April 2009 Archives

UPDATE:

A comment from ctm that I thought was worth bringing to the front page here:

Media in Sweden now claim there are four auto manufacturers interested in Saab: Koenigsegg, Geely, another Chinese manufacturer, and another unknown one.

That would gel pretty well with the whispers I'm hearing. The rest of the dozen who Saab will proceed with would be investment companies.

I had a good conversation with Djup Strupe in Sweden this evening and whilst no identities were forthcoming (they never are), the impression I got was that this is a very mixed bunch full of names you've never heard of.

I also got some clarification from Magnus Nordberg at TTELA this evening on something written there and covered here. The presence of BMW in these negotiations, which we've written about and discussed recently, is in no way confirmed. In fact, I'd be surprised.

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A new month starts in just minutes from now, which means sales figures will be upon us once more.

Yikes!

Expect plenty of red ink, though there are some markets that are making definite pronounced efforts to drum up interest while others sleep.

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One of those markets that seems to be pulling out all the stops at the moment is the Belgian market.

I recently featured their initial "Future of Saab" roadshow stop, where they showed off the 9-4x and 9-3x at a local dealership.

Last night, that roadshow continued, with 6 combined dealerships inviting guests to come and view the new vehicles. Sofie Van D from Saab in Belgium forwarded a few images from the event, which by all accounts was another raging success.

My congratulations to Sofie and the crew at Saab Belgium who are doing great stuff in terms of getting the word out to the people about Saab's current and future product.

If you're in Belgium and you haven't heard about this, I'd encourage you to call your Saab dealer. Perhaps our mate on the ground there, Etienne over at Saabhuy, may know a bit more about where the tour is going, too.

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At the other end of the spectrum, the Dutch market is in serious trouble, with Saab's importer reportedly filing for bankruptcy.

The full story is here for those who read Dutch.

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And on a personal note.....my own car buying saga continues.

Finally, this weekend I'm going to satisfy my Porsche curiosity once again and test drive the cheapest 944 for sale in Australia, which just happens to live 10 minutes from my place. Great handling, no service history, expensive parts, crappy interior, but it IS a Porsche. Did I mention great handling and that it's the cheapest 944 in the country?

And in the blue corner..... I'm still fascinated by MX-5's. Cheap, zippy, great handling, and very upgradeable.

And yes, I do like that blue.......

Ah well, I'll always have my Monte......

Many markets around the world are getting a Griffin edition Saab 9-5 for the car's last model year in 2009.

The Swedish market, however, are getting an extra-special model, the Saab 9-5 Aero Griffin.

You Swedes can read the full details in your native tongue at Saab Sverige.

The rest of you will have to put up with my laborious (and I mean laborious) translation.

In a nutshell, the addition of a Hirsch tuning package means that the Saab 9-5 Aero Griffin is the most potent BioPower Saab you've ever been able to order from the factory.

From what I can tell, the car features the following standard kit:

• Groovy leather trim
• Harmon-Kardon sound system
• CD Changer
• Bi-Xenon headlamps
• Rear Spoiler
• Aluminium pedals
• 17 or 18 inch light alloy wheels
• Sports Chassis
• Double rear exhaust system
• High Gloss black interior trim

....and a whole bunch of other stuff that I can't translate (there's no cutting and pasting from Saab's flash-based website, so I'd have to type this stuff all in by hand).

It's not quite the TS Edition that I promoted as the 9-5's swansong back in 2007, but it looks like a very nice goodbye model all the same.

A week or so ago, Saab had as many as 27 different persons on it's dance card. Now that the initial tours are over and done with, we're down to around a dozen, depending on who you read.

This much we knew. I wrote about it here the other day.

But there are some interesting news stories doing the rounds and they flesh things out a little more.

This first of these stories is from Sweden's E24. Tompa's been kind enough to send through a translation:

Ten looking to buy Saab

The number of prospective buyers of Saab has shrunk from 27 to 10. "Everything is really intense right now" say Guy Lofalk to E24.

We have several processes underway at the moment:

a "carve out", were we make ourselves independent from GM,
the reconstruction itself ,and
the sales process that is run by Deutsche Bank.

27 interested parties got to sign a confidentiality agreement, but only 10 are now involved in the process, according to Guy Lofalk.

-There is a very strong and concrete interest from several prospective buyers. So far so good, one would have to say, says Guy Lofalk.

Are they interested in parts or the whole of Saab Automobile?

-What is being discussed right now is to buy all Saab stock, to make a complete buy-out.

At the creditors meeting in the beginning of April, Guy Lofalk made it clear that the goal is to make Saab an independent company that is intended to be sold in June.

-The plan can of course come to be revised, but at the moment it is unchanged, say Guy Lofalk.

Rumours of who are interested in Saab are many. Recently Göteborgs Tidning reported that one of the interested parties is the Norwegian state. Also an un-named Swedish consortium have been pointed out as potential buyers according to Bloomberg News.

Besides that, there are supposed to be two investment companies and a private investor interested, according to the car manufacturer.

The next story is from AFP, via Google News.

Up to 12 investors are in the running to buy Swedish automaker Saab, a union leader told AFP on Wednesday, two months after its struggling US owner General Motors put it up for sale.

That union official is our old mate, Paul Akerlund from IF Metall. Akerlund is always worth listening to. He doesn't talk that often, but like JAJ, when he talks he doesn't mess around.

"The plan is still at the end of June to have this all resolved and hopefully have a new owner for Saab," he said, warning that any new owner should not cut jobs in Sweden and relocate production elsewhere.

As Kroum observed in comments, that last statement is a quiet nod to the fact that at least one of the remaining bidders is a company with overseas manufacturing capabilities.

Here's hoping it never comes to that. I have a feeling the Swedish government will place a lot of pressure on any prospective new owner so that they keep jobs in Sweden in return for loan guarantees.

It's interesting times, people. Things are definitely brewing!!!

Kurt K's low mileage Saab 96 was featured as a Saab O The Week over at Trollhattan Saab some time ago now. It's a beautiful '69 model V4 and I assume it's still got less than 40,000 miles on it by now.

Kurt took his car into his local Saab indie, Grieco Saab in Boonton NJ, for it's annual checkup and little did he know it, but he was walking into a Saab retirement convention! Well, maybe not, but it certainly was a gathering of noble old-timer Saabs that made for a few good photos.

Last Saturday, I had my '69 V4 in for an annual oil change and lubrication service at a local indie, Grieco Saab which is located in Boonton, New Jersey.

Mike Grieco is a Certified Saab mechanic that began at Zumbach Saab some years ago. He and his dad work together at their shop which is exclusively Saab repair. They have a great reputation and I couldn't help but ask him to take these unusual pictures, which was almost like a step back in time.

At the same time my car was there, another customer had his '70 V4 in for a transmission rebuild. Mike owns the '67 stroker on the right and my V4 is in the middle.

Mike also owns the blue '60 93F which has some serious performance upgrades, particularly to the carburetion as well as a Sonett III and many, many parts cars - including 96s, C900s and 9000s.

Best,

Kurt K

Serious performance upgrades??? Check out the exhaust tunnel on the photo above!! That car could almost give birth!!!

My thanks to Kurt for sending these in and a big Saab wave to the guys at Grieco.

I'm quite sure that Saab are not going to show the 2010 Saab 9-5 in Barcelona, but this has got me wondering what they might get up to.....

At Saab-Barcelona09.com you'll see a fairly groovy but straightforward website that's designed to let visitors know what Saab might be showing there.

You get links about the Saab 9-3x, the Saab 9-4x, the 9-X Air and Saab's new XWD system.

What you don't see is the image you get at this link (also part of Saab-Barcelona09.com)

Click to enlarge.

As you can see, there's a quite clear reference to the "nuevo Saab 9-5" there with some flashy looking gauges.

Those gauges are actually from the 9-4x concept vehicle, so let's not get too excited just yet. Furthermore, I don't believe Saab are going to show the 2010 Saab 9-5 in Barcelona. That honour will fall with the Frankfurt Motor Show.

But maybe they'll let a little more information out of the bag. Maybe we'll get one of those silhouette images that they like to tease us with nowadays?

We'll be waiting.......

The Barcelona Auto Salon is on from the 9th to the 17th of May.

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Thanks Tiago!!

Ah, if only that headline said Australian and not Austrian! One day.....

Saab's official performance tuning house, Hirsch, recently announced their new Hirsch Performance versions of the Saab 9-3 XWD V6 for the three abovementioned markets, so they got together and did a little photoshoot for the media.

The press coverage has been pretty good, too, with one outlet going so far as to say that on the stregth of potential shown in these performace versions,"Saab will survive"

Switzerland's Automobile Revue commented on both the extra boost from the tuned V6 as well as the fantastic interior upgrades.

