Roush Anyone priced out what it would cost to make a saleen clone?

[Santinas pony]

Santinas pony, I think I talked to you a while ago, and you sent me an email with a list of everything you purchased for your car. Your car looks great, I dont want to make an exact clone, but Exterior wise I want it the same.

Do you happen to still have that email in your outbox?
You had sent it to [email protected]

Sorry Sierra but it was not me, however if you ever do have any questions you can email me [email protected]. I'm not over here alot since the yellow mustang section closed so I don't check my PM's very often.

 

[arracing]

dont get a clone!!! Its not worth it. I can say because I built a a clone of the Saleen S281-E with a 2001 before they even released the E. Dont get me wrong I love the car and I did it for promotional reasons. But I could have bought the real thing used for the amount of money I put into making mine authentic. Just buy the real thing used. Not to mention, it doesnt matter how close of a clone you build their will always be those people that will hate on you and say its fake. It gets to the point where it takes the fun out of it.

by the way here is a pic of mine...I have since removed the side decals I used to promote my team with and put the original Saleen ones back on.

http://www.ar-racing.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=18092#post18092

 

[Sierra]

But I will be cutting corners like no interior items, also insurance might be cheaper (dont know that for sure)

What do you think total cost was for yours?

 

[arracing]

my total cost was $8000 and that was only aesthetics, inside and out. This includes the exhaust conversion to true dual with center exhaust and also includes authentic saleen wheels. Everything i have is authentic saleen. No knock offs. The insurance will definetly be cheaper. What engine are you going with, if you get a cobra or at least a gt you should be alright with people not harrasing you, just dont get the V6.

EDIT..... i forgot to add that price includes my Suspension mods too to lower the car. I did some research and went with the Roush suspension. I liked it better then RaceCraft.

 

[arracing]

Also from my experience, you think you will save money but you wont. Like I said before, my car came out to a total value of $32,000 dollars with my mods. For that much I could have bought a real saleen used. Trust me on this, do the math and you will see its better to buy the real thing. The only negative thing is the insurance which will be higher. The reason i went clone on mine was 2 reasons, one I thought I was gonna save money like you are thinking and 2 I wanted a S281-E mustang but it wasnt available and I didnt have the money to buy a 351.

 

[arracing]

Here is my ride.

 

[caballo]

It looks great except for the white wheels on a black car.

But I'm just being picky. Overall it's really a great car.

 

[arracing]

That picture makes it look like a black car but its not. It is the True Blue color. I am currently selling my body kit on ebay from that car. You can check out the pics their.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7911476007&ssPageName=ADME:L:DS:US:8

 

[marcus95]

I think arracing's white wheels look sick. And he could'nt be more correct about the huge amount of moey you could spend. It could get addictive.

Anyway Sierra. If you are happy with your Cobra and you almost done with your payments just purchase the Saleen body kit.

Front and rear bumpers and screens
side valances
your choice of wing S281 or E
C pillars
side inserts
Saleen wheels or better yet wheel replicas (cheaper)
set of springs only.
decals and windshield banner

That will do it for the look. Always, and I say always add a grand or two to the total anyone quotes you. That is how life is. You have a cobra now so life isn't that bad. Just be very prepared for first one compliment and then ONE question EVERY time someone sees your car.

compliment. "Wow, that's a sweet looking ride."
question "Is that a real Saleen?"

If you can answer that question to every guy who asks truthfully and it does not pain you, then add your "saleen look" to your car. If not, Don't do it, take ARRacings advice and sell your car and find a clean 99 and up Saleen and bolt a blower on it. You will be happy. And besides, any Saleen body kit you ad to your car will not ad any value to it now.
IMHO. my two cents

 

[arracing]

Just in case anyone is interested. I am selling off all my parts that I had. Here is a list from the stangnet classifieds.

http://classifieds.stangnet.com/showproduct.php?product=1639

I will not part out the body kit pieces but have decided to part out the body kit from the wheels and other misc items. Since everything I have is authentic they are expensive but I will cut people deals if they take them off my hands. Their in perfect condition and its better to save money buying them from me used but perfect then brand spankin new from saleen. Take my word for it, for what I paid for all this I could have bought another nice car.

 

[Friedchicken]

I am doing a clone with the Chicane center exhaust and the extreme hood. I realize that I will have paid about 10k all said and done with suspension/exhaust incl., but that is cause I want it done right. It could be a basic clone for 5k if you wanted the standard fair... and there are great deals you can find from speedworx or E-bay to pick up the polyurethane kits up for about 1200 complete minus wheels.

