Steve Saleen's plan of attack for 2009
Click above for a gallery of the SMS Dodge Challenger
Steve Saleen is bringing back the musclecar wars with the help of the Detroit 3. Not content to modify Ford Mustangs alone, the former head of Saleen, Inc. is branching out into bowtie and Mopar territory as well. His new company, SMS Limited, will take on all three of the new retro rods this year. Under his former eponymous company's banner he had focused primarily on Ford vehicles, but now that Dodge and Chevrolet are getting back into the musclecar game, he figures it's time to expand his reach.
We've already profiled the SMS Limited Signature Series Dodge Challenger that Saleen has developed, and talked to Steve about what he had planned for the 2010 Mustang, but now we have a few more details about the SMS versions of the Ford Mustang and Chevy Camaro. For 2009, SMS Limited will not only build the SMS 570 and 570X Challengers, but also the SMS 460 Mustang and later in the year a line of SMS Camaros in their 150,000-square-foot facility in Anaheim, California.
All of the cars will get SMS superchargers, tweaked suspensions, and unique exterior styling elements, and the superchargers are more efficient and provide better cooling than anything they've used before. The company is also putting a new emphasis on upscale interiors, with better materials that should justify the cars' higher sticker prices. SMS Challenger production should begin this month, with 2010 Mustangs starting to show up in the spring. And if all goes according to plan, Camaros should start rolling out by the end of the year. Customers wanting a bit of Saleen magic applied to their musclecars will be able to order them through select Dodge, Ford or Chevrolet dealerships.
[Source: Detroit News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jg 12:58PM (1/07/2009)
I finally saw a Challenger up close the other day. Holy Huge car Batman! An early 70's Challenger would look like a Hobbit next to the new one.
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s13hybrid 1:37PM (1/07/2009)
I got to sit in one at the mall a while ago, and if you think the outside is large, get inside. It reminded me of the Hummer I sat in years ago when they first came out.
It is a good looking car, just way to big for my tastes.
firstplace 3:40PM (1/07/2009)
Great looking car, way way way to big, hopefully the trend toward large coups will reverse. The latest 370Z is shorter, and so is the C6 relative to the C5, 3 series is about the same everyone else has the misconception that a bigger coupe is better.
Murray 1:12PM (1/07/2009)
I'm glad to see they are doing even more work to the interior for the price. I drove a 2006 Saleen Extreme all last summer and the interior was exactly like my 2005 GT minus the boost gauges, head rests, and seat covers. Keep in mind the car was $73k new. Ouch! Fun ride though.
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Jj 1:31PM (1/07/2009)
Going easy on the interior mods probably kept the price out of the 80's. I agree that some more aggressive seats would have been a good thing though.
tkosoccer03 1:45PM (1/07/2009)
This is very cool ..
But I'm slightly confused. Will Saleen still build Saleen Mustangs? Is SMS just a branch-off of Saleen? I think it would be cooler to have a Saleen Challegeer or a Saleen Camaro, ya know? Honestly .. who cares about SMS? I want a Saleen. See what I'm saying here?
I like that Steve Saleen is modding the Challenger and Camaro now, but I don't like the new Company name.
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Bullitt 2:15PM (1/07/2009)
Steve Saleen left Saleen Inc. That company is run by a different outfit but will keep the Saleen name. SMS is Steve's new company and it will allow him to branch out to developing different models hence his venture with the new Challenger and Camaro.
Jared 2:20PM (1/07/2009)
Great timing, Steve! This is just what the market is clamoring for -- overpriced muscle cars.
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Jj 2:30PM (1/07/2009)
Not all business models require clamoring masses.
Bob 5:12PM (1/07/2009)
I wish him well, but I say he's bankrupt by the end of the year. Market timing is really bad.
Nick 11:37AM (1/08/2009)
Looks like I'll have to make a stop down at their shop in the next month or so. It's awesome working less than 1/4 mile from their shop.
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