I have wanted an S331, badly, since they came out. I had to settle for a regular old F150 in 2006, since I required 4 wheel drive, living in New England. Also, to put it plainly, I could not afford a $60K 2 wheel drive truck, that is really a (somewhat functional) toy! Recently, I was able to put my '06 F150 into Winter driver status, and the much coveted S331's have become more reasonably priced, to purchase. I know this is a double edged sword, since these trucks have more than halved in value, but IMO, they appear to have 'leveled off', value wise. They are also becoming more difficult to find, nice, clean examples with low miles. Maybe the worm has turned and the S331's will begin to climb in value?! I won't hold my breath!
So I began my search, in earnest. Honestly, I had been looking for months, before the decision to purchase was made. I found that there was not a lot out there. I checked eBay, Craigslist, and (after an SCOA tip) I began to look at Autotrader. I really wanted a dark shadow grey truck, or a black one. Supercharger and big brakes were an absolute must! All other options were negotiable, to me. I found my truck on Craigslist, believe it or not. This particular truck had previously been for sale, on eBay, but it had long passed, so I forgot about it. I found her, again, on an 'All Craigslist' search, and recognized the pics, from eBay. Finding a DSG or Black truck, that met my specs, and also was clean with low mileage, proved to be too tall an order. The truck I decided on is Redfire Pearl Metallic. I looked longingly at the pics, for weeks, literally falling in love with the color, and getting up the courage to move outside of my conservative box! Plus this truck was loaded to the gills with options, literally everything, except, curiously, a bedliner? My truck came with ; supercharger, 15" big brakes, aluminum radiator package, HD alternator, Rockford Fosgate Audio, chrome wheels, Class III hitch, HID headlamps, and the hard aluminum tonneau. Only 50K miles on the clock, and it was apparent, from the pics, and many conversations and texts, exchanged with the owner, that she was lovingly cared for. Washed once a week, and waxed once a month, no joke. He had also had a ton of service completed, that sealed the deal! New spark plugs and coils, new catalytic converters, from Ford, new Saleen aluminum radiator, new tires and an Optima red top battery. The previous owner also had a top of the line Pioneer in dash CD/DVD/MP3 and Nav. unit installed. All work, complete with receipts. The previous owner had also began to hoard parts, like extra floor mats and center caps etc. once he realized they were becoming difficult to find.
We agreed on a price, and I priced out having her shipped up, from Florida, to Southern NH. After the sticker shock from the reputable transport companies, I decided to drive down to FL and pick her up. I had a friend who was already headed to Durham, NC, so he graciously drove me the rest of the way there from NC. I made the 1200 mile trip, home in 23 hrs and 30 minutes, only stopping for power naps 3 times! Good times. She made the trip, flawlessly, with zero issues, whatsoever. I even got decent gas mileage, as I stayed out of boost, for the majority of the trip.
She's not perfect, there is some minor chrome flaking on the wheels, and some small scratches here and there, nothing to cry about. The electric fans wiring needs to be upgraded, a bed liner (bedrug) needs to be installed, and the horrible stock speakers need to be replaced. On a side note, I don't understand how Saleen could, in good conscience, charge $1098 for a simple underseat subwoofer, yet leave the cheap, one-way OEM speakers in place!!? They claimed that this option was for the superior Audiophile? Whatever... Anyways, sorry for the long-winded post, but there is much more to come! On to the pics!!
Custom Dual Snorkel Intake. Fabrication pics. An excellent local fabricator is building this for me. I don't have his kind of skills!
