Ariel reveals production ready Ace motorcycle for 2015
Ariel Motorcycles is a name which would fill any vintage motorcycling enthusiast with nostalgia. The then Birmingham-based manufacturer built bikes from the early 20th century right up to the Seventies when the firm was taken over by BSA but soon met its demise. 1991 was when the company resurfaced as Ariel Motor Company and gave the world one of the fastest accelerating road-going open-wheeled cars, the Atom. Now, Ariel has revealed their new motorcycle called the Ace.
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The sports-naked version of the Ace[/caption]
Ariel’s partnership with Honda has come a long way with the Atom making use of the Honda Civic Type-R powertrain. This was the world’s first exoskeletal car built around a tubular frame. Continuing with the tradition, the Ace uses a tubular frame built out of billet aluminium and it dominates the design of the motorcycle. Ariel has showcased two body types where one is styled as a power cruiser while the other looks like a sports-naked. The former employs a girder fork with a single Ohlins shock and the latter features Ohlin up-side down forks. Ariel claims that the unique way in which their motorcycles are built would allow customers to tailor the bike to their liking. This means that each motorcycle they produce would be bespoke with adjustable footrests, levers and seat height which would further allow a rider to find a comfortable riding position.
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The tubular frame is built out of billet aluminium and dominates the design of the motorcycle[/caption]
The Ace will employ a 1237cc liquid-cooled V4 engine from the Honda VFR1200, producing 173bhp and 130Nm of torque. The single-sided swingarm along with the shaft-drive is also borrowed from the VFR and so is the 6-speed dual-clutch transmission with automatic and semi-automatic modes. Performance figures stand at 3.4 seconds for a 0–100kmph run, maxing out at 266kmph. Stopping duties are handled by Nissin 320mm twin discs with a 6-pot calliper at the front and a single 276mm disc with twin piston calliper at the rear. Five- and seven-spoke alloys are also available in full carbon-fibre as options.
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The power-cruiser version (above) has a different front suspension set-up[/caption]
Ariel is aiming at low-volume production initially, stated to begin in 2015 with 100–150 units targeted. The bikes will be built alongside the Atom at their factory in Somerset. Want one? Prices start at Rs 20.4 lakh (excluding duties and taxes).
Ariel Motor Company owner and Director, Simon Saunders said, “The first photos show just two different possibilities of specification for the bike, but the combinations are nearly endless and we plan to continue to add further options in the future.”
