MJ Acquisitions, which recently purchased most of Saleen Inc., has made it clear that purchasing Viper from Dodge/Chrysler is of interest to the company.

Automotive News reports that MJ Acquisitions co-owner Mike Shields states that, “We’ve considered a purchase of Viper.” Shields and his bothers own several auto-industry related subsidiaries including Cyltec, LLC, Power-Tec Engineering, LLC, Arrow Racing Engines, LLC, and Control-Tec, LLC.

Chrysler has publicly stated its interest in selling off the successful Viper brand, and recently announced that it is currently looking over three proposals – although the company would not say if one of those proposals is from MJ Acquisitions.

In news relating back to Saleen, Shields stated that the continuation of the Racecraft brand and S-Line are not certain.

As for the continued uncertainty of the S7 and S5 Raptor supercars, former Saleen president Chris Theodore is still on the hunt for a buyer.

Read the AutoGuide review of the Viper ACR here:

Dodge Viper ACR

[Source: AutoNews]

Three months after Saleen Incorporated announced it was looking for a buyer the company has just released news that MJ Acquistions has purchased a significant portion of the automakers assets.

The deal puts all supercharger, after market and high performance assets in the hands of MJ Acquisitions. Saleen Inc.  will retain ownership of everything relating to the S7 Supercar and upcoming S5 Raptor – although the move certainly puts the development of the Saleen exotic in jeapordy as it is more than likety the supercar department shares both staff and resources with the departments that have changed hands. And considering how small the volume of sales for the S7 project have been it’s unlikely MJ Acquistions will want to dedicate staff and resources to areas other than the high volume, high profit aftermarket and high performance segments.

On a positive note MJ Acquisitions is a developed and successful automotive company that owns four subsidiaries: Cyltec, LLC, Power-Tec Engineering, LLC, Arrow Racing Engines, LLC, and Control-Tec, LLC. These companies comprise a network that currently facilitates full service enginering, design, manufacturing, assembly and control systems for sectors of the automotive industry.

“We moved on this purchase quickly to ensure that the process of delivering high-quality automobiles and components to the consumers is not disrupted,” said Mike Shields, President and CEO of MJ Acquisitions. “We are working with the talented team from Saleen and our own experts to continue the quality, delivery, and performance the customer base and delalership network have come to expect from the Saleen brand.”

One point of note is that employees of the Saleen departments that were sold were let go, however, many (if not all) of them are expected to be rehired – including Saleen Inc. CEO Chris Theodore, who said that, “MJ Acquisitions and its affiliates are a group of true car professionals with vast experience in the engineering, production, assembly and distribution of performance and racing vehicles. This influx of new life into the Saleen, RaceCraft and SpeedLab brands is a win-win situation.

MJ Acquisitions doesn’t plan to waste any time bringing product to market and the company is expected to forge ahead with a redesign of the flagship S-Line brand, due out in late 2009, as well as the realse of a 2010 Racecraft Mustang – with develpment beging on that project as soon as Ford delviers the new model to Saleen HQ.

[Source: Saleen Owners and Enthusiasts Club]

Official release after the jump:

Continue Reading…

After decades of modifying Mustangs (and other Ford products), last year Steve Saleen sold the company that bares his name. Now he’s back with a new company, SMS Limited, based in Anaheim, CA. And while he plans to copy his old business plan of tuning Mustangs and selling them as complete packages (Didn’t anyone make this guy sign a non-compete contract?), he’s also going to do the same for the new Dodge Challenger and Chevy Camaro.

Branded as SMS, the first vehicle the company will release will be based on the new Dodge Challenger.

Saleen’s old company, Saleen Inc., secured OEM status (meaning that each Saleen vehicle was registered as a Saleen and not a Ford). It appears as though SMS will do the same with the first two reworked and rebadged Challengers being called the SMS 570 and SMS 570X. The two models will produce 500 and 700hp respectively.

Each vehicle will also receive a ground-up transformation, including new aerodynamics, suspension components and interior work.

The modified Challengers will be followed shortly thereafter by an SMS version of the 2010 Mustang, called the SMS 460.

Visit www.smslimitedusa.com for more info.

[Source: The Detroit News]