Simon Saunders, director of Ariel, told Coach that when the company was only making the road-focused Atom, an American called the company and asked for an Atom with “about three feet” of suspension travel. Ariel wasn’t ready for that at the time, but the idea stuck around until Ariel retooled it into the Nomad, which launched in 2015. Having learned a lot from building hundreds of Nomads over the past 10 years and watching the off-road segment explode, Ariel is ready with a second-generation Nomad 2. Only the Nomad’s steering wheel, pedal box, and gas cap carry over to the Nomad 2. Starting with the frame, engineers used larger tubing, measuring 2 and 2.5 inches in diameter, to increase stiffness by 65 percent. That figure has been achieved even with the Nomad 2 expanding its footprint, increasing its wheelbase by 1 7/8 inches and widening its track by 2 inches. This also provides additional space in the cockpit, a reshaped opening that provides the easier access that original Nomad buyers requested.
There is a shock behind the cockpit, that is a ford engine. Ariel said the Honda K24 engines used in the first NomadStarting with a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter and then a 2.4-liter four-cylinder, are becoming increasingly difficult to come by. So while the Atom 4 sticks with today’s turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder Honda Civic Type-RThe Nomad 2 has switched to the 2.3-liter four-cylinder turbo engine from the Ford Focus STThe Nomad’s 2.4-liter Honda engine was tuned to 235 horsepower and 221 pound-feet of torque. The standard Focus ST makes 276 horsepower and 310 lb-ft. The base Nomad 2 comes with a detuned version of the Ford mill that makes 260 horsepower and 284 pound-feet of torque. An optional upgrade installs a new ECU with three engine maps starting at that base level, and then going up to 302 hp and 333 lb-ft. or 305 hp and 382 lb-ft. Shifts come via the Focus ST’s six-speed manual or an optional Quaife six-speed sequential transmission.
The extra power motivates a setup that still tips the scales at just 1,550 pounds. The sprint to 60 mph takes an estimated 3.4 seconds, and 60 mph comes in another 4.1 seconds. Larger rotors with 40 percent more sweeping area and ABS help the thing come to a stop in reasonable time. The engine breathes easier, too, thanks to a radiator that’s 2.5 times larger than before and multiple stages of intake air filtration.
At the corners, new suspension geometry with fully sealed bushings and ball joints not only gives the arms 50 percent more travel, the angles also reduce the squat, pitch and wallow of the first Nomad. K-tec dampers with Eibach dual-rate springs are standard; the options list starts with three-stage adjustable Ohlins TTX dampers with remote reservoirs and springs and ends with Bilstein two-stage dampers with remote reservoirs. Wheels are either regular 16-inch alloys, 16-inch beadlocks or 18-inch lightweight forged units, while tire selection ranges from road to hardcore all-terrain. However buyers mix and match, an optional hydraulic rally-style handbrake makes those J-bends and Scandinavian flicks even sharper.
Body panels are made of the same plastic used to make safety cones. Along with the larger entrance, livability takes big steps in many small ways. A wing-shaped header rail above the windshield directs air to the dual-level intake behind the cockpit, doubling as a sun visor and preventing the illumination from the additional Lazer LED spotlights from leaking into the occupants’ eyes. Lightweight seats available in two widths or in carbon fiber can accommodate four-point seat belts. The Atom 4’s switchgear is easier to use, with a full-colour TFT screen on either side, showing gear position and shift lights, data logging and a rear-view camera image.
An options list of over 100 items increases the personalization possibilities, with everything from a winch to the cockpit brake bias controls. Ariel hasn’t announced pricing for North America, but based on the previous Nomad starting in the mid-$80,000s, I’d expect a little over $90,000 this time around.