NEWPORT BEACH : Vehicles Worth Total of $200,000 Set Afire

Two high-priced cars and a delivery van worth about $200,000 were set ablaze late Sunday night at the financially strapped Jim Slemons Imports, fire officials said Monday.

By the time firefighters arrived at the Mercedes-Benz dealership at 1101 Quail St., the vehicles were engulfed in flames, authorities said.

Investigators have not determined what ignited the delivery van and the two cars--a Mercedes-Benz 500SL and a 300SE. A 1991 500SL lists from $94,900 while a 1991 300SE starts at $55,000, according to Mercedes-Benz dealers.

Newport Beach Fire Capt. Ray Pendleton speculated that the cause of the blaze, which was reported at 11:54 p.m. Sunday, is “likely to be arson.”

Attempts to reach officials at the dealership were unsuccessful.

With $110.2 million in revenue last year, Jim Slemons Imports ranked as the eighth most profitable auto dealership in the nation. But the firm filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition on Aug. 9 as part of a plan to stabilize its sagging finances while it seeks a buyer.

Jim Slemons recently sold his Acura and Honda franchises and last year closed a Daihatsu dealership. In addition to Slemons Imports, he owns a Volvo franchise in Hawaii, a Jeep-Eagle dealership in San Clemente, and an auto-leasing firm and a small custom-car sales office, both in Mission Viejo.