These new Hirsch Performance versions are the V6 XWD cars. They cover the 0-100 sprint in 5.5 seconds and indulge the driver with interior trim that will hopefully one day be available in all markets from your local Saab dealer (that's me talking, not Hirsch - it's just the way it should be)

"We create with passion and we live from the passion"

Hirsch Engineer, Erik Lundgren, as told to Neue Zurcher Zietung

More photos from Hirsch Performance.

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And further to this, I can tell you that Hirsch are still persuin availability in the US with an announcement expected very soon. We are literally almost down to waiting on the mailman to deliver the papers.

It's that close. Stay tuned.

I'd like to say a nice big hello to those groups out there who are investing in Saab.

You know who you are. We don't, because you've signed a confidentiality agreement and as expected, it's being honored by those who signed it with you.

Whoever you are, though, you're interested in Saab. Here at Saabs United and on other websites around the tubes, we're also interested in Saab. We may even be more interested in Saab than what some of you are. In fact, I'm sure that's the case. Some of you are probably just cashed up investors looking for an asset to flip. But hopefully there's one or two of you who are as interested in Saab as what we are.

If that's you,then read on.....

The Saab company that you've gone and toured in the last few weeks is surely a very lean operation. They have a very lean product range and at the moment, the sales figures are looking rather lean as well.

If Saab look like a bit of an emaciated shell to you, it's because they've been living off scraps from GM's table for the last 10 or so years.

But I bet you saw something there, didn't you?

I bet you saw a spark. I bet you saw signs of life and an excitement, an enthusiasm that shouldn't normally underpin an organisation that's been through so much.

What you saw was a confidence in the future, a confidence that can only come from people who know beyond all reasonable doubt that they have something. Saab's something is a philosophy that's over 60 yeaars in the making, and perfect for modern motoring. Saab's something is a knowledge that properly backed, they can design their way to a new future in the automobile world. Saab's something is a knowledge that there's a whole crowd of people out there waiting, anticipating, cheering for this little company that can.

I believe that what Saab want, and what we-the-people want, is to have life. Not a heartbeat. But real life.

We want the 2010 Saab 9-5 to be a very competent,acomplished and advanced car. We want it to excel. We want to get excited about it.

But perhaps more than that, we want the cars that will come after the Saab 9-5 - the cars that you and Saab will bring to life.

We want a new, totally ass-kicking Saab 9-3 for the mainstream.

We want a new convertible based around the Saab 9-X Air that goes even better than it looks.

We want a new smaller Saab to toss around. One that can compete successfully in whatever form of motorsport you choose to enter it in.

We want to set BMW, Audi, Citroen, Volvo and everyone else on their asses with our creativity and execution.

We want an Aero-X. Even if it's a sensible one.

You see, this isn't about giving Saab CPR and helping them to struggle on for a few more years. This is about a small but storied autombile manufacturer with a sporting heritage, a penchant for design and a historically proven record for being different when being different mattered because you were being right. This is about a company that should be allowed to live in the fullest sense of the word.

This is not about automotive appliances. This is about a brand, a driving way of life. This is about taking the long way home. It's about the turbo rush. It's about cars being safe, but scintillating.

I've been to Trollhattan. I've met a number of the people who used to make these cars, and even more people who still make them now. This is truly a family company in the catholic sense. I've met so many quality people from running this website. I've broken bread with many of them. I've stayed in their homes and had them stay in mine.

We've shared frustrations, happiness and many miles of driving pleasure all because of these fantastic automobiles, ones that are unlike any other.

We want Saab to be great again. We're all here waiting and hoping that you want Saab to be great again too.

You felt that when you were in Trollhattan, didn't you?

I thought as much!!

One of those sites covering the Saab 9-5's latest appearance at The Ring mentioned that it would be built in Russelsheim first with plans to move it to Trollhattan.

This made absolutely no sense. Why pay to set up a factory for production of a car just to do it all over again later? Why delay production whilst you move all the tooling from one place to another?

I asked the question and got the answer.

Saab's plans are to have all 2010 Saab 9-5 production in the Trollhattan factory.

Saab want it that way and it's fair to say that the Swedish government would want it that way as well, prior to providing the loan guarantees that a new owner will require when they take over control of Saab.

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I've just heard from another source that the 2010 Saab 9-5 is still definitely scheduled to premiere at the Frankfurt Motor Show later this year.

Word around the traps is that Frankfurt have actually contracted with Saab to get the 9-5 launch, which is just another in a long line of reasons as to why they're being so secretive about the production car's looks.

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All of the above presumes, of course, that Saab will be a going concern by the latter parts of this year.

But they will.

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And in non-9-5 related news, the Barcelona Motor Show is coming up, with the 9-3x, 9-4x and 9-X Air all making an appearance.

Photos will be forthcoming, we hope.

Titti Schultz from RIX FM and her partner in audio, a guy named Jocke Bäckström, visited the Saab factory in Trollhattan and provided some updates on their show,which Tompa has been kind enough to write down and send in.

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They went to the factory and in the factory they met workers. And eventhough times are hard and lots of people have been given notice the feeling of the future is a Very positive one.

Titti mounted wheels at the assembly-line. She greased hubs and screwed on bolts. The specific cars that she worked on were going to Poland.

Quality testing, driving, braking etc. They said that the particular car probably was going to the Italian maffia since the interior was covered in plastic... Jocke in the back seat asked if they planned on shooting him :-)

The factory is extremely clean.

They got to look at the NG9-5 in the flesh!!!!! And it´s beautiful! They also saw a prototype that never has been mentioned (The next generation 9-3???) and all other cars. Titti and Jocke were without words. Beautiful cars. One of the cars was extravagant like a Saab "Batmobile" at least to Jocke.

They had to leave their cameras, phones etc with Saab staff but since she has seen them and know of many specific bits of coming tech, looks etc she now is scared that the Saab competition is going to attack her :-D

If there is a new owner by tomorrow she has succeeded in her assignment

Rix is extra kind towards Norway this week. This because of the rumors that the norwegians are interested in acquiring Saab.

Titti has tried to reach Jens Stoltenberg the Norwegian Prime Minister without any luck.

Titti knows more of the owner sitiuation than she can tell and she is biting her tongue.....

Rix have the Norwegian national eurovision songcontest winner in the studion this morning. The hosts said that they will vote for him in the final if Norway buy Saab. :-)

Via email.....reprinted here with thanks.

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I do some work for a Saab Dealership (nothing car related) and the other day when I parked my car in their back-lot a set of all too familiar looking wheels caught my eye. There, in their back-lot, together with old crashed cars waiting for repair and similar fates was this 9-3 Turbo X.

Put out, unprotected from weather and wind with the dust to prove it.

It was without a tax stamp (uncertain on that word) so I took a look at the Swedish DMV and she had never had a owner.

Perhaps it has gone from dealer to dealer looking for a buyer and now put out on a back-lot with an uncertain fate. Perhaps it's a demo car waiting to be taken under the tender care of by the mechanics, restored and then sold if possible.

But it hurt me to see it like that. All that potential just sitting there unused, though so many sought after her and cars like her.

Unfortunately a bit too much like the brand itself right now..

But we all know what comes after rain....

If I was free to tell the story the way I wanted this is the part where I tell you I bought her and gave her a new home but unfortunately I don't have that kind of money.

But still.. Things will hopefully pick up some day, both for the brand and for this car.

It's almost 1am as I start writing this. I've got an early morning tomorrow but I couldn't let this pass.

A few years ago I read a review of the Saab 9-3 where the reviewer gave the car either 3, 3.5 or 4 stars out of 5 for safety. That's despite the fact that the Saab 9-3 is a 5-star rated car with EuroNCAP.

That probably still remains the benchmark for stupid automotive journalism, but this review from Channel4 is a strong contender.

Firstly, how is it that you can rate car in six different categories, give it an average of 3 stars in mathematical terms (17 of 30 possible stars) and yet rate it as only a 2-star car over all? Ever heard of rounding up?

Even if they're weighting the categories, surely safety (which they do give 5 stars for) outweighs some of the other categories - it does in all those fancy consumer surveys.

And then there's stuff like this, which speaks for itself:

Space in the rear is decent for headroom, but there's limited kneeroom and tall drivers will struggle to sit behind a tall driver.

I imagine they will. It's hard enough to share a driver's seat with a small driver, let alone another tall one!! Especially if that driver's seat is in the rear!

Look, I know that the Saab 9-3 is a flawed vehicle in some areas. I've gone on enough about the interior and don't need to do so again. And maybe the Haldex XWD is too good, too precise, to provide the active hang-your-arse-out driving style that some of these journos prefer.

But to me, this review just doesn't make sense.

I'm off to bed. I think I'll dream of doing slalom runs in an XWD Saab with motoring writers as witches hats.

