by Rune
May 20, 2012 in Fan Stuff
I apologize for the delay, but here are a handful pictures from the day when TimR picked up our last 9-3 (for the time being).
by RobinM
May 20, 2012 in Events
Swedish Day UK 2012.
Swedish Day 2012 was another great success and the order for good sunny weather was pleasantly answered. After weeks of rain it was great to see the sunshine come along just when it was needed although it did result in very long grass in the show field.
As in the last couple of years the weekend started on Saturday evening with another successful Carvery at The Sparkford Inn. 32 Swedish Fans sat down and enjoyed a three course meal followed by lots of chat until closing time.
Many of our friends from Europe were there sharing their love for both Saab and Volvo and chats about trips to Sweden.
The car park was full of Swedish cars including a Rally ready Volvo PV544 and a Saab 900 Toppola.
by TimR
by TimR
May 19, 2012 in SU Shop
To mark the delivery of the last 9-3 Griffin to the Museum we have introduced a brand new product here on SU. A special edition key-ring which is made out of very high quality leather with an image on each side, protected by a nice rubber-coating. So far we have only ordered 100 of these, of which 80 will be delivered together with the car to the Museum. If you can’t make it to ANA nor the museum on the 26th of May, you can pre-order them from our 2′nd batch which is due to be ordered in the beginning of June. At the museum they will be sold for 100 SEK per keyring and all of the profits are going to the museum.
In the 2′nd batch the key-rings are sold for 12 Euro per keyring and out of those 12, 4 Euro from each sold key-ring will be donated to the museum. Only 200 out of this particular key-ring will be made in total.
Pre-order yours today at: shop@saabsunited.se
SaabsUnited Griffin Edition Key-ring
by TimR
May 19, 2012 in News
TTELA (original article here):
When Saab’s production halted last year, large warehouses in Trollhättan were filled with parts. These warehouses belongs to DHL Exel and Trollhättans Terminal. Parts were sorted and delivered into the factory. Before the bankruptcy the value at Trollhättans Terminal was 192 million SEK, DHL Exel had components at a value of about 42 million SEK. Post bankruptcy the value of these parts have dropped significantly, estimated by the administrators, to be valued at a total of 30 million SEK.
Anders Forsberg, area manager at Trollhättans Terminal:
- We’ve got 6000 pallets filled with Saab-components at an area of 10’000 square meters. The parts are engines, gearboxes, airbags etc.
All of these parts have now started to be sold off to different buyers. Money which is badly needed for the companies. Since the bankruptcy Trollhättans Terminal has not been paid rent nor handling costs which total at about 14 million SEK.
- We have now reached a position in the bankruptcy where we can start to sell the parts. We’re estimating to start with this process, sometime next week.
- Several interested parties have gotten in touch with us. They are ranging form independent merchants to companies interested in spare parts for Saab’s.
Trollhättans Terminal has been forced to get an external company to handle the sale for them. They hope to get the money owed by Saab back as soon as possible.
- Any surplus will be inserted into the bankruptcy estate, say Anders Forsberg.
COMMENT FROM SU-CREW
Please remember that all of these parts are for new cars, year model 2011 and 2012 which were never built. Do not expect parts missing for older cars to be available in these batches of parts.
by JasonPowell
May 18, 2012 in News, SAAB Automobile AB
As reported earlier by Robin, the UK now has the final batch of RHD convertibles ready for sale. A report today in This Is Staffordshire covers a little more detail.
THE very last 26 hand-finished, right-hand drive Saab 9-3 Convertibles are up for sale – after which there will be no more of what has been a remarkably popular car over the past 25 years.
Now I for one am not sure or positive that these will in fact be the last 9-3′s or 9-3 convertibles ever produced, but I can almost as a betting man bet on the fact that they may in fact be the last RHD’s ever produced. I think personally the cost of running a small number of RHD’s on the production line slows production and becomes an unneeded expense to the business plan. This has not been confirmed to me by anyone but is my opinion based on numbers.
They go on to mention that these 26 are available in three levels, SE, Aero and Independence. They also mention two engine options of the 2.0L turbo gas engine and the 1.9L diesel. For us in Canada, we didn’t even get 26 convertibles last year and had one engine option. I would say if you want a convertible, the time is good in the UK now.
It is said that these cars are available through some of the network of Saab authorized repairers, but there is no list of who has them. Some dealers have opted not to purchase any.
