SARATOGA SPRINGS — The two shiny new cars parked in front of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame are breaking the city’s zoning law, city officials said.

The city’s Building Department has asked the museum to remove the cars — a maroon BMW X6 and a dark blue Jaguar — from the concrete apron in front of the museum.

The fancy cars are brand new and have Keeler Motor Car Co.’s name emblazoned on the side. In the next six weeks, thousands of people will drive by them on their way to and from Saratoga Race Course.

City officials said they’ve gotten citizen complaints about the cars’ presence in the Union Avenue historic district. Car sales are prohibited in that zone, said Bradley Birge, community development director.

“As far as we can tell at this point, there’s no approvals for what is currently occurring,” Birge said.

There are no “for sale” signs near the cars, but the Latham dealership’s name and phone number are prominent. And the cars are unregistered, making their presence different from cars parked elsewhere, Birge said.

“They look like they’re new vehicles,” said Robert Hickey, the assistant building inspector who wrote a letter to the racing museum last week asking that the cars be removed. He did not set a timeline for their removal, he said.

But museum Director Joe Aulisi said Wednesday he hasn’t seen or heard of the letter, although he knew of complaints about the cars.

He said he’s planning to discuss the issue with the mayor’s office and other officials before the cars go anywhere, and questioned why other businesses and individuals that park cars on their lawns during the racing season aren’t being targeted. “Everybody parks all over the place,” Aulisi said.

The museum has placed new cars in front of the building during racing season since 1988, Aulisi said. “No one’s ever said anything before. As far as I’m concerned, we’re grandfathered in.”

Hickey said it was the first time the city has gotten involved. He and Birge couldn’t remember seeing cars there in past years.

Besides the zoning restrictions, Hickey said the museum’s own site plan from a recent renovation designated the concrete apron as a turnaround, not a parking area.

Outlawing the cars also would cut into the nonprofit museum’s bottom line, Aulisi said. The racing museum nets $10,000 from the partnership, which he said has included various area auto dealerships over the years.

“We are a very key element in what goes on in the next 36 days,” he said, referring to the Saratoga Race Course meet that started Wednesday and runs through Labor Day.