Ariel, maker of Atom and Ace, coming to PH

Bikerbox to bring British boutique motorcycle brand, Ariel, to the Philippines

Boutique motorcycle marque, Ariel, will soon land on our shores courtesy of its new Philippine distributor, Bikerbox, Inc. Ariel traces its roots all the way back to 1870 when it produced bicycles. Today, it remains a small British motorcycle and carmaker based in Somerset, England.

According to Bikerbox, Inc., president, Marc de Joya, the company will be bringing in the Ariel Ace shortly after the COVID-19 situation improves. Coming from a boutique manufacturer, all units will be on a made-to-order basis to suit the client's specifications.

Ariel Ace

If you're not familiar with Ariel, we've talked about it briefly, here. Since their car, launched in the year 2000, Ariel Motor Company never played by the rules. The Atom was designed to be a street-legal track monster, boasting of a trellis frame and powered by a 1.8-liter Rover K-series engine. It was later updated in 2003 to use a supercharged Honda K20 2.0-liter engine. Because of Ariel's focus on building a lightweight, fast, high-performance vehicles with a trellis frame, a similar bicycle was a no-brainer.

Thus, in 2015, Ariel launched the Ace, their first motorcycle model sporting the same distinct trellis frame and also powered by a Honda engine. The distinctive trellis frame is CNC-machined aluminum, which is an artwork in itself. It is powered by a V-4, 1,237cc Honda VFR engine that produces 175 Ps. It can be paired with an optional dual-clutch transmission (DCT). The Ace can also be ordered with either a conventional fork or a girder front fork. 

Naturally, it's equipped with all the top-shelf goodies from Showa or Öhlins, Nissin, and a whole lot more. Every Ace motorcycle will be tailor-made and individually built by one technician from start to finish. A technician will only put his name on a finished Ace when he's satisfied with its quality.

Other models such as the track toy, the Atom, and the dune buggy, the Nomad, can also be ordered through Bikerbox.

^{Ariel Atom}

Unfortunately, due to shipping and applicable taxes that have yet to be calculated and factored in, pricing is not yet available as of this writing.

Ariel Motor Company

Ariel was founded in 1870 by James Starley and William Hillman. They built wire-spoke wheels under the first British patent; creating their own lighter version of the iconic "penny farthing" bicycle with a 50-inch wheel which they named 'Ariel' (the spirit of the air). In 1885 they invented the Rover Safety Bicycle - a bicycle with similarly sized wheels and chain drive to the rear wheel, the design used on bicycles today. In 1902, Ariel produced its first motorcycle, which had a Kerry engine with magneto ignition and a float carburetor.

Ariel motorcycles were famous for their innovation, being one of the earliest producers of four-stroke engines, developing a twin-parallel twin called the Square Four, and famous models like the Red Hunter, and Arrow. At one point, Ariel even owned fellow British motorcycle marque, Triumph. Both were eventually sold to the Birmingham Small Arms Company group (BSA). Unfortunately, Ariel struggled to compete with imported Japanese motorcycles, despite shifting to two-stroke engines. Ariel motorcycles ceased production in 1967.

A new Ariel company was founded by Simon Saunders in 1991 as Solocrest Ltd. The name was changed in 1999 to Ariel Motor Company Ltd. Despite the popularity of its Atom performance car, Ariel Motor Company is one of the UK's smallest automotive companies, with just 30 employees and producing up to 100 cars and motorcycles per year.