Dare I ask ...
Discussion
... about windscreens?!?!?
I'm coming from the girly world of Caterhams, where I have a windscreen & therefore don't have to wear a helmet.
I use my car whenever it is not raining, which involves commuting (with just a change of shoes at the other end!).
I really don't fancy donning the full weatherproofs and a helmet each time I want to go for a blat (am I allowed to call driving an Atom a "blat"?).
So, what's the chances if fitting some sort of screen?
I know it's kinda against the ethos of the car, but I fear I wouldn't use it so much if I had to put on a helmet.
(ducks for cover ...)
Cheers
Al
ps - anyway want to px a Caterham???
I'm coming from the girly world of Caterhams, where I have a windscreen & therefore don't have to wear a helmet.
I use my car whenever it is not raining, which involves commuting (with just a change of shoes at the other end!).
I really don't fancy donning the full weatherproofs and a helmet each time I want to go for a blat (am I allowed to call driving an Atom a "blat"?).
So, what's the chances if fitting some sort of screen?
I know it's kinda against the ethos of the car, but I fear I wouldn't use it so much if I had to put on a helmet.
(ducks for cover ...)
Cheers
Al
ps - anyway want to px a Caterham???
Compare these pics
http://pascalpierart.free.fr/photos/script/albums/userpics/10001/normal_RENAULT%20Spider.JPG
www.clioland.ch/images/ZuVerkaufenFotos/Marc_Friedli/spider_pic26962.jpg
and: Which one is faster / burns less fuel?
http://pascalpierart.free.fr/photos/script/albums/userpics/10001/normal_RENAULT%20Spider.JPG
www.clioland.ch/images/ZuVerkaufenFotos/Marc_Friedli/spider_pic26962.jpg
and: Which one is faster / burns less fuel?
We had the side panels and bubble screens on ours and I'll have to say even with the issues of staying dry etc out of the way they made a big difference on the way the car behaved.
The bubbles allow you to get away with shades for driving around on the road.
On the track they stop the huge lift you get on your crash helmet. Before we had it I found myself coming into the pits just to tighten up my helmet!!!!
The side panels do make the car far more comfortable to drive on the road, pretty much keeping everything dry leg wise even in very wet weather.
For the track I have no proof but I'm sure they have helped with high speed stability. Not really so easy to tell on tracks with short straights, but at the back of Bedford, Silverstone and at 150mph (flat out for a couple of miles) in the Isle of Mann chasing bikes on Mad Sunday, they seamed to make a large difference.
Mind you all of this could be me justifying being a big girl and wanting to stay dry!
Ju
The bubbles allow you to get away with shades for driving around on the road.
On the track they stop the huge lift you get on your crash helmet. Before we had it I found myself coming into the pits just to tighten up my helmet!!!!
The side panels do make the car far more comfortable to drive on the road, pretty much keeping everything dry leg wise even in very wet weather.
For the track I have no proof but I'm sure they have helped with high speed stability. Not really so easy to tell on tracks with short straights, but at the back of Bedford, Silverstone and at 150mph (flat out for a couple of miles) in the Isle of Mann chasing bikes on Mad Sunday, they seamed to make a large difference.
Mind you all of this could be me justifying being a big girl and wanting to stay dry!
Ju
Julian
I know it's unfashionable (particularly with Meyrick!), but I actually quite like the side panels.
Ok, so I said they were for girls in a previous post - maybe that means I'm a little girl too! But seriously, surely there must be some top line speed benefit, as they can only but help aerodynamics (albeit only at the sides) i.e. smooth surface v.s. scaffolding/cheese grater effect???
Mike
I know it's unfashionable (particularly with Meyrick!), but I actually quite like the side panels.
Ok, so I said they were for girls in a previous post - maybe that means I'm a little girl too! But seriously, surely there must be some top line speed benefit, as they can only but help aerodynamics (albeit only at the sides) i.e. smooth surface v.s. scaffolding/cheese grater effect???
Mike
hehe!
aye - fair enough. i guess they have a certain reputation, however i'll be ticking the box marked 'side screens', so you can't have it both ways - i'm either a big girl's blowse or i sport a Carlo Vandango Chest Wig ( with medallion ).
speaking of which - i have a test drive booked for friday
aye - fair enough. i guess they have a certain reputation, however i'll be ticking the box marked 'side screens', so you can't have it both ways - i'm either a big girl's blowse or i sport a Carlo Vandango Chest Wig ( with medallion ).
speaking of which - i have a test drive booked for friday
So far I am not yet sure if I will become an Atom owner at all. Besides the TÜV`s opinion it also depends on the test drive I will have in Belgium hopefully next month and on the different technical questions I am still having now after searching in the public part of this club and its forum.
