CORONA, CA–(Marketwired – May 10, 2017) – Steve Saleen, CEO of Saleen Automotive, Inc. (OTCQB: SLNN), delivered a Special Edition Saleen Mustang Police Car to the Riverside Police Officers’ Association in Riverside, California, which represents the Riverside Police Department’s frontline Officers, Detectives, and Sergeants. This specially built Saleen Mustang will be used to bring awareness and attention to their fallen officers and promotion and avocation of the Police Officers’ Assistance Fund, which provides financial assistance to officers’ families in Riverside and surrounding communities. It will also be a tool in recruiting new officers, engaging the community, and generating a cohesive camaraderie with Riverside Residents.
The Saleen Mustang boasts the latest in technology starting with a whopping 730HP, powered by a twin-screw supercharger with a unique exhaust. It sports a fully revised suspension for extreme cornering, and wears Saleen big brakes, giving it ultimate stopping. The interior is fitted with Saleen gauges and necessary police equipment with full police lighting built into the cockpit for sports a revised front end, Saleen rear wing, and is equipped with the necessary siren and external speakers. Steve Saleen stated, “This is one of the fastest police vehicles ever built. It is one of the most exciting projects Saleen Automotive has been involved in. If you are attempting to elude the police in the Riverside Department’s jurisdiction, beware; your chances of getting away are quite slim.”
Detective Aurelio Melendrez, who also serves as vice president of the Riverside Police Officers’ Association, said, “We are excited and pleased to receive delivery of this Special Edition Saleen Mustang. It brought incredible smiles to those in the department who were on hand to take delivery. We are honored and thrilled that Saleen Automotive has shown their support of the Riverside Police Officers’ Association/Riverside Police Department in this way.” Melendrez stated that the majority of police officers’ deaths across the country are attributed to automobile accidents; after driving the Saleen Mustang he felt the vehicle was the best accelerating, handling, and stopping (police) vehicle he has ever driven. The technology that led to this vehicle’s extreme performance is something he hoped to see become used in a more widespread format, to improve officer safety and vehicle response. The Riverside PD employs roughly 350 men and women. Drivers of this particular Saleen Mustang have been specially trained to handle the speed, cornering, and overall handling. As with any tools assigned to department employees, only those qualified will handle the car. To date, Steve Saleen has trained a handful of department employees. Melendrez feels Saleen’s continued work building police vehicles and training officers with this exceptional technology would keep officers safe. He is hopeful to continue a collaborative effort between Saleen and Riverside PD.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Additional information at www.saleen.com
Media contact:
pr@saleen.com
Saleen Automotive, Inc.
2735 Wardlow Road
Corona, CA 92882
714.400.2121
The Riverside Police Officers’ Association Assistance Fund is pleased to announce our recent partnership with several prominent businesses in the Inland Empire. With the help of our partners, we were able to create a memorial vehicle to increase awareness of the Law Enforcement members killed in the line of duty and to celebrate their lives.
Without the right team to bring it together, the concept of the memorial car had previously been little more than a lofty goal and one that would take a significant investment in time and resources.
But then in early 2016, Steve Saleen, owner of Saleen Automotive headquartered in the city of Corona, approached RPOA with the idea of creating a Model S302 Saleen Mustang as the memorial car. Steve started working with his partners in the racing community to move the project from concept to reality. Saleen Automotive personnel donated their time and expertise over the next year to design and outfit a base model 2016 Ford Mustang, which was provided by Fritts Ford of Riverside.
A Riverside based business, West Coast Lights and Sirens, immediately offered to assist with the project. Danny Gonzalez, in cooperation with Federal Lights and Sirens who donated their equipment to the project, installed the equipment and wiring for the car.
The memorial car continues to be a work in progress. It was recently back at Saleen Automotive for the next phase of the project. The goal has always been for the car to be completed for a public unveiling at the 2017 Riverside County Peace Officers’ Memorial Ceremony on Monday, May 22, 2017.