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On the positive side, they do have some excellent photos.....

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Thank goodness Titti's in the house!

If you're wondering what this seemingly childish and quasi-offensive headline is all about, Titti Schultz is a radio presenter for RIX FM in Sweden and she's taken it upon herself to save Saab. She drives a Saab convertible, so she knows the joy of a good topless ride. Oops, I did it again.

Tompa has found and translated this brief interview from TTELA, in which she describes her quest.

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Will Titti manage to save Saab?

We called Titti Schultz, co host of Rix Morronzoo, that has been given the task to save Saab by it´s listeners.

How will you do it?
-I have already spoken to Saab to find out what interested parties there are. Next target is to contact them and talk business.

I will also try get in contact with Ingvar Kamprad. (Owner and founder of IKEA). He´s got alot of red stickers and I have understood that Saab will be sold for a small amount of money.. I thought I would run some ideas by him. Saab in a box- Maybe that´s something?

What about Maud Olofsson?
-Yeah, I will put preassure on her to.. Saab wants a loan garantee and it realy only comes down to a signature. That can´t be that hard can it?

It´s not a small task you have been given. How does that feel?
-Overwhelming. I will realy make a big effort to save Saab. I sympathize with all those risking to loosing their jobs.

How much time will you invest in this?
- I will give it all my work and free time to find a solution. The whole weekend has been spent on planning and to make up strategies.

What sort of chances do you believe there is for Saab?
- The conditions are good. I refuse to think that a company of such dignity will slip through our fingers. I don´t care if Saab become norwegian, as long as Saab-emplyees have a work to go to.

What car do you drive?
- A black Saab Convertible! And if there is anyone in the mood for buying a Saab I promise to swing by to let them have a testdrive

When will we find out how it worked out?
- On Thursday around 8 in the morning

What happens if you succeed?
- I will faint and die on the spot. Then I probably should be named Swede of the year?

Good luck!
- Thanks

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It's good to hear something positive about Saab on the public agenda. I remember not too long ago that polls were showing people in Sweden were in favour of cutting Saab adrift.

Thanks to Titti for some public support.

And thanks to Tompa for sending it through. It'll be interesting to hear how her campaign turns out.

Now here's a different angle. And it's one I'm not sure I believe.

GT.se, which I think is run our sourced by Expressen, are writing that Geely are trying to press Gm to sell Saab - to them. Apparently whilst they've been sniffing around Volvo as well, their interest in the bigger Swede is only superficial, a sort of smoke and mirrors things to hide their interest in Saab, which is the company they really want.

GT.se also say that GM are reluctant to sell, primarily because they don't want to sell technology to someone who may be a competitor in the future.

But wouldn't that apply to anyone who took Saab off GM's hands?

Yes, it would, which is why they go on to say Fritz Henderson does not like Saab and he would prefer the label disappeared, "says a GM source of Expressen.

Now that conflicts with everything I've heard previously about Henderson. I'm sure he does want to safeguard GM's technology, but I'm also sure he wants a working partner for Saab in the future, if only to preserve possible future working relationships and market perception of GM in Europe.

These sorts of cars are definitely an acquired taste. I'd never do a big graphics job on a car myself, but there are some that are done really well and there are some that aren't.

For the most part, I think this car falls into the first category. There are some Saabs I've seen with graphics on them that look absolutely terrible, but this isn't one. Not by a long shot. But there's part of it I'm not sure about.

As mentioned, I think parts of this are really good, and there's a bit that isn't so good. But like just about all custom Saabs, I've got nothing but respect for the dedication that the owner's put into this one.

Here are the graphics. Click to enlarge:

Our owner is apparently a Romanian guy and as you can see, the car is fairly new. I'm not sure if he'll be reading this or not, so if you don't like it (and I know some won't), please keep your comments respectful, like you would if you were standing next to him looking over the car.

And next you'll see the bit that I'm not so sure about.....

I heard some sad news today.

Apparently SaabUSA's long-time communications and PR guru, Jan-Willem Vester, suffered the knife in GM's latest round of redundancies and finished his GM career around 10 days ago.

Jan-Willem helps Gunnar Heinrich from Automobiles DeLuxe get around Beantown in the Turbo X.

This tall, friendly Dutchman was the first official Saab contact I made when I started Trollhattan Saab and I was fortunate enough to have many communiques with him over the years and meet him in person in Detroit last year.

Things cooled a little between myself and JWV since that time. I'm sure I got up his nose a little due to my constant criticism of General Motors and not-quite-so-constant-but-still-consistent criticism of some of the decisions coming from SaabUSA. I got frustrated because Jan-Willem was exactly what he was employed to be, a truly loyal soldier, who served his employer extremely well.

Hopefully he understood my heart, however, and that I was writing from a pure place.

I have nothing but admiration and respect for Jan-Willem. He was the textbook company man and in an industry with it's fair share of sharks, he has always been an absolute gentleman.

Jan-Willem didn't just work for Saab. He owned a 9-5 wagon in the US and his family were keeping a classic Saab 900 warm for him back in his native Holland. And just to show he's got some serious driving skillz, too, he also had an award winning Porsche 911 in the garage.

I've entitled this post bye-for-now as it's my sincere hope that Jan-Willem can get his family out of Detroit, get some serious sunshine and get back in the Saab fold when they emerge from GM ownership in the near future. There's not many people in the US who know more about Saab than him, and Saab would be foolish to let him slip through the net.

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Jan-Willem, my best wishes to you and your family for a happy and healthy break. I hope you're not idle for too long (I'm quite sure you won't be) and I look forward to seeing your name on the bottom of some fresh press releases, hopefully in management of a new Saab Cars USA, sometime in the near future.

Cheers, Saab-brother!

Swade.

There are reports in from both Dagens Industri and TTELA naming some interesting names in the chase for Saab.

I've covered bits of the Dagens report via Reuters earlier, but I'll cover it again here to tie it all up here in one post so the conversation is concentrated in one place.

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Latest news indicates that Deutsche Bank are asking around 10 of the initial 27 suitors who signed confidentiality agreements to discuss their intentions for the company, which will go some way to whittling down this group to the four or five who will be asked to submit a bid for Saab.

We're getting to the pointy end, people. Saab's initial reorganisation period ends on May 20 (or is it May 19??) and I'm sure all parties would like to get these preliminaries tied away prior to asking for another three-month extension.

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So, the suitors and the way they're described.

Geely - have previously denied any interest but were reported to be in Sweden getting the grand tour in the last few weeks.

Koenigsegg - the one we're all hoping for, though it may be for all the wrong reasons. Romantically, they must be the favourite.

US investors - their identities are unknown, but DI report that there's some US money sniffing around, and they're big players. More than one of them, apparently.

Both TTELA and DI note that Chinese company Chery have received state approval to go forth and multiply. Chery are China's biggest privately owned car company.

TTELA also mention BMW and Hyundai as possibilities. Hyundai I can see, BMW I can't. I just don't see why they'd have the need to stray from their formula with something in a similar market space.

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Let's not forget the potential suitor that they didn't mention in those articles - the Norwegians and Think! I wrote about them last week:

Norwegian State is one of the speculators who have been in and looked at Trollhättan Saab, writes the newspaper GT today.

According to a source within GM, representatives of the Norwegian Government have been in Trollhättan and looked at the factory. It should, according to data, act on a wager on a Swedish built hybrid electric with Norwegian origin.

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Geely and Chery would have to be considered outsiders. One thing a potential investor will have to do is obtain loan guarantees from the Swedish government. There is a train of thought in both articles that the Swedes would be concerned about both the loss of jobs to China, and the loss of technological know-how to China.

The marraige of two Swedish companies, one of whom is a 62-year-old Swedish sporting and design icon and the other being an upstart supercar maker working out of an aircraft hangar. Reportedly, Koenigsegg made their tour in the company of a venture capital representative. Can Koenigsegg, a small quantity manufacturer manage a volume producer, even one of Saab's small size? I'd love to find out.

The thought of US investors makes me nervous. Unless they've got heaps of money, so much so that they won't try and six-sigma the company out of its identity, I'd be wary. Yes, recent experience may have something to do with this.

Hyundai are kicking goals wherever they go at the moment, though I wonder how it's going to work out in the long run. Their recent sales efforts in the US, where they guarantee to take your car back with no penalty if you lose your job, have led to great sales numbers, but it could come back to bite them big-time in 2010 when the full effect of the global financial crisis may be felt. They are building much better cars, though.

I forgot to mention yesterday that I'm on the road again at the moment. Consequently, I won't get to everything as quickly as I'd like, but I have got pretty good access on this trip.

Postings may not be as timely as usual. That's all.

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In case you missed the links in comments.....

