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SMS 460 Mustang Rendering |
Fans and owners of Saleen Mustangs have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride over the past few months. First, back in March, it was announced that MJ Acquisitions, the new owner of the brand, would not be covering any of the old company's warranties. Then, a few weeks later, Steve Saleen announced that his new company, SMS Supercars, would cover any warranties (even though they had absolutely NO legal obligation to do so). A little after that, SMS Supercars teased their latest Ford Mustang creations, the SMS 460 and SMS 460X. Everything seemed right with the world. Steve Saleen was back to making tuner Mustangs (albeit under a different name), and loyal customers were having their warranties covered.
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700+ Horsepower, Dodge Challenger-based SMS 570X |
The next development in this ongoing story occurred yesterday, when SMS Supercars filed a lawsuit against MJ Acquisitions. The contention of the lawsuit is that MJ Acquisitions is being irresponsible with the Saleen name, which is damaging to Steve Saleen's reputation and future business ventures. Here's what the man himself had to say in a press release:
"It amuses me that faceless
executives and wannabes are trying to misrepresent themselves as some
kind of continuation of Saleen, which they are not. SMS Supercars is
the true Saleen. It is the only company I endorse, the only company
entitled to use my name and legacy, and the only company that carries
my signature on its products, because they are my products. The legal
action we have undertaken today will emphasize once and for all that
the only genuine Saleen products are mine."
There is a legal snag, though. Back in 2003, Saleen ran into some financial issues and Steve Saleen relinquished sole control of the brand in order to secure investments. He stuck with the company until 2007, but then left completely. The investors behind Saleen at that time held rightful control of the brand name and then sold it to MJ Acquisitions, along with numerous capital assets in the beginning of this year (which led up to the whole warranty coverage issue). So, if you trace the brand name, it was legally sold by Mr. Saleen himself, then sold again to the new company. We'll have to wait a bit for a judge to weigh in on the issue, and legal proceedings will probably bring to light information that we currently don't know about the history of the Saleen brand's sale, so any guess at the outcome would just be idle speculation at this point.
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