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2008 Saleen S7 TWIN TURBO

NEWS & REVIEWS

Founder Steve Saleen may have left the building, but even without the mustachioed one, the Irvine, California, car builder continues to crank out some monster machinery. Still America’s only true supercar, the 750-hp S7 Twin Turbo can hold its head up against pretty much anything Europe has to offer. Zero-to-60 in 2.8 seconds and a 240-plus-mph top speed makes the S7 scarier than a rerun of Halloween III. And it certainly looks the part, with its shark-gill intakes, scissor doors, and a Le Mans-racer stance. Being essentially a midengined racecar in drag, don’t expect much in the way of civility: this is a raw and rapid thunderbolt on 19-inch rims (20s at the rear). And it’s a whopper—13-inches longer than a Corvette—and with the rearward visibility of a UPS truck, parking is as big a challenge as hitting 200 mph. But who wants to park when you can go really, really fast?

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2008 Saleen S302 EXTREME

NEWS & REVIEWS

If you’re a Saleen aficianado, you’re probably still all hot and sweaty over seeing the “Decepticon Barricade”—a menacing, black Saleen S281 Extreme—burning rubber in Transformers, the blockbuster movie. Pity the movie’s producers couldn’t have hung on a little longer for the arrival of another blockbuster, Saleen’s latest Mustang stallion, the S302 Extreme. It’s powered by essentially the same 302-ci 5.0-liter V-8 that debuted in last year’s limited-edition Saleen Parnelli Jones Mustang. The only differnce: a trash-can-sized supercharger that bumps the power up from 370 bhp to well more than 600 bhp. Saleen hadn’t released final specs before we went to press, but expect it to feature the company’s TwinScrew supercharger and water-to-air intercooler to give the massive power hike. And as with the previous 550-hp supercharged S281 Extreme, expect Saleen-developed suspension and monster 15-inch slotted and vented six-pot caliper brakes. Yeah, Extreme sums it up.

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2007 Saleen PARNELLI JONES MUSTANG

NEWS & REVIEWS

History lesson. Back in the ’60s, Rufus “Parnelli” Jones won just about everything there was to win in motor sports. In 1963, he won the Indy 500. In ’64 he was USAC stock-car champion and was champ in USAC’s sprint-car series in 1960, ’61, and ’62. He’s a racing legend. Which is why Saleen is putting his name on a red-hot, limited-edition Mustang that’s due out this fall. Painted Grabber Orange, just like Parnelli’s all-conquering 1970 Boss 302, the Saleen ’Stang comes with a 302-cubic-inch Ford V-8, cranking out 370 bhp and 370 lb-ft of torque. Period-correct styling details include a black-striped shaker hood, race-style hood pins, a black trunk deck, and 302 side stripes. There are also retro Minilite-style 19-inch alloys, a ’70s rear wing, and even peel-off race decals with Parnelli’s number 15. Saleen plans to build 500 cars, costing in the mid-to-high $50,000 range.

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