Lalo

HeHateMe

Pretty disappointing, Saleen. Hopefully that bogus test car was just a fluke.

TL GT

They also noted that the car had 19" wheels even though all the Saleen literature states that all models come with 20" wheels.The smaller wheels and tires change the overall gear ratio to a numerically higher ratio,which in turn makes the car quicker.

nicksolheim

If you ask me Saleen's= waste of money

Might as well buy a GT (witch looks better) and mod it, as stated before.

Who would spend that kind of money on 25 extra horse and some ugly body kit?

RaGsHoCkEy88

thats exactly why i wouldnt buy a saleen. not only cuz i cant afford one, they arent even performance for the $$...and personally i think they came out a bit ugly

S197 GT

I agree. I saw one in person about a month ago. and I liked the seats. That was it.

Robert

Pretty disappointing...no doubt this will hurt them.

I guess you're better off waiting for Ford's SE models: Mach 1...Boss...Bullitt - whatever they decide to offer. No doubt they'll have much more power, at least.

snkbtn99

The same reason some people sppend an extra $7-10k on a Cobra over a GT. It isn't ALWAYS about hp folks. The Saleen is seen as the ultimate Mustang in most circles whether you like it or not. It is the Cadillac if you will. It has always appealed to the more show than go crowd unless you are spending $60+ large on an "E".

TMSBrad

Here are the last two and a half paragraphs from the article:

Zero-60 acceleration is only a tenth quicker that a stock GT's, and quarter-mile times are virtually identical. The big difference shows up in the slalom, with a 69.9-mph run through the cones, as compared with the factory Mustang's 65.4. Braking distances 60 to 0 are shorter by 10 feet.

The test car Saleen provided us differed from the specifications published for the S281. The company's literature states: "A 20-inch wheel and tire package is standard on every S281. There are no optional wheel diameters for 2005." The spec sheet lists several tire options; all 20-inchers. Yet our car had 19s. Smaller-diameter tires mean a lower effective (numerically higher) overall axle ratio. The top tire option listed is the Pirelli PZero Rosso. Yet our car's 19-inch wheels came wrapped in PZero Corsas, a step up from the Rossos, which, according to Perelli's Web site, are made of "racing rubber compound."

This car's exhaust smelled of unburned fuel, as if it were running rich. To confirm what our noses suspected, we submitted the S281 to a computerized California State Smog inspection. It failed. It's our opinion this car outperformed one that would pass a sniff exam and was fitted with factory-spec rolling stock. We've invited Saleen to provide us with another S281 that meets its own published specifications, as well as California's emissions requirements, for a retest. We'll let you know the result.

slavehand

The same reason some people sppend an extra $7-10k on a Cobra over a GT. It isn't ALWAYS about hp folks. The Saleen is seen as the ultimate Mustang in most circles whether you like it or not. It is the Cadillac if you will. It has always appealed to the more show than go crowd unless you are spending $60+ large on an "E".
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Having driven both the new GT and Saleen, Saleen's my choice hands down. I'm not going to let a fixable problem deter me from my choice. I would have expected better than this from Saleen, but this just further verifies statements that I've heard that ALL "tuners" are having to re-adjust their work on the '05. I'm actually glad that MT has done something useful and catching the problem now. Thank God, all these "kinks" are being worked out before ANYONE gets my $$$.

mr-mstng

Did the guys at Saleen really think the people at M/T wouldn't notice different wheels/tires?

Sounds to me like the Saleen posted some disappointing numbers, and had to make up for it. Make you wonder if the higher end models perform as well as they say?

PeterPienaar

What bearing does your opinion about Saleen's quality/taste have on whether they cheated? Too many comments like this (fictional):

"Saleen cheated? Not surprised, because their body panels always had orange peel."

Anyway, pretty disappointing. I think Saleen knows better than to try a low-down trick like this, if only because of PR. Either way it's not good, because if they weren't cheating, they were inexcusably careless.

Fordracing200

Yes, they were wicked careless or cheating. This will hurt them. Their car is ugly anyways, i want a steeda or half a stage 3.

mustang_sallad

MT's 0-60 run of 5.1 seconds for the GT is still the fastest i've seen out of all the major magazines and other reviews. Maybe this is cause MT is just better at driving them, in which case their run with the Saleen is a let down. But maybe that GT they got was just a special GT that happened to work really well, and they got good times out of it. Other mags have put the GT's 0-60 at like 5.3 seconds, around there. But then just next to that review of the Saleen is a review of the GT convertible which they got to 60 in 5.2 seconds, so i guess they just drive them well, which means the Saleen didn't do so great. But really, its only got 25 more hp, and bigger wheels really do affect acceleration, not just cause of the extra weight but because each wheel has a much greater rotational inertia, meaning its harder to accelerate them rotationally.

I think the good stuff is the 69.9 mph slalom run. That's faster than the Z51 C6 (68.9mph) and just south of last years Z06 (70.2), the viper (70.4) and the new 911 Carrera S (70.1).

And ya, for that car, i'm sure you're paying a lot for all that body work.

I knew they would be testing a Saleen some time soon (i figured it woulda been in the tuners section toward the back). But i was thinking they'd probably go with a supercharged one.

snkbtn99

Why are you guys expecting the S281 to perform better than the GT ?? 25 hp is not going to make that much difference ... throw in the added weight and you basically have a car that will perform at the GT level ... Throw the SC on there and let's see the difference ...

Edbert

The dealership I bought my '05 from stopped being a Saleen dealer with the '04s, they said the quality and workmanship was "terrible" and warranty support was "non-existant" (their words not mine).

slavehand

I do think that those are some very impressive numbers. And aren't those all IRS vehicles? Not trying to start another IRS live-axle debate, I just think it speaks well against live-axle rebuttals.

mr-mstng

I've heard the same from a dealer about warranty repairs on a Saleen being a 'hassle'.

slavehand

I've heard the same from my dealer about the Roush's and Steeda's. They tried them in the past, really didn't work out for them, kept going w/ Saleen and SVT. They seem to have a very good relationship between the 3. My $.02.

Stang281

The same reason some people sppend an extra $7-10k on a Cobra over a GT. It isn't ALWAYS about hp folks. The Saleen is seen as the ultimate Mustang in most circles whether you like it or not. It is the Cadillac if you will. It has always appealed to the more show than go crowd unless you are spending $60+ large on an "E".
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I have to disagree...the 03/04 Cobra's weren't all that much nicer than GT's. IMO it was the power under warranty that sold them, that and power potential, and better handling.