Our Belgian mate, Etienne, has more photos from the regularity rally at Spa in Belgium.

The Saab 9-5 has been spotted again, this time paying its obligatory dues at the Nurburgring. The four photos are best viewed at Autobild, from #6 onwards.

As the cops say on TV, there's not thing too see here. Nothing that we haven't seen before, at least. Please move on.

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GM have killed Pontiac, which means that the Holden people in Melbourne are probably filling their trousers with something other than their legs right now.

Holden are basically kept afloat as a manufacturer here in Australia by the export program around the Commodore. They expected to build and ship around 30,000 of them as Pontiac G8s, a program that's now down the gurgler.

The one possible saviour - which makes perfect sense, by the way - could be the addition of a G8-type vehicle to the Chevrolet portfolio. Personally speaking, if they don't do this then they're absolutely crackers, which means they probably won't.

The Speedparts T-shirt features one of my favourite slogans....

SPEEDPARTS - That's why I'm FASTER than you!

You might not be into performance Saabs or radical modified Saabs, but if you are then Speedparts do some phenomenal work.

Some of this work was on display recently at the Bilsport Performance Show. This is just a few of the radical and very tasty Saab collection they had on display there.

There are heaps more photos at Speedparts' own gallery from the event.

Click to enlarge, and my thanks to Kristjan for the tip!

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This almost looks like it's meant to be some sort of Saab 9-5x!

One of the most desireable convertibles I think I've ever seen. Fantastic!

Dagens Industri reported recently that Geely have had a tour of the Saab facility in the last few weeks. They also claim that some US investors have stuck their heads in for a look around.

Today, via Reuters, they're also reporting that out of the 27 parties that originally signed confidentiality agreements, Saab have asked 10 of these parties for more details about their intentions and plans for Saab.

STOCKHOLM, April 27 (Reuters) - Chinese auto group Geely has visited Saab Automobile, the Swedish carmaker put up for sale by General Motors, a Swedish business newspaper said on Monday.

Citing a source close to the situation, Dagens Industri also said 10 potential suitors from the group of 27 parties Saab said earlier this month it had signed confidentiality agreements with had been asked to provide more details of their intentions.

"Representatives for Geely were at Saab for an entire day," the source was quoted as saying. A number U.S.-based investment firms had also visited the carmaker for presentations.

Saab was not immediately available for comment.

I'm not happy about the focus on Geely, but I think that's only because it's one of the few concrete, identified parties we've got, I don't think they're a serious contender.

Right now, if I was a betting man, I'd place my money on whoever Vattenfall are tied up with, which I think might be the Norwegians. I get the feeling that we're going to see a Saab/Think! tie-up of sorts.

And that may not be a bad thing.

I have no info to support any of that, by the way, it's just my own hunch.

To those looking to embark upon a writing venture where you'll be reporting on the activities of a certain company (any company). To those currently engaging in this practice. To those looking for some assurance about the activities of a certain company (any company)......

......here's why you look for inside sources.

Automotive News, April 24

General Motors is preparing to announce early next week that the Pontiac brand will be eliminated, said a source familiar with the company's plans.

Just about every other news service ran with a similar story late last week.

Then we had this:

GM Media Press Release, April 24

Contrary to media speculation, General Motors has not announced any changes to its long-term viability plan or to the future status of any of its brands. GM is continuing to review its restructuring plan to go further and faster and best ensure its future success. Additional information will be released as any decisions are finalized.

And finally, the death rattle.

GM Media Press Release, April 27

As part of the revised Viability Plan and the need to move faster and further, GM in the U.S. will focus its resources on four core brands, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. The Pontiac brand will be phased out by the end of 2010.

The lesson, if you didn't know already: Official sources will only tell you want they want you to know, when they want you to know it.

I enjoy a good relationship with Saab contacts in Sweden, but I know that they generally adhere to this rule. If I'm told something, it's generally because it's announcement is imminent or even already made.

I jepeaordise that relationship from time to time because some facts come to me earlier via inside sources and I report them here, but only with the best interests of the company's supporters at heart.

Some of these PR people don't get that and if they'd like to hold it against me and others like me, so be it. I can live with that. But I hope they don't think that SU is merely a repository for manufactured information such the type that GM tried to push with the Pontiac escape.

Again, if Saab want to get on the front foot with the media, they should run their own media outlet and remove the middleman between them and their community.

Want to control the news? Break it yourself.

It seems as if Belgium is the center of the Saab-i-verse at the moment.

Last week we had Saab's future on show in the form of the 9-3x and 9-4x at a dealership event. Now, this past weekend, there were three classic Saabs taking part in an old timer rally at Spa.

Saab Belgium, through Beherman European, their importer, was one of the main sponsors of the oldimer rally called 'ING Ardenne Roads'. It was held at Spa, Francorchamps.

Saab participated with 3 cars, all of which are owned by Beherman. The cars driven b were:

- a two-stroke Saab 93
- a V4 Saab 96
- a Saab Sonnet III

The rally was a regularity event, meaning that it's not such hard going on the vehicles. In a regularity event, vehicles do a number of preliminary laps and then select a time from those preliminary laps that they try to match. Subsequent laps have to be as close as possible to that time, with the winner being the vehicle that best matches it's chosen time.

It's not about speed, it's about consistency.

I'm not sure what the results were for the Saabs other than they all made it through the event unscathed and completed the day with some very happy drivers inside. Just the way it ought to be at events like this.

There is more info about the rally itself at: http://www.trajectoire.be/ingAB/UK/AccueilUK.php

Congratulations to Saab Belgium and Beherman European for their sponsorship and participation in this event.

It's great to see Saab out there doing stuff like this, reinforcing the heritage of a proud company. I'd love to see more of it (and would be more than happy to pilot a Saab 99 or 900 around Targa Tasmania next year seeing it's become a more gentlemanly event).

--

And my thanks to Sofie for the images!

The following is a snippet from an Italian design magazine - Auto and Design. They've made an attempt to redesign a Saab 900 convertible for modern times.

That link will lead you to a flash preview of the edition. You most likely have to purchase the magazine to get the full story.

What follows below is a reproduction of the screenshots from that flash preview. Click to enlarge.

The first time I saw that image, above, I didn't like it too much. When you claim to be re-designing a Saab 900 convertible, you're tackling an icon, and this seemed to me like it had too much NG900 in it.

That was my first glance.

As I looked at it more and more, I liked it more and more. The front definitely reminds me of the NG900 and OG9-3. They're not my favourite Saab convertibles, but that doesn't mean to say they're bad in any way,

The roof is very reminiscent of the classic 900, especially at the back. See below.

I like the rear, too, which has some angles similar to the latest of the Saab convertibles. There's enough to remind you, at least.

I'm definitely not a fan of the grille treatment here, and I think the angles on the lights etc could be a little softer, but it's got enough Saab in it to be a very good starting point.

I was cold on this at first, but the more I see of it the more I think it has potential. The meeting point between the roof and the car shows that you can make a modern design blend with a classical element.

Interesting stuff indeed. Thanks to Danny for the link.

The 6th annual gathering of Saabs in Amherst, New Hampshire, to honor the memory of the Crisman brothers, Kyle and Tim, was held this past weekend.

I'm not sure how many cars turned up for this year's event, but it looks like a very good field, from Sonnets to 900s, to 2008 model Turbo X's.

It seems Brian W was kind enough to devote some time putting together what is a very tidy website for the cause, and he's posted four pages of Saabs on display, as well as a catalog of winners from the day's judging.

Click here for the photo gallery front page. Maybe your car is in there!

The event is in memory of Kyle (SPGUY) and Tim Crisman.

On the afternoon of November 3, 2002, Kyle and Tim were on their way home from a visit with their Grandmother, when they lost their lives in an automobile accident.

The Crisman family have set up a scholarship fund in their memory and proceeds from the Springtime in Sweden event, as well as any other donations and fundraising activities, go towards the scholarship fund.

Donations can be made at the Crisman Memorial website.

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If you or you Saab club have an event coming up, please post it in comments here. I'll add it to the Saab Events page, which will be online shortly.

....why things are a little quiet around here, we have some family visiting from the mainland, and we've been out doing fun things like feeding camels!! That's my cousin's husband, Graham, making way for a hungry dromedary at Zoodoo wildlife park.

I hope you're having a good weekend. Will be back to Saaby stuff shortly....

As we sit here in the southern hemisphere and endure our first full-on wet weekend (great time for a family visit, huh?), you lucky folks in the northern hemisphere are starting to experience longer, warmer days.

That means Saab Clubs and others are planning on getting together to enjoy their cars in whatever twisty mountain roads might be in their area, or maybe a nice display in a park somewhere.

I thought it'd be a good idea to put together a page on Saabs United to list all the gatherings that are going to be happening over the next six months. A kind of global Saab enthusiasts calendar, if you will.