Mike Shotbolt, manager at the former Holdcroft Saab, which now has the Chevrolet franchise, says: “We have not taken any because by the time we have added a warranty, they will be quite an expensive car and we are doing extremely well with used 9-3 Convertibles, which we are selling from around £12,000 for a typical three-year-old example. We give a 12-month warranty on these used cars and they are in excellent condition, so I am not sure that someone would pay nearly double for one of these last ones.
I can see the point of the dealer not wanting to risk buying a bunch of these cars when they don’t feel they need them. I also know that where I’m standing that if I had them, I could find people for them. A three year old 9-3 convertible buyer is not the same buyer as the new car buyer. The new car buyer is typically the one trading in that three year old convertible to buy a new one. I understand too that I am not in the UK market and different markets command different trends. If you are a dealer in the UK and you have some of these cars, please respond in the comments and let people know where to go to find them.
by TimR
May 18, 2012 in MapTun
State of Nine
Come and visit the State of Nine / MapTun event in Wilmington, USA
Its held today from 1PM – 6 PM. Fredrik Åberg from MapTun Performance in Sweden is there to show what MapTun has to offer!
Sports Car Service
3901 North Market Street
Wilmington DE 19802
302-764-7222 (SAAB)
by TimR
May 18, 2012 in Fan Stuff
Today the weather was perfect for the first photo-day for the 9-3 Griffin. Early morning the car was washed and cleaned so that it would look really great. After the wash the car was driven into the city of Växjö that has some really nice scenery. Here is a small taste of what we managed to produce today! =)
by TimR
May 17, 2012 in Fan Stuff
Yesterday afternoon me and Rune picked up our last 9-3 Griffin from ANA, we’re currently on a mission to learn and document as much of the car as time allows. Todays featured image is of the interior of the car. This car is equipped with the 300W Bose stereo system including a 6-disk cd changer mounted into the dash. It has the carbon-fiber panel inserts and the griffin steering-wheel. While I was driving the car yesterday I found that the steering-wheel is a significant improvement over anything Saab has ever had before and probably better than most things on the market today. The grip area is perforated and the leather quality is probably the best I’ve felt so far. It outclasses the one of the new 9-5 by far! The thing that I like best about Saab though is that all the controls face towards the driver and a small angle, driver focus is something most other brands have neglected completely.
While at ANA yesterday one of the sales-guys said that it is ironic that it took SAAB until the last model to get the dash-board right and I agree with him fully. The all black plastic dashboard is something that has been a negative thing for me since the new 9-3 was introduced in 2002. The old version had beautiful dash-boards in different colors. On the Griffin this has now been taken care of and even though the dashboard feels a bit plastic its still a significant improvement over the old one!
The seats in this Griffin are leather-textile and are very comfortable. The feeling of quality is very high and the colored stitching is a nice feature. You sit very firmly in these seat and it relaxes the body, I’d have to say, more than in full leather seats.
There is more or less nothing I can complain about with this interior, except one thing. The metal clip for the seat belt on the passenger side, when at rest, should have been placed much further down, while driving at certain angles it casts very annoying reflections towards the driver.
by RobinM
May 17, 2012 in News, Press Releasse
I’ve just seen on www.saab.co.uk an article mentioning the final 26 9-3 Convertible’s for sale to the British public.
This is the batch of 26 Saab RHD 9-3 Convertibles produced by Saab Automobile and ANA that we mentioned a few days ago. They include the comprehensively equipped Independence Special Edition. Please check out the site or better still get in touch with your local Saab Authorised Repairer for more details.
by Swade
May 17, 2012 in Events
UPDATE – I’ve re-worded the headline so it’s somewhat less scary. Please note that Charles River Saab’s service personnel will be moving their Saab Service work to Boston Volvo, nearby.
——
I only got to know a few dealers well during my time writing about Saab. The one that I probably got to know the best – Charles River Saab – is hosting a farewell open day this weekend to mark the closing of their Watertown business after 55 years.
I got to know Charles River Saab when the Service Manager, Pierre Belperron, invited me to Boston to attend their annual Swedish Car Day event, back in 2010. Whilst Pierre and I had exchanged a few emails prior to me getting there, I really didn’t know what to expect when I landed in Boston. What I encountered there was a dealership and staff that epitomised the heartbeat of a vibrant Saab community.
