Steve joins a small class of car manufacturers who have won a race in a car they designed
Corona, California--(Newsfile Corp. - July 27, 2023) - On July 2, 2023, Steve Saleen, founder of Saleen Automotive, won at the Sovren Historics in Kent, Washington in a Saleen S1. Saleen founded the Southern California vehicle manufacturing company in 1983 and built a brand name for himself based on his transformation of the Ford Mustang. Saleen went on to produce his own automobiles, and his mid-engine S1 is the latest in his line-up of Saleen Original vehicles.
"I was invited as the guest celebrity to the Sovern Historics at Pacific Raceways, but had no intention of actually racing," said Saleen. "We brought an S1 racecar to the track to give ride-along charity laps, with all proceeds going to charity. After seeing the S1 on the track, the race organizers asked if I'd like to compete in their premiere Large Bore class that consists of the higher horsepower cars and I said sure."
The competition in this class consisted of a combination of vintage race cars and the latest vehicles, including a current generation GT4 Mustang. This Mustang was built specifically for racing by Multimatic and piloted by the track hot-shoe instructor, Rob Sholl. The S1 with Steve Saleen behind the wheel beat the GT4 Mustang, and also set the fastest lap of the day.
Steve is part of exclusive league of automotive icons that actually races his own designs. He joins automobile legends Dan Gurney, Bruce McLaren, Jim Hall, and others who all drove their own purpose-built race cars. However, Saleen is one of the only manufacturers who has done this with a race car based off his own street car design.
The S1 was designed as a True Driver's Vehicle, and is powered by a 450hp turbo-charged, 2.2L, 4-cylinder engine, and weighs only 2700lbs. It combines state of the art engineering, aerodynamics, and a mid-engine platform, all wrapped in a sleek body that can go head-to-head with Porsche, Ferrari, and other premium sports cars.
Racing the S1 supports Saleen's mantra of "Race Proven Performance for the Street" as it enters its final phases of testing and development. As a part of Saleen bringing the S1 to production, Saleen Automotive is currently offering shares to the general public via an investment round hosted on StartEngine.
ABOUT SALEEN AUTOMOTIVE
Saleen is dedicated to transforming the transportation experience. For 40 years, the California-based automotive manufacturer has redefined driving through high-performing vehicles that combine championship-winning racing pedigree with innovative technology and distinctive styling.
From the first Saleen Mustang in 1984 to the S7 in 2000, company founder Steve Saleen has continually moved the bar for vehicle design and performance engineering on the street and racetrack. In addition to its distinctive Saleen Signature and Saleen Original vehicle lines, Saleen offers a wide variety of technical parts, lifestyle accessories and apparel for those with a passion for performance. Learn more at here.
MEDIA CONTACT
Greg Stacy - Saleen (gregS@saleen.com)
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/174984