And my car plus 10k is still cheaper than buying a 2003 Saleen Cobra by a mile. And no, I will never buy someone else's supercharged car. But that is just me.

I suppose there are those purists who view you to be a lesser being cause Saleen didn't put the peices on themselves, but quite frankley, I don't trust Saleen to spend the time to make things right.

FYI, I have the regular 99-03 S281 rear bumper for sale for $450 +shipping. Brand new in the box. Unprepped or painted.

 

[lgndracer]

Santinas pony,

How did you decide on the 39 number?

Just curious, my '03 is number 39.

 

[03-s281]

Your telling me you spend 32k on a 3.8 liter mustang
I'm sorry, but that has to be the most stupid thing I've heard.
Why put all that money in a car and not do a motor swap.

 

[Friedchicken]

Your telling me you spend 32k on a 3.8 liter mustang
I'm sorry, but that has to be the most stupid thing I've heard.
Why put all that money in a car and not do a motor swap.

Who are you talking to? No one here has said they are going to clone up their V6.

 

[sal07b]

Let's get to the brass tax here. If you want a Saleen, buy a real one. The problem with making a clone is that you are going to spend just a much, or close to, what you would spend on a "real" used Saleen. The difference is that with a real Saleen, you have a limited production collector car. The clone is not going to hold it's value any better then a normal GT. I have a friend that has over $50K in his 98 Cobra and can't get $18K out of it. The car is putting down over 600rwhp, has 10K in wheels/tires, Brehmbo's at each corner, leather racing seats, 6-speed, and the list goes on and on. The point is, you will get your money back out of a used genuine Saleen. The clone is a money pit and you'll never get a return on your investment. Who cares what people say about it being a clone, it just doesn't make financial sense. Of course, this is my opinion and everyone has one...

Sal

 

[Mstng2]

I guess I'll chime in as a clone owner... mine is also a genuine clone (if that makes any sense, as in all Saleen parts) I have to agree that when I do my next one I will buy a genuine new or used Saleen. I mean I love my car, and get great comments. Hell, it even took best in class Saturday at a local show, beating out a Porsche carrera. The real thing is though I just hate the question... Is it a real Saleen?

 

[SaleenCobra425]

I posted this question on another forum and got pretty much thrashed! I have come to realize that I am just going to have to save up for a real Saleen Cobra. I guess I need to save my pennies. BTW, I think a regular GT with Saleen rims looks sweet by it self so I have decided to just do that for the time being.
-SC425

 

[marcus95]

I posted this question on another forum and got pretty much thrashed! I have come to realize that I am just going to have to save up for a real Saleen Cobra. I guess I need to save my pennies. BTW, I think a regular GT with Saleen rims looks sweet by it self so I have decided to just do that for the time being.
-SC425

Yea, that's too bad you got horsewhipped in that other forum. There is always going to be a few guys out there that find a reason to shi*&^% on someone else's project/ride/clone. As long as it puts a smile on your face, build your car anyway you like. I know of a few guys who piss and moan when a Saleen engine bay plaque show up on E-bay. It's a free country and sometimes those things show up from a totaled car or it is stolen. Hey I love the Shelby Gt 350. They only built so many of those that even if everyone had the money there still would'nt be enough of them to go around. That is why there are thousands of GT350 clones out there. Just look on e-bay.
Mstng2, like I said in my earlier post if you can't handle "The question" when owning a clone then just make sure you buy an authentic car the next time. Not a jab. I just love Saleen Mustangs and that's it. I would rather save up an extra year for a Saleen then own another Cobra. That's jut me though. And I can talk shi#$^ too because I have owned one. I would still own my Cobra if my friend had not totalled it into a telephone pole. The 03-04 Cobra is going to go down in history as one of the most inexpensively mod-for your money-huge horsepower gain cars ever and that's fantastic.
I don't care about the crappy Saleen service or problems with ordering parts ar any of the other problems that come with owning a Saleen Mustang. And I have owned two of my Saleens new.
There is nothing wrong rolling a nice set of Saleen 18" wheels on a GT. I think they look great. I know exactly how you feel. Before I bought my 89 Saleen I owned an 88 hatch with a Saleen kit and decals on it. I was young at the time and could'nt afford a real Saleen anyway. It's such a good looking car that you get asked if it's real all too often. I made sure my next car was my 89 # 28. I still own it.

God Bless America

 

[GNN60GT500]

TO the guy who asked earlier, they switched to Magnaflow

 

[03-s281]

Who are you talking to? No one here has said they are going to clone up their V6.

This was directed to the picture above of the black clone with the white wheels. If you look at the website you'll see that car is a V6 that has 32k invested in it.