I am looking into buying a car that is supposed to be an original 89 saleen but the vin # has an "A" in it like the 4 cyl cars instead of an "E" like the V-8 cars. Does anyone know if this is normal? Were saleens originally ordered as 4 cyl cars and then uprgraded later? I don't want to buy the car if it is a clone. Thanks for your help.
AT11
Did foxbody saleens come with FOUR cylINDER vin # from factory?
That's what I was thinking too, but I have heard both things. I have heard that some were ordered as 4cyl cars since they were going to be upgraded anyway. I am just trying to get some more clarification on it before I buy the car and find out it is a clone. That would not be good. Thanks for your help.
Well, all fox saleens were v8 cars from ford. So if it's got a 4 banger vin it's a fake.
If you want, email me pics at mustang5L5@hotmail.com I know fox saleens well and what badges and parts should and should not be there.
If you want, email me pics at mustang5L5@hotmail.com I know fox saleens well and what badges and parts should and should not be there.
That car looks like an authentic saleen to me. Has a bunch of unique saleen parts on it. An under hood shot would help as there is a saleen metal tag attached to the firewall.
I would definitely take the vin and give saleen a call to confirm. It looks real to me but the 4 banger vin is odd. It might be possible it's a typo as the rest of the vin is for an 89 lx hatchback.
I would definitely take the vin and give saleen a call to confirm. It looks real to me but the 4 banger vin is odd. It might be possible it's a typo as the rest of the vin is for an 89 lx hatchback.
Yeah, I will give them a call tomorrow and see what they say. That is what is confusing to me, it all looks like a saleen but the vin is making me wonder. If it is not, someone spent a lot of time to make it a clone. There is a saleen tag on the inside of the driver side front fender, but I will have to ask the owner about one on the firewall. Thanks for your help.
I just got off the phone with Saleen. This car is not a saleen. It is a clone that someone has gone the distance to make it look like a saleen. They even put the badges on it, must have come off a wrecked saleen or something. I have looked at many saleens and this one sure fooled me unitil I checked the vin. I almost don't want to tell the owner because I don't think he is aware of it. Well so much for a getting a good deal on a saleen.
Damn, that sucks. I noticed that the only saleen part it was missing is the front bumper filler piece over the word mustang. But the car has so many other hard to find parts that its a very good fake. I would believe it.
If memory serves me correctly, Saleen Mustangs in the early years were pretty close to factory stock V8 cars. Saleen focused primarily on the handling aspect of the FOX cars. The 5.0 Mustangs were great performers out of the box, but were lacking in the handling dept. Saleen AND others focused their attention on the suspension/ handling. They got into modifying cars a little further down the road. After they had established themselves. The seller probably knows it's a fake if he's letting it go for what seems like a real good price.
If he calls me back to see if I am still interested in the car, I will let him know why I no longer am. He may already know why, but talking to the guy, I really believe that he thinks this is a real saleen. I am still upset about this not working out. I was looking forward to getting a decent priced saleen.
I would at least let him know that you are worried about it being a true Saleen, if he's concerned at all, then he can take the measures to check its authenticity
I would respond like this.
Hi. I was interested in your car. In my investigation into the car, I decided to call Saleen and verify this vin is a true authentic Saleen. They responded and told me that the vehicles particular vin is not associated with a real Saleen and in fact my own investigating shows the vin as belonging to a 4 cylinder '89 mustang. With this information, I must question this vehicles authenticity unless you have additional documentation proving otherwise...."
Of course I could say that in a meaner way as well
First thing I'd do is ask the owner to verify the vin. The "a" could be a typo and it is really an "e". If that were true, then I would call saleen up again to verify.
Also, I'd car fax the vin. Won't tell much but it will show where the car was bought, where it was inspected and other detains as to where it's been. If the car is in Cali, but the car fax says it was inspected last week in Maine, then there are more issues.
The car looks authentic to me...I'd ask to verify the vin is not a typo first.
Hi. I was interested in your car. In my investigation into the car, I decided to call Saleen and verify this vin is a true authentic Saleen. They responded and told me that the vehicles particular vin is not associated with a real Saleen and in fact my own investigating shows the vin as belonging to a 4 cylinder '89 mustang. With this information, I must question this vehicles authenticity unless you have additional documentation proving otherwise...."
Of course I could say that in a meaner way as well
First thing I'd do is ask the owner to verify the vin. The "a" could be a typo and it is really an "e". If that were true, then I would call saleen up again to verify.
Also, I'd car fax the vin. Won't tell much but it will show where the car was bought, where it was inspected and other detains as to where it's been. If the car is in Cali, but the car fax says it was inspected last week in Maine, then there are more issues.
The car looks authentic to me...I'd ask to verify the vin is not a typo first.