The memorial car is intended to raise awareness of the risks faced everyday by the men and women who wear the police uniform, and those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. With awareness comes the financial assistance for those injured or killed in the line of duty.
The Riverside Police Officers’ Association Assistance Fund is a 501(c)3 charity that was created in 2011. It is a separate entity from the RPOA and is governed by a 5-person board of directors. Its goals are to provide financial assistance to law enforcement officers injured or killed on duty, to promote youth programs, and to support the elderly and veterans in the Riverside community.
On Friday, May 5, 2017, at 9:00 a.m., the memorial car will be taken to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department’s Emergency Vehicle Operations Center (EVOC) for testing by Steve Saleen and other professional drivers. All news media are welcome to attend. The EVOC location is at 18901 Institution Road, San Bernardino, CA 92407. Any media inquiries should be directed to rpoamail@sbcglobal.net.
Great turn out today at the Fabulous Ford show today. I think Saleen took the attention away from our neighbors at the show. Thank you for everyone’s help today.
Tesla Removes Performance-Limiting Software From Model S & Model X
Elon Musk in 2012 Tesla Model S
Tesla is removing performance-limiting software from its Model S and Model X. You didn’t know about the software at all? If not, you’re not the only one, but I’ll update you.
More importantly, though, has Tesla solved the overheating issues that restrict power output?
And does this mean we can finally race a Model S on a track?
Not really.
Tesla Removes its Performance-Limiting Software
Before you inundate Tesla Motors with questions, note that this specific software limits the power output according to how many times it considers you have full-open-throttle accelerated the Model S and X. The ramifications and implications are many for Tesla and the automotive industry at large, which has been suffering from ethical business decisions.
As of now and according to Tesla’s President of Global Sales and Service, Jon McNeil, from our friends at Teslarati, the performance-limiting software will be removed from the Model S and Model X via the usual over-the-air software update.
New Tesla Model S jets to 60 mph
The story erupted on the Tesla Motors Club (TMC) forum in recent weeks, where McNeil admitted the company was limiting the performance of some of its Model S and Model X in order to protect them from excessive wear and tear. Fair enough, but it wasn’t clear if the wear and tear are part of the rolling stock or the thermal management system of the battery and controller.
One of the reasons the Model S hasn’t been raced successfully so far is you can only use its full power for the first lap or so. Things drastically change in the second lap. The battery and controllers heat up. The car deliberately lowers its performance output, eventually to a crawl. We witnessed this clearly a few years ago when Steve Saleen was developing his own version of a performance Model S, the Four Sixteen, which we covered here. The racing restrictions were the overheating of the components and battery pack. Steve assured us he overcame that restriction eventually. Our initial test drives around an undisclosed California race track were convincing for a start.
However, racing is one thing. Buying a $135,000 performance car for its impressive numbers only to have it throttle back in an undisclosed way is quite another.
Tesla Community Members Up In Arms
CEO Elon Musk, center, with CTO J.B. Straubel, left, and Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen watch as Tesla launched the Model S, at their factory in Fremont, Calif., on Friday, June 22, 2012. The event marked the start of its Fremont assembly line and, the company hopes, eventual entry into the mass market with its revolutionary electric car. (Patrick Tehan/Staff)
Members of Tesla community didn’t react well to this performance-limiting software infringement on the Model S’s stated performance. A few threads on the company’s forum highlighted that the overuse of Tesla’s Launch Mode feature throttles back the Ludicrous Model S’s performance. But the issue got worse when P85D and P85 owners, post Ludicrousmode, reported the same problem on their Model S, which were not Ludicrous. It eventually culminated when other owners reported the same restrictions in Launch and Max Power modes.
What was brought to light eventually was that Tesla used an algorithm that counted how many times the cars were driven with open throttle without stating it. It would then throttle back performance, sometimes reducing the overall horsepower by as much as 100 HP. Since the claimed performance of the Model S and X wasn’t met over and over and was highlighted on Tesla’s forum, the company discreetly added a disclaimer to its online Design Studio confirming the limiting software. Tesla wasn’t upfront and took a lot of heat from some of its owners. This is something the company can’t afford to do. Here’s why:
Now What?