You might think your club or event is too small, but I can almost guarantee there's a good chance that someone's reading this who's not too far away from you and probably hasn't heard of your group, or the event.

I've listed a few below to kick things off, but please add your event in comments in the following format:

• Name of event
• Date of event
• Location of event
• Club/Org hosting event
• Contact email or website

I'll add you event to the events page that I'll build here, and there will be a link to that page in the sidebar.

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Swedish Day UK
10 May 2009
Haynes International Motor Museum, Sparkford
Robin M - South West Saab Club
http://www.swedishday.co.uk/

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2009 Cabrio Challenge
June 27 2009
Ends at Kolmården, Sweden
http://www.cabriochallenge.se/

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International Saab Club Meeting 2009 (IntSaab)
7-9 August 2009
Doesburg, The Netherlands
Saab Club Nederland
http://www.intsaab2009.com/

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Saab Owners Convention 2009
August 13-16, 2009
Copper Mountain Resort, Frisco, Colorado, USA
Saab Club North America and Rocky Mountain Saab Club
http://www.rockymtnsaabclub.com/SOC09/

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I just thought I'd give you a quick heads-up to some new shorts that we've put in the US Saab design shop.

Inspired by the recent "Saab Disagrees" post I put up here, we've decided to turn the original campaign into a retro Saab T-shirt for those who might be interested.

By using the DIY Saab Design Shop, you can choose your own garment and color scheme. Here's a look at it on a standard black T-shirt, with the lettering in silver (reminiscent of the ad itself).

As mentioned, this shirt is only available in the US version of our Saab Design Shops. The standard shop has several pre-formatted designs, or you can use the Do-It-Yourself shop and customise it to your hearts desire.

I just had what I believe alcoholics refer to as a moment of clarity.

As you may know (and may be sick of hearing about), I've been on the lookout for a Porsche 944. It's one of the cars that I've always wanted to own and let's face it, who wouldn't want to have a Porsche in the driveway for a little while?

I found what looked to be a pretty good car, and may well be. But in talking to the owner, he mentioned that the car has been running on the same clutch for over 120,000km. He said it feels 100% OK, but 120K is 120K. In addition, the torque tube is a little noisy at idle. Other than that, the car is 100%, with only a few little cosmetic issues to worry about.

As part of my due diligence, my next call was to a specialist Porsche parts supplier, where I learned that a clutch kit for a 944 will set you back over A$1,200!! Same again for the torque tube! Then there's the labour for the work to be carried out, which won't be cheap given that the mechanic will likely have "Porsche" written on the front door.

To put that clutch cost into perspective, the clutch on the similarly aged Saab 900 Aero that I sold a few months ago was replaced (with the genuine Sachs item) for a total cost of $800. That's parts and labour. The 944 will cost a full 50% more just for the part!

This revelation has me totally re-thinking the Porsche route. Yes, I'd love the experience, but what price do you put on it?

It's also got me appreciating the Saab experience all over again. Yes, Saabs can be pricier than some other vehicle makes, but for standard maintenance they're pretty much on a par. And if you divide that maintenance cost into the value for money that you get from the vehicle, then they're an absolute thriller.

Consider my 900 Aero. More power than the Porsche. Pretty good handling, though probably not as good. More practical. More bells and whistles. More comfortable from an everyday point of view though the Porsche is more comfortable in a sports car sort of way.

I sold the 900 for just a shade over $3,000 and the cheapest 944 in the country, which doesn't even have power steering, is selling for $8,000. It does look great and seeing it's here in Tasmania, I've actally driven it and it's definitely fun.

But is it worth the maintenance risk?

When raising the issue of a Mazda MX-5 again in my snippets post from earlier today, Jono rightly mentioned comments to the effect that a Porsche is a Porsche and a Mazda is just a Mazda. But for the price of the cheapest 944 in Australia I can get a pretty well kitted out MX5 that's got great handling, a hardtop and a soft-top, and from personal experience is a lot of fun to drive.

Yes, a Porsche would be highly desireable. But at what price?

And don't complain about the cost of routine Saab maintenance because on the whole, they're pretty well built and quite affordable in the markets I peruse: You get a hell of a lot of car for your money.

They ain't priced like a Toyota becuase they're a lot more enjoyable to own and drive.

GM have a month-and-a-bit to go, but Chrysler's month is almost up and they're preparing for bankruptcy.

According to a story from The New York Times, the Treasury Department and Chrysler are readying Chapter 11 bankruptcy documents for filing as early as next week.

The report goes on to say that the filing carries with it an "agreement in principle" with the United Auto Workers that would protect members' benefits packages, including pension and retiree health care obligations.

I know it's not Saab related, but this Chrysler/GM fiasco is like a car crash. It's ugly, but you can't help but look.

Fiat's not out of the picture, either. They'll be waiting in the wings to pick up the pieces but without the heavy baggage labelled "UAW"

Whither Fiat? Apparently, the Italian automaker is still very much in the picture, although under this arrangement, it would not reach its stake-holding deal until after Chrysler is already in bankruptcy court.

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And on the GM side of the bankruptcy merry-go-round, they're apparently going to kill another brand - next Monday.

It looks like they're no longer excited about their excitement brand - Pontiac.

According to a source at General Motors, the company will announce next Monday its new "faster, deeper" reorganization plan, which will likely include a death sentence for the Pontiac brand.

Inside Line called Tom Wilkinson, news relations PR man for General Motors, who said: "There's nothing I can share with you at this time. Keep your eyes on our media site. Officially, nothing has changed with Pontiac's niche-brand status, until you hear differently."

It's like the who company is in an uncontrollable spin and bits are flying off due to the centrifugal forces.

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Because I keep an eye on these things, it's noted that the Saab 9-3 has been overtaken by it's countryman - the Volvo C30 - in the top 3 of the Gaywheels most researched cars survey.

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This is one of the most under-appreciated Saab shapes, I think: the first generation Saab 9000.

This one's a black Carlsson edition, photographed by our unofficial Saab ambassador to the UK, Robin M.

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The Porsche search has begun and wow - it's a worry.

I've looked into one in Sydney and whilst it looked good and had the engine I'd really like, there are two issues that might need attention.

A car having two issues is not normally something that would put me off. But the parts alone - forget labour for a moment - cost over $2,500!!!!

I may have to look further into the local 1983 model that's for sale here in Tassie. I drove it back in November last year and whilst I swore I'd not get a pre-1986 model at that time, my budget's just not going to make it.

Plus, it's local, it drives great, looks great in silver with the cookie cutter wheels and the price is much more reasonable.

The only other options are an MX-5 or do nothing.

It's been busy here at SU-central tonight. We have some family coming from the mainland over the weekend so we've been baby-proofing the house, etc.

I thought I'd better jump on the computer, though, and post a quick update on some events from the last 24 hours that I haven't covered yet.

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I've received a number of emails about the fact that Saab aren't the only company dropping their V6 engine in 2010.

Audi are also dropping their 3.2litre V6 offering from the A3, A4 and TT ranges of vehicles in the US market.

I still wonder about the loss of prestige from this.

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Mark down May 2009 as the last continuous month of 'normal' operations for General Motors.

In what was undoubtedly the biggest story of the day, GM's CFO Ray Young indicated that the company will default on a bondholder payment due on June 1. GM are trying to negotiate a debt-for-equity deal with these bondholders, but it looks unlikely.

This default will more or less automatically trigger a bankruptcy procedure, which I'm sure both GM and the US government are working on as we speak.

What I'd like some clarity on (still) is exactly how this will effect Saab and their ongoing effort in reconstruction.

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Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said a few months ago that maybe only 6 automotive companies would remain when all is said and done at the end of this financial crisis.

He's trying everything to make sure Fiat are one of them.

First there was the Chrysler deal, which looks like it's going nowhere (though it's still under negotiation). Now Fiat are being spoken of in terms of hooking up with Opel.

Is there anyone Fiat aren't in bed with at this point? It's like they're the Paris Hilton of the automotive world.

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Wolfgang has written in to me about an article in an Austrian news service stating that Magna are thinking about Opel as well.

Magna have fingers in just about everyone's automotive pie, so it's not too big a surprise that they'd be interested in consolidating their business in Europe.

This is another one of those posts where I tend to push my own barrow a little, but not without good reason.

As you may know, I'm a passionate follower of Australian Rules football. I grew up in the city where it was invented and it's like religion there. It's all encompassing.

In case you hadn't figured it out yet, I'm also passionate about cars, driving, and Saabs in particular. The experience that got me interested in Saabs was what I've referred to here previously as my Damascus Road drive; but that's not what really hooked me in.

It was when I looked further into buying one that I started researching the cars and the company itself, and it was as I learned more about their historic cars, achievements and philosophy that I really got hooked.

