Tag Archives: saleen

Saleen S7-R

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2008 Saleen S7-R

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Le Mans, France | June 9, 2023

Photo Courtesy of RM Sotheby’s

Boutique supercar manufacturers sometimes (and rightly so) feel the need to prove their cars at the track. It doesn’t happen all that often anymore, as the cost of entry with a halfway-decent GT-class entry at Le Mans is usually prohibitive for start ups. But that didn’t stop companies like Lister, Spyker, Saleen, and others from giving it a go.

Saleen’s S7 was sold between 2000 and 2009. The racing variant, the S7-R (and not the S7 LM, which is a re-launched road car) was produced until about 2008. Initial cars were built by Ray Mallock Ltd before Saleen took over production, with the final prep work being done by Oreca. This is the final of 23 example built, and it is powered by a 7.0-liter V8 that made 600-760 horsepower depending on the state of tune.

The competition history for this chassis,082, includes:

  • 2009 1000km Nurburgring – 23rd, 1st in class (with Roland Berville, Sebastien Dumez, Laurent Groppi)
  • 2010 1000km Spa – 31st (with Gabriele Gardel, Patrice Goueslard, and Fernando Rees)
  • 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans – 13th, 1st in class (with Berville, Gardel, and Julien Canal)

After that, the car remained with its campaigner: French racing team Larbre Competition. And that’s who is selling it. You can read more about it here.

Update: Sold $1,421,287.

Saleen S7 LM

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2007 Saleen S7 LM

Offered by Bring a Trailer Auctions | Online

Photo – Bring a Trailer

The S7 was introduced by Saleen in 2000, and production officially trickled on through 2009. Road cars were offered in base and Twin Turbo versions. The S7R (the racing variant) competed in different sports car series all over the world, including running at Le Mans, where it landed on the class podium in 2001.

Saleen has a complicated corporate history, and the short version is that in 2017 they formed a joint venture with a Chinese city to build cars for China. Part of that grand launch was an updated version of the S7 dubbed “LM” to trumpet their brief motorsport success.

Instead of building new cars, they sort of just dressed up existing S7s, including this 2007 model that was recommissioned as an LM in 2018. It retains the S7’s natural good looks but somehow makes it look even better with a two-tone finish and a big rear wing. The five-spoke wheels also help. A lot. I was never a fan of the stock chrome wheels these came with originally.

Power is from a twin-turbocharged 7.0-liter V8 rated at 1,000 horsepower. The top speed is supposed to be in excess of 240 mph. This car carries a plaque identifying it as LM #007, which I guess means there are at least six more out there. No word on how many have been built, or even if they are done building/converting cars. My guess: if you show up at Saleen HQ with an S7 and a bag of cash, they’d convert your car too. The bidding on this example is already going strong; click here for more info.

Update: Sold $1,200,000.

Update: Sold, RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2021, $1,022,500.

Saleen S7 Twin Turbo

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2006 Saleen S7 Twin Turbo

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Plymouth, Michigan | July 30, 2016

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

We’ve recently featured a Saleen S7 – the standard, naturally aspirated version of America’s most outlandish supercar. But what we have here is the more powerful version of Steve Saleen’s Irvine, California-built, gill-riddled, street-legal monster.

This version of the S7 is powered by a twin-turbocharged 7.0-liter Ford V-8 making 750 horsepower. That’s enough power to propel this thing to 60 mph in 2.8 seconds – all the way up to its 248 mph top speed. And it’s a legitimate car – not some thrown-together-in-a-barn sort of thing. They built these between 2005 and 2009 (the original S7 went out of production in 2006).

This car has only been driven about 300 miles since new. A recent service means it’s ready to add to that number, and rapidly. Only 13 Twin Turbo S7s were built in 2006 (and production fell off a cliff after this model year), making this is one of the final S7s built. It’s a true American supercar – and the best version of it. Click here for more info and here for more from RM.

Update: Sold $632,500.

Saleen S7

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2003 Saleen S7

Offered by Barrett-Jackson | Scottsdale, Arizona | January 30, 2016

Photo - Barrett-Jackson

Photo – Barrett-Jackson

The Saleen S7 was America’s home-grown supercar that debuted in 2000 and was built up through 2006 (for the base model. There was a Twin Turbo built from 2005 through 2009). Steve Saleen made his name tuning Mustangs and turned to building his own supercar at the end of the supercar-crazy 1990s. This thing definitely looks the part.

The powerplant is a mid-mounted 7.0-liter Ford V-8. This car is equipped with the “Competition Package” – one of four such naturally aspirated cars. In this trim, the engine puts out 625 horsepower (75 more than stock).

The auction catalog states that only 78 of these were built but it isn’t clear if that number represents all S7 production, or just the naturally aspirated cars. At any rate, they are rare (but they do come up for sale here and there). When new, the Twin Turbos cost over a half million dollars. This car should go for somewhere in the $300,000 range. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $451,000.