BTW: What is a “lurking owner”? ( Something evil and hidden says my dictionary.)
I read that after being registered as club members they will get some “stuff” that does not appear on a public forum. Would that be worthwhile for me, too?
(E.g. I am interested in seeing parts of the workshop manual, always before buying a car!)
When searching in the open to the public information here I also noticed that some owners rode their Atom only for one season and thereafter sold it again.
Is this because of the bad weather you had in UK last summer or did they buy an Atom only instead of a hairy chest wig?
Nevertheless I am asking all “still-owners” reading this:
What can be done to improve aerodynamics (less drag more down force) and what in order to make the Atom more suitable for our common climatic conditions? Just imagine you have to share your Atom with a friend and the weekend when it` s your turn it is raining cats and dogs again…...
I personally hate helmets and these suits fanatic bikers necessarily have to get used to. (smelly summer saunas!! ) Therefore instead of having the bubble screens I even would prefer a well-shaped windscreen with one central wiper.
I showed you the Renault Spider before.
Do you really think such windscreen would spoil the Atom’s appearance? Or do you fear that such screen would make the Atom less exclusive and masculine as it obviously appears to some of you now?
And once I started this discussion let me add:
I am also convinced that it would l not be too difficult to design OPTIONAL (!!) enclosures for all 4 wheels which can be screwed on and off by owners who need to see at least 2 open front wheels in front of them in order to feel like being Michael Schumacher or Stirling Moss on a racetrack.
Pininfarina has just presented the Enjoy Prototype, which has realised that concept:
www.hizone.info/data/2003/02/26/images/pininfarina-enjoy.jpg
www.autosrapidos.com/superautos/p/pininfarina-enjoy01.jpg
I do not enjoy the styling of that Enjoy very much but I think the idea behind is not bad.
From the physical point of view I would always second to leave those enclosing wings or fenders installed because:
It cannot be denied that primarily due to their 4 large exposed wheels open-wheel racecars from the aerodynamic point of view are always closer to an aerodynamic nightmare than to an ideal high-speed streamliner,
Or expressing it the other way:
It is a fact that closed wheel prototypes is much closer to the designers dream, because their bodywork can be shaped rather relaxed:
Even without huge and ugly front wings impressive and nice drag and down force coefficients are feasible for this type of cars.
BTW: Looking at the wings of the Race Atom I get the impression that they only have symbolic value anyhow.
And once I am making new friends in this forum I cannot refrain from adding to the above statements:
Brick like Caterhams IMHO are relicts of the stone age period of car design because they use their motor power installed much more than any other car for pushing air and nevertheless risk to become unstable even airborne because of too much lift and their relatively low weight.
The open wheel Atom is already better in this respect but not much.
But do not despare I have already some sketches and ideas how this can be improved also in respect of the new rules pedestrian protection to which also y Ariel M C will have to pay some attention.
BIG FAT SIMLEY here--- the others please fill in where you like to have them!!
Hartmut
Harmut,
i can see that you have many questions to answer before you take the plunge into ownership.
i don't have the information you require, or indeed any real experience of atoms at all, with which to help you.
why don't you talk to the factory?
i guess what i am saying is that all things are possible in engineering, it's just a question of how long and how much?
the nature of the product is such that ( from what i can gather ) it is designed to be a simple, cheap ( in the good way! ) fun vehicle. it coud be turned into a tourer ( conceivably ), or you can tick all the boxes on the options sheet and have a real racer. either way the product is as it stands, and the factory, in conjunction with owners and those who race, will develop it in the directions that suit THEIR purposes.
i don't know mate - if you haven't made up your mind after your test drive, then you can stand back, wait and watch. or you can get involved, pay your money, and be one of the people who has a hand in the way the car develops ( or at least the way YOUR car develops ).
oh yeah - don't buy a lotus. i've got a nice tvr if you're in the market....
i can see that you have many questions to answer before you take the plunge into ownership.
i don't have the information you require, or indeed any real experience of atoms at all, with which to help you.
why don't you talk to the factory?
i guess what i am saying is that all things are possible in engineering, it's just a question of how long and how much?
the nature of the product is such that ( from what i can gather ) it is designed to be a simple, cheap ( in the good way! ) fun vehicle. it coud be turned into a tourer ( conceivably ), or you can tick all the boxes on the options sheet and have a real racer. either way the product is as it stands, and the factory, in conjunction with owners and those who race, will develop it in the directions that suit THEIR purposes.
i don't know mate - if you haven't made up your mind after your test drive, then you can stand back, wait and watch. or you can get involved, pay your money, and be one of the people who has a hand in the way the car develops ( or at least the way YOUR car develops ).
oh yeah - don't buy a lotus. i've got a nice tvr if you're in the market....
