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Fly Saleen S7R GTS
Review by Taxi


Model	Fly Saleen S7R
Motor	Fly Racing, rear mounted, inline
Chassis	Plastic
Body	Painted & tampo printed plastic
Wheels	Painted plastic wheels, rubber tyres
Price/Availability	around £35
Rivals	Ninco/SCX/Slotit/TeamSlot GT cars

Likes	Lots of detail, strong motor
Dislikes	Mould lines on body, high prices

The Saleen S7 is an exclusive American built supercar which doesn't seem to get much attention outside of it's home country. Saleen started out modifying Fords but have now expanded to the point where they are building their own design of supercar. Sounds like the American dream to me!

Fly have chosen to reproduce the Saleen in a number of liveries and the one I have for this review is the Scania sponsored British GT version.

The car is quite a handsome brute, almost McLaren-esque in it's appearance, especially from the front, and Fly have engineered their version to a high standard. A lot of effort has obviously gone into the bodywork, which looks very purposeful and has numerous open vents and beautifully sculpted sides. The front and rear air-dams have also received a lot of attention, as both have multiple openings backed with fine wire mesh to complete the effect. Overall a very high level of detail, which continues when you look through the rear screen. Here you will find a 1/32 scale V8 engine! Unfortunately not a working model but it looks impressive with the air-box, cam covers and exhaust system all clearly visible.

Paintwork is more than adequate, if not quite as deep and gleaming as some of the latest Scalextric models. Bodywork catches are clearly moulded and picked out with silver paint, which is a nice touch. Tampo printing is crisp and clear, very sharply defined. Another nice touch is the rear wing, which is detachable, so it falls off rather than snaps off in an accident.

So with good paintwork and lots of detail this is great so far? Not quite. My model still had visible flash lines along it's flanks and the headlight covers didn't quite fit properly. Fairly minor faults perhaps, but with Fly's high prices it ought to be better.

The body is attached to the chassis with only one screw, at the rear of the car. The sides and front clip into place. It all sounds a bit odd but works well enough, though care is needed when putting the body back on. Don't press down in the rear screen as apparently it can crack very easily. The chassis itself is fairly rigid and neatly presented. The motor is a Fly Racing version, mounted inline at the rear of the car. The 'engine' detail covers the motor, and is made up of several parts. I found it easier to glue the pieces together and lift the whole lot off in one piece. With the motor and axle uncovered we find the usual plastic crown gear together with brass pinion and axle bearings. The axle bearings on my car were a sloppy fit in the chassis and needed to be glued in place. The front axle is solid, running in mounts moulded into the chassis. Wheels are silver painted five spokes, with Fly's usual fairly soft slicks. A bar magnet is mounted in a 'pocket' between the motor and rear axle.

Time for a few drops of oil and see what it does on the track. Any worries about the car carrying a bit of excess weight disappear in the first few laps. The extra power of the racing motor more than makes up for any weight penalty. The car handles nicely, punches hard out of corners and screams down the straights. The transmission was a bit noisy at first but has got quieter with running. I cut out the base of the magnet pocket and glued it in flush with the chassis, which cut a couple of tenths off my laptimes. Now the Saleen is running near the front of the pack.

Recommendations are a bit harder here. Basically this is a very good car. It's fast, handles nicely and has a much higher level of detail than the average slotcar. But, on my example at least, flaws were evident that simply should not have been present, especially given the high price. I enjoy the car and can live with what I see as minor defects. But I would definitely recommend that you carefully inspect any car you consider buying.

Taxi