With the recession of the early '90s in the past, the interest in sporty, two-door performance cars was beginning to pick up just as Ford was rolling out the new SN95 Mustang in 1994. The timing for a new Saleen Mustang was perfect. And then, as if by magic, Ford indirectly dropped a huge gift on Steve Saleen's door.
Chevrolet and Pontiac upped the musclecar ante in 1993 with the 275-horse, LT1-powered Z28 and Firebird. Ford's response in 1994, was a 215-horse Mustang GT. The Mustang was bigger and heavier than the car it replaced, but the powerplant remained essentially the same. To enthusiasts, the lack of a high-impact 351 to ward off the evil from General Motors was a slap in the face. Whereas the '87-93 Fox Mustangs enjoyed a slight power-to-weight ratio over the F-body twins, the '94 Mustang was not so endowed.
Thus was born the Saleen S-351.Perhaps this shouldn't be surprising. In a way, Saleen built his entire company around a product that picked up where Ford (and its bean counters) left off. The S-351 was the same concept, only more so. While Saleen had built specially certified cars in small numbers in the recent past, the idea of having to replace the engine in every single vehicle you convert can be daunting. The fact that the 351 didn't share the same dimensions as the old 5.0 compounded the problem. Still, when an S-351 prototype was built and tested, there was no denying the greatness that Ford left on the table.
The S-351s started with '94 Lightning 5.8 short-blocks, to which Saleen added Edelbrock aluminum heads, 30-pound injectors, a roller camshaft and lifters, a 77mm mass-air sensor and 65mm throttle body. The final tally was 371-rated horsepower at 5,100 rpm and 422 lb-ft of torque at 3,500. A Vortech supercharger was optional and pumped up the pony count to 480.
The most noticeable difference to the S-351 to the passersby (aside from the fact that it sat a lot closer to terra firma than a stock Stang) was the Phil Frank-penned bodywork, which was simply outstanding. A deep, open mouth front air dam, rear fascia, rocker extensions and a different rear wing took the clean lines of the SN95 Mustang and pumped them up like a weight lifter on steroids. This basic look has been carried over to every Saleen Mustang through 2004 and the company has probably made more money selling the body kits to S-351/S-281 wannabes than it has on the cars themselves.
Next up on the ladder was the Saleen SR, a supercharged wildebeest that lacked such amenities as a back seat. The tradeoff, however, was true supercar performance, thanks to its pumped-up Windsor, giant brakes, etc. Only two were built that first year.
Saleen also built a limited run of V-6 Sports, which were not serialized. They came with unique wheels and graphics, plus a 220-horse Vortech supercharged 3.8-liter engine.
Production for 1994 was somewhat slow given the late start it had. A total of 44 S-351 coupes and convertibles were built, and there were two SRs. This was also the year Saleen took on a partner, wealthy industrialist Tony Johnson, who brought a necessary influx of capital with him. (He had previously purchased two Saleen Mustangs. Guess he liked them.)
It's also important to note that while Saleen had announced it would build the S-351 off the V-6 platform that was not necessarily the case. Two in 1994 were built from 5.0 Mustang GTs, whereas only six were born from V-6 cars in 1995. The bulk of the '95s were sprung from GTs, though one was built from a Cobra convertible.
Also in 1995, the Vortech option on the S-351 was combined with other equipment and released as the R-Code package. Included were 13-inch front rotors and the now familiar twin gauge pod, which replaced the clock atop the dash.
Production increased to 89 S-351 coupes and 43 convertibles (as well as seven SRs), and while this was decent, Saleen needed a higher-volume vehicle to bring in the dough. Said vehicle arrived in 1996 as the S-281, which utilized the new 4.6-liter SOHC engine. Starting with a Mustang GT, it got the full Saleen body and suspension treatment, a handful of interior tweaks, plus minor performance enhancements--high-po ignition wires, an air filter and a Borla cat-back exhaust. Rated power was up five from the GT, to 220, which was nothing special, but it came with a full Ford warranty. The acceptance by enthusiasts for the S-281, combined with the 30 S-281 convertibles sold to Budget Rent A Car for its fleet, help pump up the volume to 460 cars. Among those were ten S-351 coupes, of which this magazine had a hand in testing two, one of which was a supercharged R-Code.
Unequivocally, these were two of the finest on-the-edge machines we've ever had the joy to flog. The naturally aspirated S-351, serial number 03 at the time, was a missile. The new-for-Saleen-in-1996 TFS Twisted Wedge heads brought horsepower up to 400 and Tech Editor Evan Smith and I put the spurs to every one of them. Ultimately, the car ran 12.40 at 109.98 on slicks, and topped out at an indicated 180 (though the speedo was pretty optimistic; we're guessing it was an honest 168-170).
But it wasn't all about a straight line. Like all Saleens, the S-351 handled impeccably and we spent the better part of the week carving canyons, attacking on-ramps and terrorizing Porsches with it in Southern California.
The supercharged S-351 was all white on the outside, right down to the 18-inch magnesium rims, and all business under the hood. Serial number 01 (according to the bumper), it covered the quarter in 11.33 seconds at 120 mph with way-too-tall 28-inch drag slicks. Top speed was an honest 177 mph.(On a side note, neither of these serial numbers appears in the Saleen registry; were these one-off specials?)
The year 1997 wasn't so much about the Saleen street cars, which were essentially carryover models. No, the big news was Saleen's attempt to conquer European endurance racing, specifically the fabled 24 Hours of Le Mans. Both Saleen entries and all the Saleen drivers (including Steve) qualified. This was quite a production. To make the logistics easier, an ancient French chateau was rented to house the drivers, journalists and other special guests, including Mr. and Mrs. Bob Bondurant and Mr. and Mrs. John Coletti.