I saw an article today by an Australian Rules football coach called named Mark Williams. He coaches the Port Power, based in Port Adelaide, South Australia. The article was titled Open Source Football and as I read it, I couldn't help but nod my head and think that the theory he's promoting is one that could help Saab reach people who have a curiosity about cars.

Here's a snippet. It's about Australian Rules football, but apply the experience he describes to your favourite sport and it should translate reasonably well.

The average supporter's main understanding of the game is typically restricted because of the view they get on the TV screen. We thought it would be a great idea for our supporters to gain a bit more insight into what's happening in the modern game.

On the (supporter's insider night - a promotion for supporters of his football club), each of the assistant coaches got up and spoke for 15 minutes about their respective area of expertise, whether it was the forward line, back line, midfield, fitness or player development.

We showed our members snippets of game footage and showed them exactly what players were faced with when they had the ball in different areas of the ground.

The whole night was based on the premise that we wanted to make it easier for people to try and understand why players might do things like hold on to the ball, rather than playing on all the time, or why they don't kick long inside 50 (i.e. into the area closest to goal).

We opened ourselves up to any questions from the floor, armed with knowledge of some of the criticisms the general public have of our team and other teams in the league.

Our supporters want nothing more than for us to win and I think we left them with the realisation that that is all we're here to do.

Knowledge breeds interest. The people who would have attended the night hosted by the football club would all have a keen interest in football aready. That interest has just been seasoned with some inside knowledge and I can guarantee you that all those who attended would be much more attuned to and passionate about their club.

If you're a Manchester United fan, this night would similar to sitting down with Sir Alex Ferguson and having him explain Man U's tactics - why they do things the way they do. How would you feel after that?

What I'm advocating here is that Saab could make use of a similar sort of program. I'm not sure that Ford, Toyota, Hyundai, VW or Buick could benefit from it or that anyone would be interested. Maybe Ford could with Mustang and maybe VW could with the GTI. Maybe. But those companies and others like them are generally too big and have an audience that buys transportation appliances.

Small companies like Saab have a much greater proportion of people who consider themselves as discretionary vehicle purchasers. They check out the cars they're buying and they buy them for a reason. They tend to grow to love them. Sometimes they'll end up hating them, but it's rare that they'll be totally ambivalent.

Companies that have customers like those ought to reach out and make a real connection with those customers. Not a magazine-every-quarter connection. A real connection, where those customers who care about the company get a real insight into the company.

Open the doors.

It doesn't mean you have to give away your biggest trade secrets. It just means you give people a greater insight and appreciation for the way you do the things you do.

If anyone should know about the power of customer loyalty, it's Saab. GM advocates always suggest that GM's deep pockets in the 1990s and early 2000s are the only reason Saab is still around. I'd like to suggest that GM's market for selling Saabs consisted of - to a very large degree - repeat customers who'd owned Saabs back when they were more communicative and engaging (and back when they had something really interesting to say, too).

Information doesn't only bring knowledge. When it's information about something that a person can engage with, then it also brings relationship. And if you don't believe that people can have relationships with their cars, you're reading the wrong website.

Saab could do with plenty more of those relationships if you ask me.

Unfortunately it's not the full future that's on show.....the 2010 Saab 9-5 is still under wraps and not making an appearance.

BUT

Saab have a trailer-truck adorned with a big banner proclaiming it's future. It's carrying the Saab 9-3x and 9-4x concept vehicle.

I'm not sure how far and wide it's going to be travelling, but it recently stopped in at a dealership in Belgium, where the local Saabisti came out for some wine, cheese, and a good look around.

One of the visitors there was a guy named Marino, and he was kind enough to snap some photos and send them through.

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The Saab 9-4x was quite popular with the locals.

From Marino:

Like you told me in the previous mail the interior of the 9-4 X is just great, the local Audi dealer told me he was afraid this car would be serious competition for the new Q5.

NOTE: This is the concept car that showed in Detroit. The interior will be of a similar general design, but probably won't get the same fancy materials, controls, etc.

The Saab 9-3x - price tag is around 50,000EUR when it's fully optioned.

Marino meeting one of the local dealer principals....

And the old-timer they had out the back - nice!!

A little advertising fun, eh?

There's an old Saab promotional video that features some classic statements of conventional wisdom, with a follow-up from Saab.

Like this....

So I thought it might be fun for us to have a crack at a few.

I'd love for Saab to re-do this as a proper ad campaign, actually. I'm sure they could de-bunk a few myths and establish a few facts - 30 seconds at a time - with a campaign like this.

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Conventional wisdom states that you have to be the biggest car company in the world to stay out of bankruptcy.

SAAB DISAGREES

Modern thinking holds that a motor car should be akin to a transportation appliance.

SAAB DISAGREES

Conventional wisdom suggests that a car that is small on the outside must be small on the inside.

SAAB DISAGREES

Conventional wisdom suggests that a smaller car cannot do things that a bigger car can do

SAAB DISAGREES

Recent thinking suggests that as soon as a woman becomes pregnant for the first time, the new family need a 7-seater SUV

SAAB DISAGREES

Conventional wisdom suggests that you need a trailer to carry a ride-on mower, or a sofa, 25 pumpkins, or 40 cases of tennis balls

SAAB DISAGREES

Conventional wisdom suggests that a part-time writer on a small island near Antarctica cannot assist in a purchaser from the US in deciding on a car from Scandinavia

SAABS UNITED DISAGREES

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That'll do from me.

Comments are open

TTELA are reporting today that the Norwegian government is considering an investment in Saab.

The Googletrans:

Norwegian State is one of the speculators who have been in and looked at Trollhättan Saab, writes the newspaper GT today.

According to a source within GM, representatives of the Norwegian Government have been in Trollhättan and looked at the factory. It should, according to data, act on a wager on a Swedish built hybrid electric with Norwegian origin.

Not sure what the 'wager' bit should translate as, but the rest is fairly clear and not totally new to these pages.

Back in late February I reported the following, translated from e24:

The Swedish TV channel SVT Västnytt sign Thursday night that there are "powerful forces" working to move the production of electric car Think from Aurskog to Sweden.

The channel says it is working now to make a Electric Cars-cluster in the cities Uddevalla and Trollhättan, where the Pininfarina and Saab have production today.

There are namely large production capacity in the Swedish automotive industry as a result of the financial crisis.

Svenske Power Circle, where among other Vattenfall and ABB are, should have tried to help to get started on the production of the Think in Aurskog, after this stopped because of pengemangel around Christmas.

This group, together with the company Innovatum should have thrown themselves on the idea of making electric cars.

The concern at the time was that the Swedish government would withhold funding assistance for Saab in order to starve them and thereby assist in handing the factory over to the production of Think! electric cars, which have had more trouble being successful than Saab.

This latest development is a little more encouraging, given that they're looking through on Saab's terms.

If there's excess capacity available and the Norwegians want to spend some of that oil money building electric roller skates whilst helping Saab bring their next generation of cars to market, then I'm all for it!

As long as that's what really happens.

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Thanks to the numerous people who sent in a tip about this one!

GM Powertrain Sweden are independant from Saab, and as such, they're not subject to the current reconstruction process that Saab are undertaking.

That doesn't mean they're not thinking about the future, however.

TTELA have an article where they talk to the head of GM Powertrain Sweden, the very excellent and wise Kjell AC Bergstrom.

Tompa's been kind enough to hook me up with a Googly translation:

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Two routes for Powertrain
CEO Kjell ac Bergström in favor of separation from GM

The crisis in GM has had minor effects on GM Powertrain Sweden. The company, which has 380 employees in Trollhättan, are faced with two possible options when Saab is broken off from GM.

- Should we still stand on its own feet, or fully integrated in the Saab? We know this when the end of the year, "says Kjell ac Bergström, CEO GM Powertrain Sweden.

For one thing is clear. Kjell ac Bergström deleted cold from Saab, a continued life with a new owner.

- It makes me not to lie SLEEPLESS night, so to speak. We look very positively on this.

Do you prefer the new owner is a car manufacturer or a financier?

- The advantage of an automotive group is that you get access to their technology, but with a financier, we on the other hand, more freedom to talk with several players on the cooperation agreement.

Resulting reconstruction

GM Powertrain Sweden is legally a separate company and are therefore not included in the Saab's reorganization. But you still participate in the discussions because the company in one way or another will be part of the future of Saab.

- Saab takes is us. And we also contribute material to the presentations to the new owners.

GM Powertrain Sweden has managed the crisis without notice. However, the prospective recruitment of 100 engineers to Trollhättan put on hold.

Need, TTELA talked about last year, due both to a new type of manual gearboxes will be presented.

- We have instead made use of consultants, "says Bergstrom.

