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eBay Find of the Day: Saleen Windstar (Seriously!)
Click above for image gallery of the Saleen Ford Windstar
Outrageous minivans are oddities of the train wreck variety. You don't want to, but you just gotta look. And we're suckers for them. Not that long ago we had the ridiculously fast, jet-powered Dodge Caravan, and then there was the show but stock slow Mugen Honda Odyssey.
But what do you think of a Saleen-built Ford Windstar? And, no, it's not a soccer mom special that someone slapped a Saleen windshield header on. This is the real deal. It's got custom-made carbon fiber mirrors, valve covers and steering wheel. The double-nostril hood is custom-made as is the gauge cluster and the fender flares over the Z-rated 18-inch Rikens. Underhood is a Saleen supercharger atop the Ford V6. The eBay auction says more than $100,000 was spent on the monster minivan's production. So who in their right mind would spend that kind of cash on something originally meant to sit idle in front of daycare facilities? Two words: Tool Time. As in Tim "Tool Time" Allen. Tim teamed up with Steve Saleen several years ago to produce the Saleen Windstar. Just as this prototype was finished, however, Ford redesigned the Windstar and all plans to offer the package for sale were scrapped.
Luckily the van wasn't, and lately has been used as a promotional tool for Port-A-Board, a company that makes collapsible skateboards. It was founded by Brett Gregory, who is a producer of Tim Allen's upcoming movie. And since the Saleen Windstar is still in the family, the winning bidder will get a photo of Tim and the van together
[Source: eBay Motors]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
MajorGeek 11:33AM (12/01/2008)
Some guy near me took his F150, stuck on some fake hood scoop thingies, added a Saleen sticker to it but fools no one. Probably because a dealer up the road has had one sitting unsold for the past year sitting ona busy roadway, so we have a reference as to how it really looks.
Its better looking then this, sorry minivan and performance just do not go hand in hand, at least for me.
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Torrent 11:34AM (12/01/2008)
epic.
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Serge 11:44AM (12/01/2008)
Epic FAIL
Cash 12:49PM (12/01/2008)
Werd. High performance minivan? Yes please. More utility than an SUV, better performance, better handling, better mpg, all while staying under the radar of the red and blue. It'd be awesome. To the people saying this is a "FAIL", you must have a small penis. Dudes confident about their wang would drive this no problem.
Jason 2:26PM (12/01/2008)
Supercharged minivan? I'd drive it. Wonder how well it autocrosses?
jgp 2:25PM (12/01/2008)
Indeed.
Kinda reminds me of the Vauxhall Zaifra VXR sold across the pond.
Practicality and performance? Sweet!
Anonymous Coward 5:27PM (12/01/2008)
epic fail on the stereo. The rest is open for debate.
liam 12:24PM (12/02/2008)
jay lenos garage material after all he has the shogun
(T) 11:43AM (12/01/2008)
This brings me great pain.
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chevelleguy 11:48AM (12/01/2008)
poop. who wants a minivan? seriously, if you want a fast ford get a mustang or if you want something fast get a corvette.
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Jimmy Mack 11:55AM (12/01/2008)
poop X2
Tang 11:47AM (12/01/2008)
at least the front has a slight mean look to it
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Eric Liberatore 11:54AM (12/01/2008)
Mean look with a crooked right eye. Been in a wreck or bad buld quality?
John 7:37PM (12/01/2008)
This is the only minivan that I would consider. Google it: 1995 Renault Espace F1 Concept
Here it is on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEDwfk8EYR0
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The Luigiian 11:48AM (12/01/2008)
So let's see. The star of Tool Time teams up with a maker of portable skateboards to turn a turbocharged $100,000 minivan into a rolling billboard, then makes a movie with the same skateboarding guy.
And yet Hollywood sees no problem with giving these guys money. Well, let me get out the popcorn, this is going to get very interesting.
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Nibcrom 11:54AM (12/01/2008)
Saleen does not equal Ford. They are separate companies.
The Luigiian 2:21PM (12/01/2008)
When did I say it was?
Nibcrom 2:55PM (12/01/2008)
I think I may have misread your comment. I thought you were talking about the government bailout but after re-reading it, it seems you were talking about something else. My apologies for misreading your comment.
The Luigiian 3:49PM (12/01/2008)
Oh, no problem. No, I was just joking around about how Tim the Tool Man spent $100,000 on turning a minivan into a racecar and now gets to be in a movie too. It ought to be interesting to see how this turns out.
Cool idea, but I'd rather have a turbocharged Mazda 5 than this. But actually, I'd rather just have the basic honest Windstar too. No custom parts, no superchargers, just an honest little people mover.
JDMlover 11:53AM (12/01/2008)
Very interesting...
I wonder whats the specs and numbers??
And who would spend 100,000 grand on a old ford van ??
wtf.
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