin

[Richgm]

I do want one. One day I will have one, mark my words. Now weather this will be a Westie or an Atom will be a question for a few years time

Getting caught in bad weather in a Westfield is bad enough. It must be real fun in an Atom.

Kevin

If you've got a windscreen then drive faster and the rain goes over the top 

[Kevin Wood]

I do want one. One day I will have one, mark my words. Now weather this will be a Westie or an Atom will be a question for a few years time

Getting caught in bad weather in a Westfield is bad enough. It must be real fun in an Atom.

Kevin

If you've got a windscreen then drive faster and the rain goes over the top 

.. round the back, curls under the roll bar and gets you in the back of the head.

Kevin

[henryd]

I do want one. One day I will have one, mark my words. Now weather this will be a Westie or an Atom will be a question for a few years time

Getting caught in bad weather in a Westfield is bad enough. It must be real fun in an Atom.

Kevin

can't say I would fancy a motorway run in the wet in one

[Richgm]

.. round the back, curls under the roll bar and gets you in the back of the head.

Kevin

Never noticed it on the back of my head. Just as long as it wasn't going in my eyes so I could see. I must admit I didn't go very far without my sidescreens if the weather looked dodgy.

[Kevin Wood]

Yeh but, for the sake of an extra 100Kg's in a car that weights approx 500Kg's plus 40Kg's of fuel and 100Kg's of driver, is it worth it?

For a road car it's not worth getting obsessed with weight by replacing proven, reliable components with increasingly expensive, less reliable, lighter components... IMHO

There are plenty of Westfield owners who would sell their own gonads to take 100kg off the weight of their car, though.

Kevin

[albitz]

They are great to drive on the track and bloody horrible on the road and all because the engine is not suited to getting the vehicle moving from a standing start! 

Not really sure why tbh. :-/.......the engine and gearbox unit has around175bhp and 105 lb-ft of torque (and weighs not much more than an Omega gearbox). In a half tonne car isnt that plenty of torque ? :-/
Maybe everything happens much higher up the rev range than in a car engine, but thats a characteristic of bike engines, would it just be a matter of getting used to that characteristic ?

[Kevin Wood]

Not really sure why tbh. :-/.......the engine and gearbox unit has around175bhp and 105 lb-ft of torque (and weighs not much more than an Omega gearbox). In a half tonne car isnt that plenty of torque ? :-/
Maybe everything happens much higher up the rev range than in a car engine, but thats a characteristic of bike engines, would it just be a matter of getting used to that characteristic ?

It's mainly that the gear ratios are not ideal for a road car IME.

You end up with quite a tall 1st gear which, combined with a "tricky" clutch and relatively little torque (and, remember, very little flywheel effect due to the small rotating mass of the engine) makes it a bit of a pain to pull away without lots of revs and lots of clutch slip.

Once moving you've got a sequential 6 speed box with nice, close ratios so all good there - until you get up to motorway speed where cruising at 9,000 RPM becomes a bit wearing after a while, I'm told.

I think it's fair to say they are more suited to track use.

Kevin

[albitz]

So - change 1st gear ratio, and wear ear plugs/and or a crash helmet - seemples.

[aaronjb]

I do want one. One day I will have one, mark my words. Now weather this will be a Westie or an Atom will be a question for a few years time

Getting caught in bad weather in a Westfield is bad enough. It must be real fun in an Atom.

Kevin

If you've got a windscreen then drive faster and the rain goes over the top 

.. round the back, curls under the roll bar and gets you in the back of the head.

Kevin

I get the same thing in the MR2 - and if you put the windows up it runs up the side windows and then comes off the back edge of the window and ... gets you in the side of the face 

Still I didn't get anywhere near as wet as the guys in the 'aero-screen'd Caterhams at Anglesey!