The original founder of Saleen tuning firm and the creator of the Saleen S7 supercar, Steve Saleen, is now back in control of operations–following a bit of litigation. Now that Steve is back with the right to use the Saleen badge on new products, and he is hitting the pavement at full throttle with new concepts and momentum!

Saleen S7 with scissor doors

Long story short:
Steve founded Saleen Autosport in 1983. The company expanded from tuning cars like Mustangs to eventually unleashing the Saleen S7 hypercar. In 2007, the former racer-turned-entrepreneur (Steve) resigned from Saleen. In 2008, Steve founded SMS Supercars, which created enhanced versions of the Camaro, Challenger and Mustang. Saleen was sold in 2009, after which Steve sued the new owner for the rights to the Saleen name.

Steve won the case, and now creations from both SMS Supercars and Saleen will unite under the vigorous brand name. The new blended family/company will handle parts for all generations of Saleen vehicles, and will open up the Saleen registry to include cars built under the SMS Supercars name. Owners will have the option to rebrand their vehicles with the Saleen badge.

According to the exotic car rumor mill, where the wheels are always spinning, the Raptor may emerge out of concept form bearing the Saleen name. The S5S Raptor is pictured above.

Which is more attractive, the S5S Raptor or the S7? Comment below!

The S5S Raptor concept was built around a lightweight aluminum chassis and powered by mid-mounted supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 engine delivering 650 horses. It was claimed to be capable of accelerating from 0-60 mph in just 3.2 seconds and reaching a top speed of 200 mph, which has not been proven.

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Post by Imagine Lifestyles Luxury Rentals