Latest Atom from Ariel Motor Company is the bonkers 4R. Looking very aggressive yet clearly an Atom the new one packs a 400bhp punch courtesy of its Honda 2-litre VTEC engine.

Bold side-pods add to the look but also serve a purpose. The left-hand one has an additional radiator which increases engine colling by 55 per cent, while the right pod features a larger air-to-air intercooler, which is 75 per cent larger than standard.

The Atom 4R has adjustable traction control, three levels of turbo boost, track mode with a video cam, a rear-view camera, mechanical limited slip differential that allows full bore upchanges without using the clutch.

Damping is taken care of by Öhlins TTX36 items with ‘road/track’ or ‘track’ settings. The 680kg Atom 4R is said to have a top speed of 170mph along with 369lb/ft of torque.

Options include a six-speed Quaife sequential gearbox (£13,500), carbon-fibre wheels, and carbon-ceramic discs (£5820).

Price starts at £77,940 although when loaded with all the options that price rockets to £140,000. If you thought other special Atoms like the 3.5R and the ‘Mugen’ were very rapid (they were, trust me) then the 4R takes things to new levels.

Oooh look. Carbon-fibre wheels. Nice.

In other news, the Somerset company has just received a government grant to develop an electric version of their Nomad model.

More information from www.arielmotor.co.uk ENDS.