For nearly everyone at CRS, Saab wasn’t just their business, Saab was a key part of their lives. Many of them had given decades of service to the brand and forged friendships with co-workers and customers that will last a lifetime. Several of them didn’t just own current model Saab cars leased on a convenient staff deal – they owned classic, immaculate Saab cars.
I spent most of my Boston time with Pierre from CRS and Dan from State of Nine and for a guy who lives on the other side of the world, it was a fantastic introduction to the depth and intensity of the north-eastern US Saab scene. You couldn’t meet two more dedicated guys if you tried. What made it all the more amazing for me was seeing the commute that Pierre would travel each day to get to work (he lives in a neighbouring state), sometimes arriving in the wee hours in order to clear snow from the CRS lot before any of the other staff arrived during the winter. Dedication personified.
And of course, what made my time with Pierre and the folks at CRS all the more memorable is the fact that they’re not just dedicated Saab people, they were all absolutely excellent people in themselves. Warm, friendly, genuine, intelligent, capable, interesting and very hospitable.
Pierre has for some time been the author behind the Charles River Saab blog. This week, he’s penned an article looking back at the history of the dealership and profiling some of the key people involved with the outfit. It’s recommended reading.
That Saab dealers are closing is a sad, but inevitable fact of the current situation. I guess it brings things home for me a bit more when I hear about it from a dealership that involves some genuine friends of mine, people I’ve spent time with, had dinner with, etc. This is the personal side of what’s happening in the Saab family.
——
This Saturday, the doors at Charles River Saab will be wide open to welcome visitors, current and former customers and staff, and anyone else who wants to drop by and say hello.
The open house will run from 5pm to 8pm on Saturday afternoon.
I know that for many Saab fans in the region, this weekend will be taken up by Saabs @ Carlisle. If you’re not heading there, however, I’d encourage you to drop in and say hello/goodbye/thankyou to the folks at Charles River Saab.
NOTE: A contingent of service staff from CRS will be moving to Boston Volvo at 75 North Beacon Street, Brighton, another of the Village Automotive Group’s dealerships
by RobinM
May 16, 2012 in Events
This weekend sees the largest gathering of Saabs in the USA, Julie Gardner from Kelly SAAB wanted us to shout out to all you North Americans out there and hopes to see you all there. The advert says it all. We look forward to your photos from Carlisle.
by TimR
May 16, 2012 in News
The first 10 out of the previously reported sale of 24 RHD cars started their journey from Trollhättan to the United Kingdom yesterday afternoon. The cars were placed on a truck and brought south to the port of Gothenburg where they were loaded onto a ship sailing towards the UK. The cars will arrive at a dealership in the United Kingdom which has a proud and rich history together with Saab.
The dealership wishes to remain undisclosed for the moment but the cars will be sold to customers in the UK and Ireland. The remaining 14 cars are going to be shipped out at the end of may.
by TimR
May 15, 2012 in Fan Stuff
Today I visited ANA for a very special reason, the crew that has been building the last cars were going to finish assembly of the last 9-3 Griffin.
I arrived at ANA and signed the purchasing contract of the car, the money had been transferred only days after we stopped the donations, insurance and other fees have also been paid. After the contract was signed I moved on to the assembly building which is located about 1 km from ANA’s sales facilities. Once there the car had already left for the factory where it went through the brake and lights check at the special facilities located at the very end of the production line inside Saab’s final assembly factory. The car also went through the computer check system and its papers placed in the archive.
The car was also driven out on the short-track test-track where every car is tested for noise and other vibrations. Once this was done the car is officially finished. It was driven out of the main gate at SAAB Automobile and back to ANA’s assembly building. There it was washed and its emblems fitted as well as a final read-out of the computer system, no fault codes were found. The license plates were the last thing to be attached to the car.
Tomorrow the cars details will be entered into Sweden’s national car-register and made ready for delivery. Delivery service will be done and the car will go through an extensive check-list and also have some items such as floor-mats etc inserted and all the plastic protective covers removed. On either monday or tuesday the car will receive its Hirsch Performance engine upgrade that will upgrade the engine from 180 hp to 200 hp.
by Red J
May 15, 2012 in News
For the ones among us that could see the race, here is a summary of the great victory of Linus Ohlsson driving a Saab silhouette.
It is in Swedish, but the pictures are enough to understand the plot of the race.
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Save the last 9-3 Griffin
