Why is Petersen Museum selling off its cars?

The museum's new honchos apparently prefer motorcycles and French art deco vehicles (huh?) to classic automobiles - what the Petersen is supposed to be all about. Not surprisingly, they're kept their sales spree under the radar so as not to create a stir. But the LAT has the story, which is apparently causing some consternation within the ranks. Plan is to unload nearly a third of its 400 classic cars. Are these folks serious? From the Times:

The new plans include a greater emphasis on motorcycles and French art deco vehicles, passions that match the tastes of the museum's new leadership. The strategy was launched this year by Executive Director Terry Karges -- who owns a motorcycle company, Champions Moto -- and new board Chairman Peter Mullin, who also heads an auto museum in Oxnard that boasts one of the world's foremost private collections of French cars. "The idea was to breathe some life into the museum," Karges said. "We want to be a world-class automotive museum. We want to become an art museum featuring rolling sculpture and tell stories about the art of speed and the art of design."

[CUT]

The sell-off has drawn criticism from former Petersen employees. The overhaul, they say, threatens to move the institution from the focus put forth in its mission statement: "to present the history of the automobile and its impact on American life and culture using Los Angeles as the prime example." Founded in 1994 by Robert E. Petersen, head of a publishing empire that included Motor Trend magazine, the museum has until now focused on vehicles built or designed in Southern California. "They have sold a lot of wonderful cars that Bob Petersen was very fond of," said Buddy Pepp, who retired as the museum's executive director last year.