Here are the pics. Good thing I went back and looked as i found i didn't even see a few pics...including the engine bay and the rear hatch. I missed those the first time which made me think the car could be real. Now that i've seen the engine bay, i am questioning the car.
http://s1014.photobucket.com/albums/af269/Mustang5L5/Saleen/
Here is a video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38OwAxp5e7c
Only things i have questions on
1) Front bumper "filler" is missing
2.) SALEEN MUSTANG decal on hatch is not in correct spot...offset about 4" inward
3.) Underhood is a mess. Bay looks like it was originally black and Saleen buck tag not present. (should be where the big hole is located)
4.) Don't see the SAleen tag in front of the shifter (but could be bad pic angle)
5.) No Saleen Intake Plaque
The decal being misaligned and the filler missing could be the result of a repaint and damaging the filler or sloppy reapplication of the decal. I can't see in front of the shifter in those pics. The engine bay makes me scratch my head now that I've seen it (wish i saw it before). The drivers fender looks black and the pass looks primered. The buck tag is gone (or was never there) and the intake plaque is standard 5.0 HO (Saleen one could be on someones wall now...who knows). There are a lot of correct unique 1989 parts on the car however...why in the very least i'd ask to verify the VIN. Could be a typo...or this car could have been a 4-banger rebuilt using parts from the real totalled Saleen 89-390
Compare to a REAL 1989 Saleen here
http://forums.corral.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1126671
http://s1014.photobucket.com/albums/af269/Mustang5L5/Saleen/
Here is a video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38OwAxp5e7c
Only things i have questions on
1) Front bumper "filler" is missing
2.) SALEEN MUSTANG decal on hatch is not in correct spot...offset about 4" inward
3.) Underhood is a mess. Bay looks like it was originally black and Saleen buck tag not present. (should be where the big hole is located)
4.) Don't see the SAleen tag in front of the shifter (but could be bad pic angle)
5.) No Saleen Intake Plaque
The decal being misaligned and the filler missing could be the result of a repaint and damaging the filler or sloppy reapplication of the decal. I can't see in front of the shifter in those pics. The engine bay makes me scratch my head now that I've seen it (wish i saw it before). The drivers fender looks black and the pass looks primered. The buck tag is gone (or was never there) and the intake plaque is standard 5.0 HO (Saleen one could be on someones wall now...who knows). There are a lot of correct unique 1989 parts on the car however...why in the very least i'd ask to verify the VIN. Could be a typo...or this car could have been a 4-banger rebuilt using parts from the real totalled Saleen 89-390
Compare to a REAL 1989 Saleen here
http://forums.corral.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1126671
I dont know, with every other car around here having a Saleen or Roush sticker on it...Isn't that the only difference? Seems to be based on the amount of crazy crap people do and then claim it....
If its that close to be an original, there are some people who will obviously be interested. If its not what you are looking for then let it go and find something else.
If its that close to be an original, there are some people who will obviously be interested. If its not what you are looking for then let it go and find something else.
If it's not a real Saleen it at least looks like a pretty nice clone. I'm guessing someone bought a wrecked Saleen and swapped over the parts onto this car. So it may not be a "real" Saleen but at least it's got almost everything on it that a real one would. Why not bring that to the buyer's attention and then try and offer a respective amount for the car?
Personally, if it were me, I'd call the Seller out... I mean, why not? If he's a genuine Mustang Enthusiast, such as any of us, he would know what he has by the VIN and would NOT be trying to sell it as a Saleen... Plus anyone looking to buy an original 86-93 5.0 knows a V8 instantly by seeing the "E" in the VIN, period.
Sounds to me this guy is trying to pawn it off as a Saleen to someone who is unsuspecting of it's real identity - because if he was honest, he'd state it was a "clone".
One other thing - the car has been repainted or painted, period... easiest & instant way to tell, especially w/ front end work - the large rivets holding the bumper cover to the fiberglass header panel should NEVER be painted IF the car is "original" - and the actual header panel should also never have any overspray OR body color on it, period. If you see rivets painted body color and overspray on the header panel (and sometimes hood latch assembly), the vehicle has had a paint job or front panel replacement...
Sounds to me this guy is trying to pawn it off as a Saleen to someone who is unsuspecting of it's real identity - because if he was honest, he'd state it was a "clone".
One other thing - the car has been repainted or painted, period... easiest & instant way to tell, especially w/ front end work - the large rivets holding the bumper cover to the fiberglass header panel should NEVER be painted IF the car is "original" - and the actual header panel should also never have any overspray OR body color on it, period. If you see rivets painted body color and overspray on the header panel (and sometimes hood latch assembly), the vehicle has had a paint job or front panel replacement...
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