Unfortunately, the race didn't go as planned. One car was sidelined with problems shortly after the start of the race. It got back into the fray, but neither machine finished. The #66 car retired after eight hours with electrical gremlins, while the #67 sister car called it quits after 16 hours and was credited with a ninth-place finish. Both cars were sold after the race and remained in Europe.
Nineteen-ninety-eight could best be described as a transition year for Saleen. Work had started on a supercharger kit for the upcoming '99 Mustang with its reworked 4.6-liter engine. Sales of Saleen Mustangs were going down, but the company did produce 10 SA15 anniversary models to celebrate the company's fifteenth anniversary. Also, the Saleen Explorer was born and 57 found homes. Ford did a major reworking of the SN95 platform for 1999. Included was a revised 4.6 SOHC engine with 260 hp, as well as revised "New Edge" styling. The more muscular look was tailor-made for the Saleen bodywork. Phil Frank maintained the family DNA present since 1994, but like Ford, added muscle to it, especially in the rear fascia, which boasted three openings in back. The large side scoop was altered to provide a fan-like visage and cladding over the rear window was reworked to give the appearance of having a difference C-pillar than the standard Mustang.
Saleen fit the 4.6 with underdrive pulleys, a free-flowing exhaust system with different mufflers and a high-flow air filter. Completing the mods was a reworked EEC-V computer, tuned for premium fuel. This upped the output to 285 hp. For the S-281, however, the big news was an optional Eaton M90 supercharger. Available either separately or as part of the R-Code package, it was rated at 350 hp.
As exciting as this was, emissions regulations doomed the S-351. Saleen did the best it could to make it legal for 1999, but this would be the last year for this monster, which was now rated at 495 hp. Final S-351 output for this year was 47.
This mattered little, apparently, to the buying public. Nearly 1,000 S-281s were unleashed (979 actually), and almost half (435) were of the supercharged variety. The good times continued to roll into 2001, and then the company unleashed the big one in 2002. Not since the fabled S-351s with Vortech superchargers left production had Saleen offered such a robust automobile (excepting the S-7 supercar, naturally, which also debuted in production street trim this year). The car was the Saleen S-281 Extreme, a 425hp/440-lb-ft mega Mustang.
Like it had in the past with other specialty models, the engine in the Extreme was revised from the oil pan up. Forged steel pistons, crank and rods comprised the rotating assembly and specially prepped cylinder heads with Saleen-spec overhead cams completed the package.
But the big cherry on top was the Lysholm twin-screw-style supercharger. Testing with a larger M112 version of the Eaton blower showed higher charge temperatures than Saleen was comfortable with. The twin screw design not only made more horsepower, but delivered lower charge temps. It delivered the goods at every rpm. A T56 six-speed gearbox was standard.
"Having just spent a couple of weeks with the S-281 [supercharged]...getting into the Extreme felt like strapping on a booster rocket." The story also noted the difference between the two on the road. "Unlike Eaton-equipped cars or other two-valve 4.6s, this thing doesn't turn off at 5,500 rpm. It'll make gobs of horsepower right up to 6,500 rpm..."
Drag testing a yellow coupe brought startling results: 12.24 at 112.55 in the quarter-mile on stock Pirelli tires and 11.70 at 111.81 on 26-inch Mickey Thompson slicks.
Suspension wise, the S-281E was the same as every other Saleen, save for a Max Grip differential, .94-inch rear sway bar and boxed lower control arms.
For 2003, its twentieth year, Saleen celebrated by delivering even more horses to a power-crazed public. The S-281 received a handful of bolt-on improvements to up the feedbag to 290 hp. No doubt buoyed by the competition that arrived in the spring of 2002 in the form of the supercharged SVT Cobra, the S-281 supercharged got its own version of the Lysholm twin-screw huffer. It was smaller than the one employed in the Extreme, but in union with a new, more efficient water-to-air intercooler, it upped the power to 375 at 5,800 rpm and 415 lb-ft of torque at 3,500.
The E got even hairier thanks to a smaller blower pulley that delivered 12 psi of boost and a 75mm throttle body. It was rated at 445 hp and 450 lb-ft of torque.
There was also the obligatory anniversary model, the SA20. A half-dozen supercharged S-281 Speedsters were done up in white with black and yellow accents. The Extreme wing was added for effect, as were a newly shaped Speedster cover/light bar combo. A half-dozen were built with a base price of $54,357.
In 2004, Saleen added the N2O Focus to its lineup of hot rods to garner a share of the sport compact market. Again, the company DNA was everywhere--the obligatory body kit screamed "Saleen," as did the interior with its racy Momo seats.
The suspension was completely reworked with new shocks, struts, springs, anti-rollbars, pivot bushings and a strut tower brace. Meaty Pirelli 215/34ZR17 PZeros change asphalt into Velcro.
But leave it to Saleen to offer a well-thought-out factory nitrous system. Programmed to operate only from 4,000-6,000 rpm and activated by a dash-mounted switch, the Nitrous Pro Flow wet kit added an advertised 75 hp to the small Ford. (The owner has to run the main hose to the engine, hook up some wiring and fill the bottle.)
In an MM&FF drag test, the nitrous turned the low 16.21-second slug into a high-strung 14.29/95-mph pocket rocket.
Mustangs. The 200-mph S7 supercar. Explorers. Rangers. And now the Focus. For over 20 years, Saleen has been turning his dreams into other peoples' reality.