When the Twin Turbo arrived in 2005 with 750 hp and a claimed 248 mph top speed, the car entered territory occupied by only one other production vehicle on earth at the time: the Bugatti Veyron. The Veyron cost over $1 million. The S7 Twin Turbo was priced around $585,000, but the Saleen never officially set a top speed record to challenge the Veyron.
If road car performance wasn't enough, Saleen built a racing version to prove the point on track. The S7-R was a purpose-built competition variant, and 14 units were produced. It went up against some of the most powerful factory-backed programs in GT racing and won.
In the FIA GT Championship, the S7-R beat works-supported Ferrari and Maserati teams. These were not private operations, but manufacturer-backed efforts with full factory resources behind them. Saleen beat them anyway.
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