Nauman Farooq grabs the latest news from Canada
Saleen has finally arrived on Canadian shores with Auto Bugatti in Montreal being the official importer for Canada. They have a few outlets on the go to sell the Saleen Mustangs, however boss Joe Visconti will handle all the S7 deliveries himself.
Visconti, president of Auto Bugatti and Saleen Canada said he has orders for 12 S7’s already. Deliveries should start later this year. Price $430,000 US.
At the end of the day I struck lucky. Whilst waiting to watch the S7 be driven out I engaged Joe Visconti in conversation and the next thing I knew I was being given a ride out of the show in the Saleen!
The S7 is a mean looking machine, as you can see from the pictures, and it is suppose to be as close to a race car for the road as possible. Therefore you sit as low in a car as possibly imagine. Think go-kart low and you’ll get the picture.
Saleen S7 Unlike a race car, this has a passenger seat, albeit not a very spacious one. The footwell is very narrow, so you’re best to sit there with one leg streached out and one bended knee, however that is not as uncomfortable as you might imagine. The driver gets a bit more space, mainly because the cockpit is designed to cater for the driver. When you get in, you notice the driver is very much towards the middle of the car, thus the reason the passenger only has enough space for one leg in the footwell.
Pushing the driver towards the middle allow the pedals to be directly ahead of the driver, despite the big wheel wells.
Despite being a race car for the street, the car does have a few toys. You get power windows and locks and even mirrors. You also get a stereo system, and most importantly, you have a camera in the tail, and its images are shown on a screen in the dash – very nice.
Despite the luxuries, the S7 still weights less than a Ferrari Enzo, tipping the scales at 1250 kg, 15 kg less than the Enzo.
Anyway, out of the arena we went. The engine – a 7-litre V8 – in 2004 spec, pumps out 575 hp and 525 lb/ft of torque. According to Saleen, the famed 0-60 mph run takes just 2.9 seconds, and a top speed of over 220 mph!
As we moved out of the arena, Joe slightly teased the throttle and the car just erupted forward. Hard on the brakes immediately cause we had reached the intersection to join the main road.
Stepping out onto the road, and you’re an instant celebrity. Everybody, and I do mean everybody looks at this car. You could be walking down the street with Janet Jackson and even that wouldn’t cause quite the stir the S7 does.
We were basically making our way to find the transport truck that was waiting for the car. After we got the location homed in, I navigated the best route for the location, and thankfully, there wasn’t much traffic on some of those streets either, so I got to get a sense of what this car holds in its belly.
Speaking of belly, don’t go for a run in this car after a big meal, since the stiff ride will ensure you’ll see your meal again, but what did you expect from a supercar, especially one that rides on 345/25 ZR20 Pirelli P-Zero tires (rear).
If you are one of those people who think modern supercars have become too soft, too namby pamby (like the Ferrari 575M) and prefer cars as raw and hardcore as the Ferrari F40 for instance, then you’ll love the Saleen S7. This car blends old school supercar’s with new school technology (this car is built entirely out of carbon-fibre), and the result is astonishing.
Joe is a serious fan of the marque and has himself has ordered an S7, in red. Call me when you get it Joe – I want more!
Links: www.saleen.com , www.autobugatti.com
[Source: PistonHeads]