Fillerdust

Why not build up the Saleen? Way better starting point then a standard GT.

danzcool

Not necessarily, I guess it depends on how far you are going. For the most part though, the branded cars are good for people who want a warranty, better performance than a stock GT, and have no intentions to do any heavy duty modding. If you want a platform to mod on, a gt500 (bigger engine) or a boss with the roadrunner engine (forged internals) would be better starting points, but only if you aren't going above 700-800RWHP.

MadStang40

Some just don't have the money to start at the Saleen level and then go upward...

My opinion: as long as it's not badged as a Saleen, I have no problem with it and would actually respect the built over bought guy seeing as he spent a lot of time and effort buying and installing every component.

Once the faux badging begins, my respect for the owner disappears

JK 23112

A lot of people - and I mean hordes of them - have made "clones" of muscle cars. There are a lot of Olds Cutlass coupes badged as a 4-4-2. You'll see a lot of "Chevelle SS396" cars that are actually just a Malibu and a few GTO clones that are only a LeMans or Tempest.

If it is done right, I guess I am okay with it - so long as they don't try to pass it off as the real deal. That kind of stuff irritates me.

One guy has a 1970 Buick Skylark done up to look like a GSX (a very rare car of which only 678 were made), but his license plate even says "GSX CLON" and he is the first to tell you that it is not the real thing. I can only imagine what one of those could fetch at an auction!

P.S. Wouldn't putting a "Shelby" badge on your car be some kind of copyright infringement?

JK 23112

Here is the link to learn more about the Buick GSX. I know we're mostly Ford folks in this forum, but GM had some pretty good stuff back in the day. All of us would turn our head if one of these 455-powered beauties rolled by on a sunny afternoon.

http://www.buickgsx.net

E_cox310

I just hate the ROUSH stage 1. My friend has one, he doesn't really have all of my respect, lol. I got respect for the top of the line ROUSH's or SALEEN's, but at the end of the day, what does it really matter.

danzcool

When you can purchase the badges from shelby/roush/saleen, how could it be copyright infringement? The only way would be if you get un-licensed knockoff badges.

To me, clone badging is not cool for the most part... but if someone did the whole package: body kit, suspension, engine and tune, and they were all parts from the brand manufacturer, who am I to say it's wrong, sure they are not in any registries, but from a mechanical and functional perspective it is exactly the same, so the only difference is a piece of paper.

jsimmonstx

Custom cars generally present a theme around which the appearance was derived. If that theme is Saleen, or Shelby, or Roush, or Boss, or Mach 1, I think appropriate badging to complete the theme is fine. How far the theme is taken is completely up to the car builder. As long as it's well-executed and the owner doesn't try to convince everyone that the car is something that it's not, who cares about the badging?

Mechanically, the sky is the limit. *For me*, I prefer to see multiple carbs rather than fuel-injection and superchargers. I want to hear that lumpy idle exiting through side-exhaust rather than the smooth burble of computer-controlled induction through tuned over-priced axle-backs.

Your friend should do it the way he wants to do it. I'm more impressed with someone else's vision of their Mustang than with cookie-cutter special editions, especially if they do all/most of the work themselves.

Of course, that's just me...

degeze

I was about to type my thoughts but you did it for me exactly.

theczar

i think cloning is fine as long as its not badged or being passed off as one. i just got a roush grille, but would never ever put the roush badge on it