Any closer, you’d need hay bales on the track

Dan Carney • E-mail

Ever seen the grins on the faces of kids driving at the go-kart track at the beach. Or better yet, worn the go-kart grin yourself? Seems Madison Avenue is trying to tell us the latest turbo SUV can give adults the same rush.

Mr. SUV, I knew Mr. Go-Kart. Mr. Go-Kart was a friend of mine. You sir are no Mr. Go-Kart.

It is the impossible dream, right? You can’t have fun like that with a car you can drive on public roads, can you? Maybe with a motorcycle, but cars just get too tamed by windshields and doors and roofs and the like. So how about a car that foregoes all of those as just so much unnecessary gingerbread?

Leave out the windshield, the doors, the roof, and shoot, all of the bodywork altogether, and suddenly you find yourself looking at an Ariel Atom, a spider-web framed kart of a car that you actually can drive on public roads.

The Atom originated in England and gained notoriety among enthusiasts in the U.S. courtesy of an uncharacteristically ebullient review by British television car reviewer Jeremy Clarkson. On his Top Gear TV show, Clarkson is notorious for his application of acerbic, cynical wit to the hapless victims of his reviews. He makes U.K. ex-pat commentator Simon Cowell look like the TODAY show’s kid-gloves movie reviewer Gene Shalit by comparison.

Anyway, Clarkson positively cackled with unreserved, unironic, uncool joy at the sheer thrill of shredding a racecourse with the Atom. And that might have been the end of the story for American drivers, until engineer Craig Bramscher decided that we needed an Atom here.

Bramscher’s company, Brammo Motorsports, LLC, licensed the production right for the Atom from Ariel and reengineered it to accept a Chevrolet engine in place of the original car’s Honda. But fear not for the change because the 2.0-liter Ecotec four-cylinder engine is the supercharged 205 horsepower version from the Cobalt SS.

With that engine and its five-speed manual transmission transplanted into the Atom, the 1,400 lb. car accelerates, turns and stops like a million dollar Ferrari Enzo supercar. You remember, the one last seen crashing in the inept hands of an actor in that YouTube video.

Climbing behind the Atom’s steering wheel is just like tucking into those concession karts at the beach, but without the knees-in-the-face seating position once you get settled. It is a snug fit, and the steering wheel is removable to aid the chores of ingress and egress.

Once in place, click the four-point racing-style harness into place, snap the visor on your helmet closed (wearing a helmet is not mandatory, but it is a darn good idea if you don’t like the idea of catching a rock with your face), check with your passenger for a thumbs-up (there is only space for one other person in the cramped two-abreast cockpit), crack the throttle open, ease out on the clutch and take off.

MORE FROM THE DRIVER'S SEAT

The Driver's Seat Section Front

As Chrysler moves on, dealers ponder fate GM faces hard road back to profitability GM filing would be risky, but looks likely Auto dealers fighting against closures Ford’s foresight puts carmaker in pole position Can Marchionne’s magic work at Chrysler? ‘Cash for clunkers’ plan draws fire Automakers put on a brave face in N.Y. GM, Chrysler in fast lane to bankruptcy? Bankruptcy won’t solve automakers’ woes The Driver's Seat Section Front   Add The Driver's Seat headlines to your news reader: