The 53 grand was me getting out of my depreciating EVO. I love to drive and unfortunatly the EVO payed the price. Here it goes. I had 61,900 miles on my EVO from taking 3 cross country trips from WA to IL down to GA then LA then back up to WA. I made this trek 3 times in the EVO and it was pretty cool. I did'nt realize how important mileage was when trading in a vehicle. When I bought the EVO I got screwed by paying 42 grand. Till this day I don't know why I let myself get so f^%$ed over on the car but I did, I think it was all the hype my friends kept giving me on how the EVO was the baddest and best car on the market - bar none. I bought into that and got the EVO no matter what the cost. Anyways, back to the point. All in all, I had a 06 EVO MR bought in Nov of 05 with 61,900 miles and I owed 35,842 dollars. Every dealership I went to laughed in my face, from Chevy to Dodge and even Ford dealerships. When they looked at how many miles the car had for it's age and how much I owed, they pretty much told me to get out. It was'nt untill I was on my way home that I stopped at this one Ford dealer that had a bunch of Saleens on the lot including a Saleen PJ and F-150. This salesman actually took me serious when I said I wanted to buy a Mustang GT. Never in a million years did I think I would be getting a Saleen. They test drove my EVO, came back and I could'nt believe what they were offering. The General Manager came out and said "look, I'll pay of the EVO at 35,842 if you agree to get into a Saleen" he also said my EVO was actualy only worth 18 thousand because of the high miles but he was willing to pay it off because it was a scarry fast car that he knew he could sell to the right buyer. So that day I drove out in a brand new S281 free and clear of the EVO. That dealer charged me the 47,000 sticker price plus their markup of 4,999. I got financed for 6.2% and now here I am. I learned a valuable lesson from all of this - DON'T TAKE THE SALEEN ON ANY CROSS COUNTRY TRIPS.

 

No, I was totally upside down on the EVO and was plain sick of the car. I'm a big 6'3'' guy that jams to bands like Black Sabbath and Danzig. I drove old school Mustangs and Camaro's for 14 years before getting my first import and the whole import scene just never did set right with me. My heart and soul is with American iron and the sweet, sweet sound of a V-8. I love American muscle and it's where I truely belong. I just never fit in with the import crowd. For example, wrenching on a car should only be done while jamming to something like AC/DC or Ozzy not techno music which is what my roomate listened to if he happened to be outside before I got to the radio. My second passion is rock/metal music, I hold this music in deep regard and it's actually a huge part of my life. I just enjoy wrenching on a car and jamming to good music. It also just did not seem right wrenching on a 4 cylinder. Like I said, I'm an old school motorhead and set in my ways. The EVO is a cool car, just not my style. I guess it's all what your into.

 

true...very true...oh the amazing power gains of large displacement with forced induction...

 

No, the EVO is not the end all, be all of fast cars. My Saleen would rape a stock EVO. Now just like you mod a EVO with high boost, cams, catless exhaust, etc - you can do the same with a 4.6 Mustang. I can stroke the 4.6 to a 5.0 add a ProCharger running about 18psi of intercooled boost, bolt on a set of CNC ported heads, install a set of big Comp Cams, run long tube headers and a 3 inch catless exhaust with 2 chamber Flowmasters, upgrade my clutch, beef up the rear end with a better diff/4.10 gears/axles, and install a set of slicks and that my friend would be a 740whp, low 9 second Mustang. I'm not going to do any of that because the Saleen is afterall a collector car but I am going to install a Saleen supercharger which will put me at 435 horse and 465ft/lbs of torque. That should be more than enough to satisfy my need for speed.
Just remember, the guy with the biggest pocket book has the fastest car - no matter what the make or model. I remeber reading about someone that put 2 supercharged Hundai motors in a Tibaron. One in front, one in back. Now tell me, how would feel having your doors blown off by a dual engine Hundai. I quit trying to be the fastest car on the road because I realized that there is always, and I mean always someone with more money than you to throw in their car. It's all about the money. This is an expensive hobby and the rich man will always win. I just don't have the dough to compete with people that earn 6 figures or more a year. I'm just an insignifigant e-5 in our United States military - we don't get paid that much.

 

The Saleen looks amazing! Mustangs are also the best sounding cars on the road.

 

great car, but it weighs like 3800lbs?! they're very fast when heavy modded

 

Preach it brother! When I grew up and realized that trying to be the fastest was pointless, it was like a big weight lifted off my back.

 

More like 3550-3600, I believe. Most modern cars are within 200lbs of that.

 

Nice ride, the new Mustangs are nice but they're just not for me. If I had to buy American it would definately be the Corvette. Don't let the haters get you down though, in the end you're the one driving the car and as long as it puts a smile on your face nothing else matters!

Can you post a pic of the engine bay? Would love to see what it looks like.

 

so ur saying u got 35k trade in for the evo....u lucky guy

 

Very true! The world of modding became alot less fun when you come to the realization that it really just comes down $$$$$.

 

Great looking car. I saw a dark blue S281 a while back and it was gorgeous. I'm just not sure how people justify $50k + for what amounts to a body kit and mild upgrades. At $35-40k I think they'd be a phenomenal car.

Definitely save your money for the supercharger... though I'd lean towards a Kenne Bell twin screw over the centrifigal...

 

... coming from an Evo driver....

 

There are a lot of immature owners/fanboys on this site. For them there are 3 rules:

1) The Evo is the best car, period.
2) No matter how fast or cool another car is, the Evo just needs a few mods to be faster and/or cooler.
3) See rule #1.

I personally don't get it. I've driven a lot of different cars and they all had something to offer. In a way I feel sorry for some of these guys because they'll never hop into a car with an open mind and enjoy it for what it is. Just because the Evo is a downpipe and a flash away from being faster than a Saleen doesn't mean the Saleen isn't a great car to drive (and look at!).

 

I test drove an S281SC (yes the supercharged one) at the Saleen Dealer when I had my EVO a while ago. I was really disappointed with the car. It creaked and rattled (I could visually see the hood flapping at speed). The car was tuned horribly, car was rough. Same old cheap plastic interior and misaligned body panels.

Handling was ok, but man this car is heavy (front heavy due to the weight of the extra blower). Brakes were fair but not confidence inspiring.

Overall, this car felt like a stock mustang with a couple of aftermarket mods slapped on.

Is it worth $60k+... not a chance in my book.

The EVO felt like a precision instrument after driving that hulk.