Seeking info: Buying 2001 S281 S/C
 

New to the forums here - I would first like to thank all of you that post here as I am in the process of buying my first Saleen and I have had many many questions. I have been lurking on these forums for a while and thought might as well join as I will hopefully be the new owner of a 2001 Saleen SC Convert.


I took a lot of advice from this forum to contact Saleen and have them run the vin to see if its a real saleen. I am waiting n a call back on that one as i know the current owner and I know for a fact he bought it brand new - but... The saleen vin tag on the firewall and center console tag say its #198 but the front bumper says 258. And the location of the front bumper numbers is directly underneath the headlight bulb rather closer to the corner of the bumper as I have seen and read many of your posts about location for that number.


I have so many questions as this car is mostly stock says the owner but yet he has dual fuel pumps and 42lbs injectors with what i saw was a KB BAP. I soldmy 03 cobra a few years ago - so I know the 4v motors but this 2v is new to me.


So when I have updates I will post here in this thread (if anyone cares) and I would like to thank you all again for the wealth of knowledge this forum offers.


Thanks in advance ---

OK so I have some questions...

I called Saleen and verified that it was a real Saleen : It is!

The front bumper number is wrong - the seller said he ordered the number directly from Saleen and they sent the wrong one out, and while in the paint booth (to fix small rock chips on front bumper) the seller did not want to wait for a new number so he just threw it on and clear coated over it...Not buying this but it may have happened - I plan on getting the right number and re painting the bumper.

The car is stock minus a pulley. For whatever reason the seller put in dual fuel pumps and 'modded' the stock tank to fit the pumps. I dont like this and will be putting a new fuel tank in with single pump as I will be keeping the car stock.

Car also has a BAP and custom tune. Not sure why it has this but again I dont like it and will be fixing the issue and getting the car tuned on a single pump - I dont like BAPs would rather put the proper fuel system in the car.

I also found out the car was over rev'd and a rocker fell out. He took it to a mechanic and he was able to put rocker back on and has not had an issue since.

Car has low mileage (30k) and seems as if it has been beat up in its previous life. I plan to get this car back to stock and enjoy the car. What do you guys think about the fuel issue - did he do the right thing or am I right in that it does not need dual pumps? It is an 01 so I think it came with 42lbs injectors? At leastthats what It has on it right now. Only other mod I see on the car is long tube headers.

Just my two cents... first off, I’m new to Saleen and Mustangs in general. BAP and the story about a rocker indicates that this Saleen lead a pretty stressful life. The fact that it was overreved along with mechanical mods points towards time spent at the track. Is there a way to verify if the engine number is original to this car?. I could buy the story with the numbers on the front bumper, but very skeptical as for the reason why the bumper was painted in the first place. None of this maybe supercritical, just depends on what you are looking for. Are you getting some sort of a super deal?


My rule of thumb is simple “history, not stories”. My S281 came from original owner and stack of service records from day 1. It’s NA car. I was looking for an upgrade over my then CLK55 and was hoping for an SC car, but the condition and history of my Saleen won me over.

I am getting a deal on it - minus some desperate TLC that it needs as the car has been sitting for years in a garage with dirt floors. It pains me to see a car like this in this kind of condition.

My background with these cars is minimal (Saleen Mustangs) - I had a 2003 Cobra but that had factory dual pumps - from what I read on here these s281 SC cars came with only 1. I have a full shop to get all the work done at home. I love these cars and seeing this car in this condition makes me want to buy it even more to get it back to where it should be.

Also noticed the stereo has been ripped out and aftermarket amps are in the car - but that project seems to be 1/2 done - so there is more work to get the factory MACH system back in it if I cant get the aftermarket setup working.

Sounds like a lot of passion is at play here. I wish you lots of luck and success at getting the project completed. I am sure you will enjoy it when its all done. Dont forget to post some pics.

This is pretty much my rule of thumb that applies to every car I ever purchased. And similar Tirefriar, I was originally looking for a foxbody and came across my 1999 Saleen and purchased it instead because of this simple rule.

I think it's awesome you have the resources to resurrect the car you are looking at. Long ago, I purchased a car that had a lot of questionable "upgrades." In the end, it was a challenge but not one I would take up again.

I don't think the injectors are stock, I would have to double check but I think stock is 30lbs. 42lbs. injectors would probably be for the dual fuel pumps.

Unless my car has a specific purpose, which currently is purely for reliable daily driveability, I keep everything stock.

.02
 

Just my .02 with my limited Saleen ownership and what I have gathered over the months....

Small SC pulley, bigger injectors, dual fuel pumps, all point to a car that most likely has a custom tune. I wouldnt go throwing it all back to stock unless you REALLY put it back including the SC pulley

I will 2nd the idea that the car has seen some track abuse, but ultimately isnt that what these cars were built to do? Sure, its frowned upon but not all cars are cream puffs.

I just bought my 02 a couple months ago, it has just over 2,000 miles on the odometer and I have it at the shop doing maintenance and taking care of things the PO did that make no sense (putting under drive pulleys on a SC car) so even though I bought a crazy low mileage car, they all need some love. If you have the time, money, resources, and the car just isnt complexly haggard I say go for it!

IMO, it all sounds shady.
I for sure would have thought a good single pump would handle a pullied saleen sc.
The tune probably does have to stay unless you are going 100% back to stock.

The story about the bumper number is idiotic.
I didn't even know people cleared over the bumper number. They are like $5, get a pile of them and each time they look a little worn, replace them.

I don't think in all my years of being a mustang enthusiast with a friend owning a mustang shop, I've ever heard of a 2v rocker coming undone. Over revving? I'm pretty sure it has a rev limiter.

A 2v and a 4v aren't that different. Most of the same rules apply.

It sounds to me like this car needs to be at least 10 grand below what a nice unmodded well kept car costs.
I like projects, but I'm not fixing up someone else's mess only to land up with a car that cost me as much as a good one would have.

This thing better be dirt cheap.

Thanks guys. I will be passing on this one. My gut feeling was to not buy it for many of the reasons you guys posted here. Thanks for your feedback!