There’s a British expression that seems particularly appropriate here: cop a load of this. Yes, it’s an Ariel Atom police car, a one-off liveried version of the lightweight special—complete with blue flashing lights—that’s been created for the U.K. police as part of a safety campaign aimed at young motorcyclists.
We’ve seen police-spec supercars for years, of course. Just last week, in fact, we brought you news of the latest Lamborghini that’s been drafted in to work with the Italian Polizia. But in terms of raw performance, this Atom 3.5R is in a different league thanks to its combination of a 350-hp supercharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder Honda engine and a claimed 1212-pound curb weight. Ariel claims a 0 to 60 mph time of 2.5 seconds, which has to surely make the Atom PL1 the fastest-accelerating police car on the planet. (A 300-hp supercharged Atom we tested in 2009 weighed 1388 pounds and hit 60 in 2.9 seconds.)
Not that the PL1 is going to be used in any sting operations. It will be used mostly at shows and events to promote motorcycle safety, but Ariel boss Simon Saunders is keen to emphasise that the Atom is ready for work, finished in Avon and Somerset Constabulary colours and with a working light unit and rescue equipment.
“If a police officer is driving it, then it’s a police vehicle,” he told us from the company’s HQ in Crewkerne, Somerset. “We don’t imagine it will be used for too many pursuits, though.”
If it is, then we predict any such pursuits will be over quickly. Saunders says that Ariel was happy to lend the car, as so many of the company’s staff are riders. “Almost everyone here has a motorcycle license,” he said. “It’s fair to say that safety is a subject that’s close to our hearts.” In the U.K., motorbikes make up just one percent of road traffic but account for nearly 20 percent of fatalities.
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Saunders admits that police supercars played influenced the decision to create the PL1, but has no doubt that it would be quicker than any of the others. “We’ve seen some of these police specials before, and it we’d be very interesting to have a track test with them. I reckon we’d probably win that one.”
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