The vehicle lets the driver play with 500 hp and promises to offer sensations that are out of these world. Ariel has paid attention to the little details that make the whole package special, one being the colored ceramic coating for the exhaust system.
This is the first OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) application of Zircotec’s Performance Colours ceramic exhaust coating, which serves both a functional (thermal barrier) and an aesthetic role. The coating was applied by plasma spraying.
“Zircotec coatings are being increasingly used by high performance road and race car manufacturers as a solution to effectively manage heat. In 2010, over 70 percent of the F1 grid is using Zircotec coatings to offer durability and performance benefits,” stated the press release.
Each exhaust (Ariel will only build 25 units of the Atom V8) is hand sprayed using a plasma torch that runs at over 12,000 degrees Celsius at Zircotec’s new site in Abingdon, UK. The exhaust gets a proprietary nickle-based bond coat, then receives molten ceramic with a thickness of almost 350 microns.
“Zircotec coatings are trusted in high performance applications at the highest levels of motorsport offering surface temperature reductions of over 30 percent,” says Zircotec’s sales director Peter Whyman. “Our lightweight coating offers a high performance, durable and professional finish that is entirely appropriate for the Atom V8, a car fitted with many race specification components and described by Ariel as a race car with number plates.”
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