is the saleen all its cracked up to be?

No Boss said:
jetsetter said:
The S7 is basically a race car. All you would need to do would be tp rip out the interior and it would be the racing version of the S7. In that type of racing you don't need to go over 200 mph.

Wow... that might actually the most sensible thing I've ever heard you say.

/Kudos

So, can he say the same thing about the McLaren F1?
 
I know Saleen has done a bit of racing in Europe with the S7R (he's entering Le Mans again this year), but are there any plans to sell it there?

Also, as was alluded to earlier, the S7 is pretty much identical to the S7R. They are built side by side in the factory, I think the only real differences are engine and interior. Amazingly enough, the road car is actully more powerful than the race car.

I wouldn't bet on it being faster in terms of top speed, but around the Top Gear track, I think the S7 turbo would be just as fast as the Koenigsegg. Every published figure I have seen about it (and I am talking magazine test figures, not made up publicity numbers) has been as good or better than cars like the Enzo, Zonda, Koenigsegg, and Carrera GT. It may be a lot less refined for passenger comfort, but Steve Saleen knows his shit in terms of engineering a fast car. For god's sake- it will do a standing mile in 25.9 seconds, and it will hit 200mph in 23.4 seconds (Road and Track standing mile article), and it will pull 1.04g steady state (Car and Driver). Thats just ridiculous.

Also note- I don't think most Americans are convinced that it is faster than the Koenigsegg in terms of top speed (Saleen didn't build it to challenge the top speed record, if it hits redline in top gear, it would max out at 235), but rather around tracks and in mid range accelleration.

The Koenigsegg and F1 definitely look better though.
 
Un-Dee said:
apart from the fact that is easily the ugliest car here.

X2, i totally agree
 
teeb said:
Soon as they stuck the wing on the LM and GT cars, about 40mph was knocked off the top speed, said Gordon Murray. Really helped the slightly-dodgy high speed handling, though.

However, if Saleen have a ridiculously big and powerful engine, and decent aerodynamics, it might be possible. Though I'd like to see it independently tested.

according to this page http://www.rsportscars.com/eng/cars/mclaren_f1lm.asp the top speed for the LM is 225 mph.

I think that this might be on the optimistic side, but 40 mph seems like too much to lose, then again it does have a little more oomph
 
zenkidori said:
I would love an S7, I've seen several in person, and actually been fortunate to hop inside, they're wonderfull cars.
but with the Twin Turbo version costing over $600K...I dont know, i feel like with that money i could get a C-GT and an F430.
If you are in the mood for an American supercar, a Mosler is a similar concoction without the huge top speed, and costs a third of the price. Is the saleen really worth it?
 
Only ever seen 1 of these cars in the UK, I doubt you'll ever see one on TG/FG if they ever start officially importing them.

If you look at all the claimed facts n figures it sounds very impressive but it doesn't look like it could out perform a Euro super car.

Would love to see it tested.

The Saleen Mustangs are good fun though!

Matthew
 
LOL!! If you read my other posts you'll know that I'm a huge US car fanboy and the Vette is my favorite car in the world! In addition I generally hate Euro supercars as they're so expensive they're beyond the reach of 99% of petrolheads and they're super fragile so they break down for fun. A mate of mine made ?millions during the dot-com boom and bought several Ferrari's, Porsches, Maseratis and TVRs, all wild cars but have all blown their engines, gearboxes, clutches with only a few thousand miles on them which puts me off.

Also I'm from England so have little affiliation with Europe.

However if you look at Euro supercars they all have a certain look, they look aerodynamic and light with clean lines, even the current Corvette follows this trend. The S7 looks like an XJ220 on steroids, it doesn't look like a conventional modern supercar which is why I said that it doesn't look like it could out run an Enzo, this is why I'd love it to be tested as I'd love to be proven wrong.

Matthew
 
"If one was offered to you, would you take it?"

To be hournest, i would take any car if offered to me for free.
 
Buktu said:
"If one was offered to you, would you take it?"