Hart said:
I read that after being registered as club members they will get some “stuff” that does not appear on a public forum.
There are certain photos of Bruce which simply cannot be displayed in open forums. Its the law. We cannot change that.
Hart said:
When searching in the open to the public information here I also noticed that some owners rode their Atom only for one season and thereafter sold it again.
In a lot of cases, they're upgrading to faster Atoms. MC's car was for sale a while ago - he was upgrading to a 300. I'll have one up for sale soon for the very same reason.
Hart said:
What can be done to improve aerodynamics (less drag more down force) and what in order to make the Atom more suitable for our common climatic conditions?
I'm sure there are lots of things you could add to an Atom to make it more aerodrnamic, keep you drier, and allow you to carry IKEA furniture home in it more easily ...but the whole concept of the Atom was based on "if it doesn't need it, it hasn't got it".
The Atom is the Atom, and it works ...why try to change it?
>> Edited by atom120 on Tuesday 19th April 20:49
Hey hartmut,
Why don't you buy an airplane ticket to Bristol, rent a car for the day, go to Ariel MC and have a ride in the Atom ? This will cost you about 400 Euros with a low cost company and you'll have answer to the most important question : I'm made to drive/own an Atom or not ?
After that, it will be time to ask yourself if you want a real winscreen or not (for example)...
Why don't you buy an airplane ticket to Bristol, rent a car for the day, go to Ariel MC and have a ride in the Atom ? This will cost you about 400 Euros with a low cost company and you'll have answer to the most important question : I'm made to drive/own an Atom or not ?
After that, it will be time to ask yourself if you want a real winscreen or not (for example)...
Just for the record, at Bedford a few weeks ago there where a couple of Ultima's with well over 650bhp and capable of 200mph.
The rear straight at the back of Bedford is one of the longest about (I know, Nurburg, Isle of Mann etc have longer straights.....)
In my Atom 220 they must have pulled no more than 2-3 car lengths (more than caught back up under braking).
Have done a track day at Silverstone (full GP track) and was playing with a 500bhp race prepared GT2 911, again gained 2 car lengths up the back straight.
Where exactly are we going to need 180mph in an Atom (or would want to), I'm all for playing around with bits to make the most of what we have, but if your looking to change the design so far from the original it might be better to have a Radical or Westfield.
One of the great things about the Atom is that is doesn't rely on Aerodynamics for grip, it makes it fun to drift and very controllable out on the track. I’m sure greatly improved airflow would ultimately make the car faster round a track, but would it be as much fun?
Sorry if I'm ranting, loved my car and missing it (Yes we have sold ours, but only for an upgrade!)
Julian
The rear straight at the back of Bedford is one of the longest about (I know, Nurburg, Isle of Mann etc have longer straights.....)
In my Atom 220 they must have pulled no more than 2-3 car lengths (more than caught back up under braking).
Have done a track day at Silverstone (full GP track) and was playing with a 500bhp race prepared GT2 911, again gained 2 car lengths up the back straight.
Where exactly are we going to need 180mph in an Atom (or would want to), I'm all for playing around with bits to make the most of what we have, but if your looking to change the design so far from the original it might be better to have a Radical or Westfield.
One of the great things about the Atom is that is doesn't rely on Aerodynamics for grip, it makes it fun to drift and very controllable out on the track. I’m sure greatly improved airflow would ultimately make the car faster round a track, but would it be as much fun?
Sorry if I'm ranting, loved my car and missing it (Yes we have sold ours, but only for an upgrade!)
Julian
Monza once you got your French number plates I’ll come to show you my ElisA.
Thereafter I`ll decide if it keeps its actual 170 BHP Rover engine or if it gets a Honda K2o.
2 cars with same engines? No I think that would be somehow exaggerated, Trop d`honneur pour Honda! I also have some shares of Toyota!
And now I have to shut down my PC and drive to the airport.
Hasta luego in 10 days here at this place again
HARTMUT
Thereafter I`ll decide if it keeps its actual 170 BHP Rover engine or if it gets a Honda K2o.
2 cars with same engines? No I think that would be somehow exaggerated, Trop d`honneur pour Honda! I also have some shares of Toyota!
And now I have to shut down my PC and drive to the airport.
Hasta luego in 10 days here at this place again
HARTMUT
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