SALEEN S7 COMPETITION

The competition package is a new option from Saleen that builds on the 750 bhp S7, producing an astounding 1000 bhp. The package is the latest evolution of the S7 supercar that first started production in 2001. The extra horsepower comes from increasing the boost of the twin-turbo system developed by Saleen. 
Engine and Drivetrain

The all-aluminum V8 engine casting was engineered and tooled by Saleen to displace seven liters. Space age materials and engineering are used throughout, including stainless steel valves, titanium retainers, beryllium exhaust valve seats, an aluminum throttle body, Saleen-designed aluminum CNC-machined cylinder heads and stainless steel exhaust system. The V8 incorporates a unique Saleen-designed side-mounted water pump, a belt-driven camshaft drive and a Saleen-engineered dry sump oil delivery system.

SALEEN S7 TWIN TURBO

Steve Saleen is known as a tuner of American cars, particularly of Fords. Then some time during the 1990s, he developed a concept wherein his goal was to create a true American supercar. This marked the beginning of the story of the Saleen S7, one of the fastest cars that ever came out of American soil. During its release in 2002, it is deemed as one of the most technically advanced cars in the world, and one of the distinctions that it had then was it was the only American street-legal car that packs over 500 horsepower in stock trim.


Sure, the S7 got some serious love from both enthusiasts and critics alike, praising its unbelievable quickness and technological advancements. But how time quickly passes! Within 3 years, automotive engineering worldwide has improved so much that 500+ horsepower is now much easily attainable than when it first appeared. Now, the world beating American supercar has a lot of competition, and if they don’t do something, they just might fall behind the wayside of the supercar wars. Noticing this, Saleen has a plan. His team upgraded the S7 to the point that it has become a whole new car, ready to take on new challenges. This car is the Saleen S7 Twin Turbo.

SALEEN S7

Jointly designed by Saleen Incorporated and RML the Saleen S7 is being manufactured in Irvine, California. The Saleen S7 evokes images of an inspired union between touring sports cars and good old American muscle cars with it's unusually long and low frame.


During its introductory year in 2001, the Saleen S7 won four different GT Championships. When it came out as a production vehicle in 2002, it was touted by many automobile magazines as the fastest production car in the world. To date, the Saleen S7 has won over 70 major races worldwide.

SALEEN S302-E

The Saleen Sterling Edition S302E begins with what amounts to a Mustang GT in an official partnership with Ford Motor Company. But Saleen automobiles are no ordinary Mustangs. They come as highly polished, fully realized sports cars with the technical knowhow of the recently retired Steve Saleen, responsible for designing the legendary Saleen S7 supercar. 

SALEEN S281-3V

Steve Saleen, who created his company in 1983 and grew it into one of the premier specialty manufacturers of Ford-based products and the S7 supercar, is, ironically, no longer an employee of Saleen, Inc., having left in June 2007 for Chamco Auto of China, which hired the Mustang Hall of Famer to help establish its dealer network in the U.S. But although Saleen has departed, new CEO Paul Wilbur, a former general manager at Jeep, along with Chris Theodore, past vice president of product development at Ford, are forging ahead, promising to continue Saleen's quest "to build performance cars for the enthusiast."

SALEEN H302-S/C

For 2008 Saleen launched the second versions of its Heritage Mustang lineup including the new H302 SC. This new model features an updated version of Saleen's 302ci V8 first featured in the Parnelli Jones Limited Edition Mustang, as well as Saleen's Series VI supercharger.


The Hardware
The H302 SC features a Saleen built, 302 cubic inch engine that represents a marriage of race technology and production performance engineering. The evidence of this fact can be found in the hardware compromising the engine. Saleen starts with 5 axis CNC ported cylinder heads and then adds a new forged crankshaft, forged connecting rods, forged aluminum pistons, performance crankshaft, and high flow fuel injectors. Saleen then adds their patented twin-screw intercooled supercharger to serve as the core for the H302 SC, giving it a pavement-pounding 580 bhp and 525 lb-ft torque. This engine, when married to a smooth shifting, short throw 6-speed manual transmission, gives the H302 SC a performance profile comparable to any contemporary exotic but in a way that is truly American.

SALEEN S281

Part of what makes Ford's new Mustang GT a winner is its price. At $25,570 and with 300 horsepower under the hood, it's hard to find anything comparable. Certainly, Saleen's new supercharged S281 version of the Mustang--at $48,624 in its cheapest form--is not directly comparable.


Or is it? The major performance differences between the two are demonstrated most significantly at higher speed. The time the supercharged S281 took to reach 100 mph was 2.4 seconds quicker than our last Mustang GT ["21st-Century Muscle Cars," C/D, January 2005]. By 130 mph, the difference was 7.1 seconds and growing. That's called driving away.