To be hournest, i would take any car if offered to me for free.

es_ca_solano_1_e.jpg


Your move Mr. Bond.... :mrgreen:
 
ezrollers said:
teeb said:
Soon as they stuck the wing on the LM and GT cars, about 40mph was knocked off the top speed, said Gordon Murray. Really helped the slightly-dodgy high speed handling, though.

However, if Saleen have a ridiculously big and powerful engine, and decent aerodynamics, it might be possible. Though I'd like to see it independently tested.

according to this page http://www.rsportscars.com/eng/cars/mclaren_f1lm.asp the top speed for the LM is 225 mph.

I think that this might be on the optimistic side, but 40 mph seems like too much to lose, then again it does have a little more oomph
They almost certainly geared it down too. The engineers certainly wouldn't be wasting potential acceleration by having massively taller gears when the downforce wont allow them that sort of vmax anyways.
 
No Boss said:
Buktu said:
"If one was offered to you, would you take it?"

To be hournest, i would take any car if offered to me for free.

es_ca_solano_1_e.jpg


Your move Mr. Bond.... :mrgreen:

I'll take it in a heartbeat :p

Imagine the look on peoples faces when you roll down the street in that baby!

8)
 
bartboy9891 said:
but with the Twin Turbo version costing over $600K...I dont know, i feel like with that money i could get a C-GT and an F430.
Is the saleen really worth it?

I'd have to say no. Same thing with the new SSC trying to be a SALEEN competitor. There is nothing special about the car for that amount of money. One could build their own Factory Five Racing GTM and install their own TT Corvette motor for much much less.

The S7 is not an attractive either. To me, it looks like a McLaren F1 kit-car attempt.
 
ishigakisensei said:
bartboy9891 said:
but with the Twin Turbo version costing over $600K...I dont know, i feel like with that money i could get a C-GT and an F430.
Is the saleen really worth it?

I'd have to say no. Same thing with the new SSC trying to be a SALEEN competitor. There is nothing special about the car for that amount of money. One could build their own Factory Five Racing GTM and install their own TT Corvette motor for much much less.

The S7 is not an attractive either. To me, it looks like a McLaren F1 kit-car attempt.


i strongly agree here
 
bartboy9891 said:
zenkidori said:
I would love an S7, I've seen several in person, and actually been fortunate to hop inside, they're wonderfull cars.
but with the Twin Turbo version costing over $600K...I dont know, i feel like with that money i could get a C-GT and an F430.
If you are in the mood for an American supercar, a Mosler is a similar concoction without the huge top speed, and costs a third of the price. Is the saleen really worth it?
I like the Saleen much better than the Mosler. The Mosler is nice, but feels too much like a rearranged corvette, which it is.

The Saleen is just awesome. It has a nice presence when parked and generates a crowd, also generates a following on the highway. The interior is actually pretty nice, especially when you consider it's basically a racecar with leather, another part which I love. I would have a VERY hard time picking between an F430 and an S7. I would probably end up with the S7 to be honest, and no it has nothing to do with being American :roll:
The S7 is very unique, as opposed to various sportscars you see all over the place, like 911s, 360s and now, 430s. The S7 just has that supercar presence, whereas the badge on the 430 says supercar, but it's just a really good sportscar.

The Koenigsisisgiisisiisgsigigeisgiigsiething is pretty awesome as well. I don't know or even care which would be faster, but the K has very much the same appeal as the S7, although I have not been able to really look at one. I would have a VERY VERY hard time picking between that and an S7.
 
No Boss said:
Buktu said:
"If one was offered to you, would you take it?"

To be hournest, i would take any car if offered to me for free.

es_ca_solano_1_e.jpg


Your move Mr. Bond.... :mrgreen:
I would take it. I would rinse the engine out of it and strap it to a buggy.
 
The S7 is in poor taste with those gaudy chrome wheels and 1,000,000 air vents everywhere.

McLaren > all. That will never change.
 
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