Manual gearbox is one of the company's responsibilities. Hybrids and turbo charging are two other areas where the Swedish part of GM Powertrain have special skills.

Similarly sit Powertrain other companies within the GM with other special skills.

- In the short term, we will not do without their skills. Therefore, a number of transition service will be created (with GM).

Transitional period of five years

Kjell ac Bergström know what aborted collaboration means. It is not long ago, GM and Fiat went separate ways in Powertrain.

- I've been through a few divorces and know that the transition period usually be around five years.

Simultaneously, the requirements are changing the image Powertrain in Trollhättan.

- We need to get a broader skills and it is not done overnight. But we will not be able to afford to invest in a new engine or växellådsfabrik (Södertälje factory is sold to Scania, the photographer for Weigl), but will buy in different skill levels.

Kjell ac Bergström is in favor of change. So positive that he is willing to postpone retirement, which actually takes place next year.

- I think it's so fun to work now if this goes in the lock, I am open for a continuation" says Bergstrom with a smile.

OK, if you don't give a hoot about my personal comings and goings, skip this article.

BUT

I just wanted to let the interested parties know that as of around 20 minutes ago, my Alfa 33 has been SOLD!!!

Good photos and a good car do the trick once again. The buyer tried to knock $500 off the price, but I held firm and got what I wanted, which was $3,750. Considering I'd paid $3,500 for it when it was a filthy mess, I'm pretty happy.

I'll be very sad to see this little car leave. It's been an absolute joy to own and drive. But it's being sold with the noblest of reasons - the acquisition of one of my ultimate affordable 1980's icons - a Porsche 944.

I'm pretty happy with that. Two cars advertised in the last two months and both sold within a few weeks. Watching those episodes of Wheeler Dealers really paid off!

Now....on to the Saab stuff.......

And now for something completely different.....

A headline over at Autoblog today screams Oh, No they didn't!! in reference to a company offering a vertical door kit for the Nissan GT-R.

Which led me to wonder - why?

Why would their first reaction be "Oh No!" rather than considering it a reasonable modification to what is undoubtedly a rather exotic car?

I might be in the minority here, but I quite like scissor doors. Sure, they might be expensive, heavy and overly complex, but they overcome one of my main pet peeves - having to grab your door in a carpark before it hits the car next to you. I'm always worrying like crazy about hitting other cars in carparks with my doors, mainly because the doors on the Monte (and other 3-door Saabs) are so big and heavy.

I'd never expect Saab to do a car with scissor doors, but I wouldn't mind if they did. Maybe if they made the Aero-X or a modern interpretation of it in a few years from now they could incorporate scissor doors into the design instead of the ingenious but never-to-be-driven-in-the-rain canopy from the original car.

Yes, that's a five door, and yes (as Gripen pointed out on the original post where this car was featured) it appears that opening the doors means that you can't fully open the hood. I'd expect Saab to do better, though.

When you think of it, it's actually a fairly Saaby idea, sort of.......if you squint hard enough.

Ease of access, lack of damage potential. Perhaps they're a bit too flashy, but still......

Swedish Radio West have another interesting little story on their news site today - a quick rundown on the tour that's being given to the corporate types who are interested in acquiring Saab.

This is not your standard Saab Factory Tour.

According to a secure source from Saab, the visits begins at the Saab Museum in Trollhättan's industrial park. Investors gather there and are provided with a business presentation and CEO Jan Åke Jonsson is one of those then in place.

Word to me is that they're not only looking at Powerpoint presentations at this stage of the tour. Saab also have mockups of the Saab 9-5 and 9-4x in the room where these presentations are taking place so that investors can see just what they're putting their money into.

The room is not part of the main museum area where tourists walk around, though I believe it is used when there are big events on.

After lunch the visit continues at the Saab factory, where production this week is in full swing. They will reportedly also be able to test drive one of the new Saab vehicles (presumably 9-5 and 9-4x, again).

Saab informationschef Eric Geers would not confirm that the visits are in this way, nor that Geely is one of the stakeholders who have already been in Trollhättan.

Oh, how I'd love to be over there at the moment, sitting in on one of those sessions.

And if you don't mind me saying, this is one of the reasons why Saab should have an online presence along the lines of SU. Sure, you can't broadcast this sort of stuff while it's going on. Negotiations are too sensitive. But it would be absolutely fascinating for an enthusiast to see everything that happened after it was all over.

This is what we did and this is how we did it. I know I'd love to see it.

And finally....

This guy was photographed outside the Saab Museum this week. Who is he, who is he talking to on that phone, and what are their plans for our favourite little carmaker???

Enquiring minds want to know!!!

Three peace activists get jail time for sabotaging a Saab Gripen fighter jet. And yet no-one gets jail time for almost 20 years of sabotage to Saab Automobile?

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Representatives from the unions at Saab Automobile went to visit with Sweden's Secretary of State Jöran Hägglund yesterday. They were seeking talks on some government concessions for the car industry as well as some action on all that money the Swedish government promised, none of which has actually been spent yet.

Unfortunately, they came away empty handed and discouraged, with the only light at the end of the tunnel being that Mr Hägglund has agreed to meet with the again in the near future for further discussions.

The scheme they were promoting are as follows:

• a scrapping premium of at least 15 000 SEK, similar to that in other European countries. Extra deductions from benefit for new business cars,
• increased discounts on nybilsinköp (whatever that is) for business, and
• ten years of tax exemption for green cars.

They took the signatures of almost 13,000 line workers and engineers in support of their requests.

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And speaking of unions, IF Metall's Paul Akerlund says that orders are looking up.

We follow orders all the time and the last week we have seen the trend to a better order intake,"

I'm sure things are still well down, but this is good news.

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Over in GM-land, things are looking grim.

There are a couple of reports doing the rounds that show just how big a house of cards this whole situation is. Thankfully, it seems Swedish legislation will protect Saab from much of the fallout if things go belly-up.

First, there's the whole surgical bankruptcy theory, which the Detroit Free Press describes as being elusive as rocking horse poo.

The notion of a surgical bankruptcy relies on many unproven assumptions, including the idea that a bankruptcy judge will shortcut a legal process designed to make sure everyone gets their day in court, he said.

The only way GM could exit bankruptcy quickly is if its unions and bondholders agreed to concessions before the process began, Bernstein said.....

....."If they don't agree, there's no way you're going to be in and out quickly."

So GM would have to rely on the unions to get their quick exit from bankruptcy?

Good luck with that!

The idea that the company's pension liabilities can be dumped on the "Bad GM" appears equally problematic.

The pension holders have an interest in 100% of GM today, Bernstein points out. Why bet their future on the possible sale of brands and other property GM no longer wants?

"Who's going to pay a meaningful amount for bad assets?" IHS Global Insight research analyst Aaron Bragman asked. "Can they actually sell these things? If they can, will it be enough to cover the bankruptcy costs and pension liabilities?"

The pension funds would probably fight any bankruptcy that lumps them with GM's distressed assets.

So it's not going to be as cut and dried as the powers-that-be would like.

What about the guys on the ground, the dealers?

Bloomberg's got them covered:

The repercussions from GM and Chrysler franchise cancellations could spread swiftly to other carmakers. According to the NADA, there were 19,790 new-car dealerships in the U.S. as of March 1, fewer than 3,000 representing a single brand. Since most dealers own multiple franchises, their borrowings often cover multiple brands and properties.

If vehicles in a Chrysler showroom were seized and sold at auction, for example, the proceeds might not cover the dealer's loan. A lender could thus demand repayment on related loans covering the dealer's non-Chrysler brands.

So basically, GM go bust and the bankers call in loans on inventory and liquidate their fleet to get their money back. If the Chevys in the lot won't cover the debt, they'll go for the Nissans/Mazdas/Volkswagens/Whatevers until they're satisfied.

The long arm of the law, indeed.

We had our own spy confirm that execs from Koenigsegg have been visiting the Saab factory and taking a look around.

Not there's a story from Swedish Radio West stating that Geely have been kicking Saab's tyres this week as well.

Saab are in the midst of hosting a number of interested parties. They've signed confidentiality agreements with 27 different groups but reports over the weekend stated that of these, only around half a dozen could be considered serious propositions.

It's unknown how many of the 27 Saab will allow into their budoir, but with K-Segg and Geely identified, I guess that leaves 25 to go at the most.

From the Swedish Radio West report, courtesy of the little translation monkeys at Google:

Saab has had visits from representatives of the Chinese car maker Geely, which has long been one of the names mentioned as a possible Saab buyer.....

....Last week took place at least two visits and Sveriges Radio West can now reveal that one of the stakeholders, who then was in place in Trollhättan, were representatives from the Chinese car manufacturer Geely.

