Ariel Atom 4 review

You sit fractionally lower and because the sides are higher, feel safer and more enclosed. Just be warned you have to lift your legs higher when climbing in. The plastic seats are great – better shaped than many supercar firms can manage, although it’s worth upgrading from the standard harnesses.

However, it’s the new dash panel that’s the biggest advance: a proper colour screen surrounded by a brilliantly logical panel of switches, knobs and buttons that were second nature to use after ten minutes of night driving. There’s even an auto setting for the lights – the sensor is in front of the gearlever. And those headlights are a massive improvement – a strong, straight beam with good range and brightness.

The fit and finish is typically great (up there with a BAC Mono, but a third of the price), the driving position is close to faultless (I’d like a fraction more spacing between the pedals to aid driving in shoes other than racing boots), the steering weight is fine when manoeuvring and the turning circle is now substantially tighter. Otherwise the experience hasn’t changed fundamentally – this is still a car you’re better off driving with a helmet. Improved airflow ain’t gonna stop a stone.