Saleen wants to boost the cachet of its Saleen S1 sports car by throwing a one-make series in China and the United States.
The jury is still out on the design language of the Saleen S1 but one thing’s for sure, a 450 HP MR package from arguably one of the world’s best tuners has investors, those who placed pre-orders, and fans of the brand intrigued. As per Sportscar365 in a report they put out earlier today (Oct. 27,2018) they’re hoping to draw further interest for their new S1 by throwing a one-make series in both the United States in China.
[@Saleen] S1 – 4 cylindre 2.5L – 450ch ! 🏎️
🔖 Price : 84.000 € / 100.000 $ US#me #fansupercars #saleen #s1 #voiture #car #carlife #exoticcars #voituredesport #voituredeluxe #luxurycars #sportscar #hypercar #megacar pic.twitter.com/yL6aysoN1w— FanSupercars (@FanSupercars) April 12, 2018
Reading through the preliminary details on this race series, it looks to be a no-frills way to get some racing under your belt within an even playing field. There will be five races in the season which will coincide with a similar series in China.
In total, 45 Saleen S1 chassis will be built for this series with 20 of those chassis earmarked for the United States.
Saleen will use race data and driver feedback from this race series to develop a GT4 spec car for use in the GT4 European Series, an amateur race series following a similar formula to the FIA GT3 European Championship.
Currently, there are 17 manufacturers with GT4 specific cars for amateur drivers and their backers to choose from such as the Ford Mustang, Nissan 370Z, McLaren 570S, and even the KTM X-Bow.
The tail of the tape for the Saleen S1 is pretty impressive for a four-cylinder. The bespoke engine design consists of a fairly large 2.5L four-cylinder turbo good for 450 HP and 350-lb-ft. Standard is a six-speed manual with a paddle-shift automatic optional. Surrounding the engine is an aluminum tub and carbon fiber body with a total weight of just 2685 pounds. 0-60 MPH takes just 3.5 seconds and the S1 can eventually hit its 180 MPH top speed given enough road.
With a sticker price of $100,000, it’s not exactly affordable and it puts the S1 in the same league as a Lotus Evora but, with its weight and power, it should deliver Lotus levels of performance should the handling keep up.
The S1 was supposed to arrive at customer’s doors late this Summer of 2018 but its nary a peep from the manufacturers on actual sales numbers. Saleen’s website states, “delivery soon.”
Saleen was accepting $1,000 preorders when they announced the S1 at the Los Angeles Auto Show earlier last year so presumably, they’ve got a waiting list once production starts.
