Supercar maker, and famed tuner Saleen has officially been sold to MJ Acquisitions. MJA has purchased the majority of the assets including both the production car and aftermarket divisions. This leaves other Saleen assets such as the S7, S5 Raptor and the painting operations in the continued control of Saleen, Inc. The deal was finalized last Friday, leaving many of the employees, including CEO Chris Theodore, without a job (though hire-backs have and are already taking place).
The Los Angeles-based Hancock Park Associates had bought the majority of the company last year from Steve Saleen and only kept the business running recently with a handful of employees in order to find a buyer.
While the tossing around of assets may have slowed progress down, the new buyer already plans to develop the 2010 Mustang for the Racecraft brand as well as new Saleen models that will be introduced late 2009. This comes as no surprise considering how MJ Acquisitions already have several automotive companies under their belt, as well as extensive experience in engineering and production of performance vehicles. Read the full press release below.
Irvine, California, February 2, 2009 -- After announcing it was looking for a buyer in early November, Saleen Incorporated announced today that MJ Acquisitions has acquired certain assets of America's premier automotive lifestyle brand, relating to Saleen's supercharger, aftermarket and high performance street vehicle businesses.
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The transaction reportedly was finalized last Friday, which left all of the employees (including Saleen Inc. CEO Chris Theodore) with the legal formality of being without jobs -- at least temporarily. Some hirebacks have already taken place as the transition progresses.
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While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the purchase does not include the assets associated with the supercar (S7 or S5 Raptor vehicles) or the paint operations, which will remain with Saleen Incorporated.
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The ownership of MJ Acquisitions controls a family of companies which provide full service engineering, design, manufacturing, assembly and control systems for the automotive industry. It's affilitated companies include Cyltec, LLC, Power-Tec Engineering, LLC, Arrow Racing Engines, LLC, and Control-Tec, LLC.
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"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" said Theodore in a press release. "This influx of new life into the Saleen, RaceCraft and SpeedLab brands is a win-win situation."
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Theodore noted loyal Saleen customers, dealers and enthusiasts can look forward to an exciting transition period.
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"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. I am particularly excited about Saleen's supercharger experience and its synergies with Power-Tec's development of the next generation of superchargers."
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Immediate plans are to roll out the 2010 version of the newly designed Mustang for the Racecraft brand and commence other Racecraft designs for additional vehicles. The new Mustang is shipping from Ford later this month. Additionally, the Saleen brand will have a new design of the flagship S-Line that is already in the works and scheduled for release in the third quarter of 2009.
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While this announcement may provide more questions than answers for some, Saleen owners should be assured that key warranty and sales staff are still at the company to serve dealers and owners, with more hirebacks likely coming in the days ahead.
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MJ Acquistions does plan to work with the dealer network and others to establish the future product line. A company spokesperson said more announcements will be forthcoming, so stay tuned.