A lot of people would say that the Saleen S7 is America’s best supercar.
But while everyone agrees it was great, the story behind it is a bit hazy.
There’s a new rumor now, more like a tip actually, revealing a shocking alternative version of the S7’s story.
And that is that the S7 may have been created from an aborted Aston Martin race car.
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The story behind the Saleen S7
Car magazine Jalopnik recently received an anonymous tip from somebody who claims the S7 was created as a way to recycle an Aston Martin project that was scrapped.
The tip came from one of those usual ‘familiar with the matter’ people, but the amount of details provided make the tip at least believable.
Obviously, this is one of those rumors that are impossible to fact-check beyond reasonable doubt.
What we do know is that Saleen was founded by Steve Saleen, an American racing driver.
First launched in 2000, it remained in production for nine years.
Throughout its ‘career’, the S7 always used the same 427 cubic-inch (7.0-liter) Ford V8, with power outputs ranging from 550 horsepower and 750 horsepower depending on the model.
The car was immortalized in the 2003 movie Bruce Almighty, where Bruce Nolan, a dissatisfied TV reporter, becomes God and turns his ‘boring’ city car into a Saleen supercar.
Saleen has been inactive for years now, but the good news is the company is reportedly planning a huge comeback, this time with a hydrogen car.
America’s best supercar – but is it the first?
Most people would call the Saleen S7 America’s best supercar, or at the very least the best-known supercar America has produced.
But is it the first?
The thing is, American buyers have historically always loved two types of vehicles: trucks and muscle cars.
The supercar as we know it is generally more of a European thing.
This is why when you Google ‘supercar+America’, the results are always a bit vague.
There’s the Falcon F7, with production limited to seven units only, and the 1969 AMC AMX III, which would probably also qualify as a supercar.
Then of course there are more modern cars, like the Hennessey Venom, but everyone calls that a hypercar, not a supercar.
At the end of the day, this is one of those conversations that would require a UN resolution.
After all, we as car people can’t even agree on whether the Dodge Viper is a supercar or a muscle car.
The post There’s a disputed story surrounding the mysterious birth of America’s best ever supercar appeared first on Supercar Blondie.