Tesla is very adept at making its client handle marketing, while other carmakers rely on huge budgets. What can it do when it gets caught with numbers that don’t match the claimed performance?
Unlike other carmakers that spend millions of dollars on a monthly base, Tesla doesn’t officially have a marketing department, in the traditional automotive sense. Handling negative publicity is crucial. Tesla owners are notoriously technically savvy and bleeding-edge adopters. It doesn’t take much for them to realize numbers and performance don’t add up. Selling these people a product that doesn’t work as advertised is extremely dangerous. Undisclosed performance-limiting software is a mistake that Tesla must avoid at all costs, considering the scandals VW and other carmakers are currently facing. While not technically the same issue, stating one thing and acting contrary in an undisclosed way is a slippery slope. Rightfully, Tesla kept the performance-limiting software story internal and away from the news.
But what about racing? Does that mean we can now race a Model S? Not so fast. The car is still throttled back it heats up around a race track. It’s understandable. Tesla didn’t design your car for racing. We’ll have to wait for the Electric GT (EGT) Championship series to tackle that.
The moral questions are more along the lines of what if you purchase a certified pre-owned Performance Model S or X? Does it mean you will be even more throttled than buying a brand new one? Are you going to be “paying for” the consequences of the previous driver when the company sells you a used car?
Consequences and Conclusion
These are serious learning lessons for Tesla. After the VW diesel scandal, carmakers know they can’t withhold information and claim the contrary. This hinders on federal crime laws and no one wants to go that route, especially the financially fragile Tesla Motors company.
It takes an entire society to accept de facto norms imposed on it. It only takes a few vocal people to stop and sometimes reverse the process. Case in this point, thanks to Tech_Guy in the Tesla owners community, McNeil was forced to acknowledge the performance limiting software by writing:
“Based on your input, we have decided to remove all software performance reductions tied to frequent max power usage. These changes will roll out with our next software update (in about three weeks).
We had put these reductions in place to proactively protect the powertrain from wear and tear. Instead, we will monitor the condition of the powertrain and let our customers know if service is needed so that we can take proactive steps, such as by replacing parts if necessary, to maintain the vehicle’s performance.”
The conclusion is simple, bordering simplistic. Ethics are mostly interpretations based on a solid bedrock. Our political world in shamble only reflects our society subconscious and acts as a shadow self. Tesla is the darling of the EV community. It can’t afford to say one thing and hinder performance. This is something the automotive industry at large is learning the hard way.
* Registration for the 2017 show will open in January 2017. * Bring your Saleen — no matter its condition — to the largest non-judged show of its kind in the world! * Pre-Register — you can do so online or download a form at fabulousfordsforever.org
SATURDAY, APRIL 29:
Club Members: Join us for a members-only dinner event — RSVP Required for each person in your party — Send an email to jimd@soec.org or call 714-369-8621 for more info. Casual attire, pay-your-own meal and expect to pay $12-20-plus for your meal per person. Space is limited, and spouses (or significant others) and family are welcome. We expect a group of about 50 people. More info to be announced.
SUNDAY, APRIL 30:
We’ll do an early morning cruise to Knott’s (see lower map below) — Steve and Molly are expected to attend — unsure if they’ll do the cruise, but if you want to cruise to Knott’s, meet at Saleen at 7:45 a.m.; planned departure by 8:00 a.m. Everyone’s invited. You must be pre-registered for the show and have your confirmation card hanging from your rear view mirror as you enter the Knott’s gate.
We will need some volunteers to help parking from 5:30 – 10:00 a.m. and you get a free VIP lunch with journalists and celebrities plus preferential parking, but we need a commitment by April 4. You must also have your car registered for the show, or get a ride with someone (let Jim D. know if you need a ride).
We might need additional helpers starting at 7:00 a.m., so if you arrive early, please let Jim D. know you can help and we’ll give you a vest or a task to help with.