But the differences are less profound in the quarter-mile sprint, where the Saleen reaches the lights just 0.6 second ahead of the GT (although it's already traveling 7 mph faster). A lot counts on getting a decent launch at the drag strip, and we'll admit our testing facilities have been badly ravaged by winter storms, making grip hard to come by.

SALEEN S281 EXTREME

Five hundred horsepower. Four hundred eighty poundfeet of torque. Those are serious performance numbers. And we'e not talking Saleen S7 supercar or some other exotic. No, we're talking 2005 Saleen S281 Extreme.

The S281 Extreme represents the pinnacle of the S281 lineup, which also includes the 325bhp S281 3-Valve and the 400bhp S281 Supercharged. Like these Mustangs, the Extreme starts life on the same great platform Ford has provided via the 2005 Mustang's all new architecture. But the S281 E sets up residence in performance territory never explored by a production Ford Mustang.


This newest member of the Saleen S281 is manufactured with the latest in Saleen racebred technology. At the heart of the S281 E is a unique Saleenmanufactured, highrevving, 4.6liter powerplant built inhouse. The 281 cubicinch V8 uses a special forged steel Saleen crankshaft, Saleen forged steel connecting rods, Saleen patented forged aluminum pistons and unique Saleen aluminum cylinder heads featuring special valve springs and the latest Saleen performance camshafts. In addition to the increased rpm available with the E engine, a Saleen-designed Series VI integrated TwinScrew supercharger with twostage watertoair intercooling is installed. This supercharger is so innovative that Saleen has several patents pending on the design.

SALEEN S281 CONVERTIBLE

When the new Mustang debuted in 2005, pony car enthusiasts were elated. After decades of rehashed Fox-platformed Mustangs that could barely get out of their own way, the new DEW98-derived DC2 'Stang promised so much more. At just over $25,000 for a 300hp GT, it delivered big time in the bang for the buck category. With such a low entrance fee, the platform really allows for things to be taken up a notch or two. Seems everybody and their mother are offering tuned Mustangs with body kits, wheel and tire packages, and enough underhood goodies to make that 300 hp look positively anemic. 


We've already profiled several of these and have even had our grubby little hands wrapped around the steering wheel of a Roush 427R for a week. While we're still waiting for Ford's own super 'Stang, the GT500, to find its way into the AB garage, specialty manufacturer Saleen  stepped up to offer us a sampling of their current lineup. Although our first choice Parnelli Jones limited edition was previously spoken for, we know that we will get one soon. In its place we were able to park a 2006 S281 Supercharged convertible . With 435 hp under its lightweight hood, we figured it might be an acceptable substitution. 


And we weren't disappointed. This sucker is fast. And fun, if you can define fun as having dozens of strangers speed up to get a pic of you on the freeway, giving you thumbs up at a stop light, fielding questions from bright-eyed young ladies at every (frequent) gas stop, and being able to light up the tires at will in almost any gear at almost any speed. Those are a few ways we usually define fun, so it seems we have a winner here. But is living with one for a few days as much fun as it seems? Read on for the whole story.

SALEEN S351

For the first four seconds, you feel like you're at the wheel of a dragster with a stuck throttle in a giant pan of cooking oil. Slipping and sluing, the tach builds revs in a needle-blurring burst through first gear, then second. Your toes curl around the top of the gas pedal, trying to feel for traction that isn't there. You've backed off to half throttle, yet both double-wide rear Dunlops churn in a fog of rubber smoke.
Then at about 60 mph, the shift to third puts things right. Finally, the available grip can absorb most of this car's horsepower. Pulling through 4000 rpm, the pancreas-flattening rush is awesome. Fourth gear is even better. The g's barely diminished by the rising aerodynamic loads, you're pinned to the Recaro seatback more forcefully than in anything short of an F-15 in full climb.
Just when you're ready to scream, through 5500 rpm, the power begins to flatten, but there's no point in going for fifth this close to the end of the quarter mile. Before you can ponder this any further, you're shooting past the finish on the high side of 120 mph, then standing hard on the brakes.

SALEEN SR

Car specifications
Year of make     2000
Car make          Saleen
Model              SR
Price 
               
Performance
Top speed         325 km/h
0-60 mph          4.0 sec
0-100 kmh
0-100 mph         9.9 sec
¼ mile               11.8 sec @ 123 mph
60-0 mph           36 m
Fuel consumption 19.6/11.2 l/100km

Power output
Horsepower        505 bhp @ 5400 rpm
Torque               678 Nm
Transmition         6-Speed Manual


Body
Length
Width
Height
Ground clearance
Fuel Capacity
Weight                1406 kg


Engine
Type                  Supercharged V8
Displacement        5800 ccm
Compression ratio
Aspiration
Redline
Layout                 RWD
Location               Front-Engine


Tires & Brakes
Front tires
Rear tires
Brakes (F/R)
Brake size (F/R)