(This is) something that is a little surprising in view of statements by Daniel Dai, Geely's manager at International Business Chamber, in early April.

- We have no interest in Saab in any part. We have nothing to do with Saab," he said then.

But now a secure source from Saab has confirmed to Swedish Radio West that representatives from Chinese Geely was in place in the middle of last week, and that they are interested in the Saab.

Last week was a speculator (also visited) - when there was a European company.

If there's any more notable sightings, please let me know.

OK, so we're getting a number of special Saabs up for sale at the moment..... and the curiosity factor is off the scale with this one!

Again, it's on Sweden's auction/sales site, Blocket.se

The description reads as follows:

• totally rare Saab 96, a one off sportcoupe, early 1970, with the attractive high power sport engine and equipment, two stroke,
• now restored and runs well, ready to drive away
• more pictures available
• no money-no calls!

Here's the car:

Long nose? Short back?

How did this happen?

The car is selling for SEK87,000, which equates to around US$10,000

Here's the car again with a regular Saab 96 for comparison. Suggestions as to how this was done are welcome.

Thanks Jacco!

Car shows are in somewhat of a decline this year with manufacturers pulling out of some shows (more on that below) and some shows having to be cancelled or postponed.

The Shanghai Motor Show is on at the moment and the press are currently fawning over the latest offerings from companies that we'l probably al be alot more familiar with in 5 or 10 years time.

Saab are at the Shanghai show, and Ying tracked down some photos of the Saab stand on a Chinese motoring forum (more shots here and here).

Click on the images to enlarge.

The Saab stand in the construction stages:

And then the vehicles arrive. Note those big 19-inch wheels, baby!!

I want to thank everyone who posted in the "Who hasn't driven a Saab 9-3?" post from yesterday. The support for the cars was fantastic over all, and it proved to me that I need to get in one more often.

I only get to drive a 9-3 once or twice a year at Saab events so to have the input of people who regularly drive them or have recently tested one is invaluable for a site like this. I've tried in the past to get one as a long term test vehicle but at the time was told that they don't do long-term test vehicles here in Australia. I shall try and get in one more often, though.

Whilst we were talking about test drives, I received an email from a dealer overnight who had a test drive story of his own to share. It's a little more evidence of that old edict "people who test drive a Saab usually buy a Saab".

Hiya from the U.S. again!

I noticed your comment on the 2.0T being a 'cracker' in today's post, and as I said in my previous email to you, I wholeheartedly agree, but I'd like to point something out about the 2.3T for a moment, if I may.

I work for a Saab dealer. We are also a Cadillac dealer. I had a customer on Saturday who asked if I thought a 4 cylinder "could possibly be enough engine for such a large car." I asked the customer to drive the car and then ask that question again. He refused, unless I could convince him he should and it wouldn't be a waste of his time.

I pointed out that Saab has managed to crank out 260HP from a 2.3 liter engine. That's just over 113HP per liter. This doesn't sound impressive to a person outside the industry or otherwise uninvolved with cars, so I then compared it to a Cadillac Escalade.

The Escalade has a 6.2L V8, and cranks out 403HP, a pretty decent amount by any standards. I then showed him the math. If the Escalade operated with the same efficiency as the U.S. spec 9-5, it would crank out just a hair over SEVEN HUNDRED horsepower.

He took the test drive. He bought the car.

He reported that on his way to his vacation home to open it for the season yesterday, he got just over 30mpg on the highway, and he wonders if my theoretical 700HP Escalade would do the same... :-)

A great story about what is still a great car. Despite the age of the architecture, the Saab 9-5 is still a great vehicle and being the age it is, it's thoroughly sorted and pretty much bullet proof.

Congratulations to our dealer and his buyer. Well done to both of you.

I'd like to draw you attention to something I wrote in an update I posted late last week on the ownership scenario for Saab:

Note that Deutsche Bank are engaged by General Motors to find Saab's buyer, which means that GM's interests are paramount in this process, but also note that GM's best interest is served by Saab surviving to engage in future contracts with them. It's hopefully going to be a win-win.

In that post I was re-capping a number of points that had been provided to me by Saab Sweden about Saab's current situation.

What I raised in the quote above was not one of those points and when I covered off the article I proposed to write with Saab (yes, this happens sometimes as there can be things mentioned in conversation that aren't intended for print) this was not amongst the points that stayed on the page but I included it anyway, primarily for reasons we're seeing today.

The name General Motors will rightfully leave a bad taste in the mouths of many a Saab owner, but the fact is that GM are doing quite a lot of work behind the scenes in terms of trying to ensure a smooth and successful sale and transition for Saab.

Why? Because its in their interests to do. They've engaged Deutsche Bank to find a buyer for Saab and it's in Saab's and GM's best interests that that buyer be a viable and interested party.

Saab's interest in that is obvious - survival and growth.

GM's interest is less obvious, but just as fundamental. Firstly, GM want to keep Saab going and get them growing because that will mean that GM can manufacture more architectures for Saab. It means they can manufacture more 9-4x SUV's for Saab. It means they can continue to utilise Saab's expertise in turbocharging, safety, XWD, etc.

Relationships will continue for some time and GM have a lot to gain over the years from a successful Saab.

And that's why today's papers are reporting that GM may be willing to virtually give Saab away for almost nothing.

People close to GM say it is also prepared to unload Saab, its Swedish premium brand that filed for creditor protection in February and recently opened its books to outside investors, for as little as nothing in order to divest the brand.

A sale of Saab might raise around $1 billion at the very most. GM owe thirty or so times more than that to the US government alone, let alone to others. The sale of Saab for a fee is barely going to register on GM's radar.

The continuity of Saab and their eventual growth means a lot more. It means cashflow, engagement of production capacity and access to technology and expertise. It also means they don't have to pay out dealers if they're forced to close. Even if GM have to write down Saab's debt to them, they're going to be better off this way.

I'd suggest that some of the main criteria Deutsche Bank are using to find a buyer is their ability to keep Saab going in the medium to long term, and what plans they'd have to develop the business. Assessing what sort of cash they can come up with for a purchase is not going to be high on anyone's list.

I know from surveys and polls I've done here in the past that the largest single owner group perusing this blog is the group of owners with a Saab 9-3 in the garage. Whether it be a Sport Sedan, SportCombi or Convertible, the 9-3 is in what looms largest in garages across the readership here.

I do wonder, however, how many of the rest of you have actually driven the Saab 9-3, in whatever body style - and yes, I'm referring to the Sport Sedan generation of the 9-3 that started with the Sport Sedan from 2003 onwards, not the one that took over from the next generation Saab 900.

We talk a fair bit about the Saab 9-3 and its importance to Saab. It's their volume seller and will probably continue to be their most important vehicle for some time.

So if you haven't driven a Saab 9-3 yet, I'd invite you to do so.

If you've got the time in the next week or so, I suggest you call your local Saab dealer and ask for a test drive. If you're not in a buying position then please be up front with the sales person and let them know you're just trying to get familiar with the car, that you're a Saab nut and you've heard a lot about it and that you want to make your mind up for yourself about how good this car is.

Then, if you've got the time (again) I'd ask that you jot down a few thoughts and send them to me to share here.

One thing I'd ask......

We see the automotive media do this all the time but I'm going to ask you to avoid it - making comparisons.

Please just drive it and then judge it individually on its merits. Is it a good car or not? Does it deliver a great driving experience or not? Do you like the styling when you see it in person, or not? Do you like the cabin or not?

In making comparisons we focus on compromises and can lose the point of driving a car - do we enjoy that car or not. Any purchase decision involves a compromise but I'm not asking you to make a purchasing decision here. I'm just asking one simple thing: after driving the Saab 9-3 for the first time (or the first time in a long time if you've driven one before but some time ago), what do you think of the car?

I think the Saab 9-3 is a great car and I'd love to own one some day. I think the 2.0T engine is an absolute cracker and despite my longings for the old button dash, I also really like the interior ergonomics, comfort and functionality.

If you've not driven a Saab 9-3 yet, then I'd love to know what you think of it as a first timer.

I know someone's going to tell me off for spelling ay carumba incorrectly. I just know it. Probably Joe Lobo. And the hard part is that I know I've done it wrong, but I can't just remember what the right thing is and don't have enough will to go look it up. It's sort of like the whole Saab UK instead of Saab GB thing, which I know annoys John at Elkparts to no end.

But I digress.......

It's not often I get links to Swedish auction sites selling Saabs, but when I get the same link multiple times over the same weekend, I know it's something I've got to see.

Words fail me:

I saw some reasonably radical modified Saabs in Sweden back in 2007. I even saw one with gullwing doors.

I'm not sure I saw anything that way out, though.

The car is based on a 1983 Saab 900 though I'm not sure how much of that original Saab sheet metal remains. There aren't any other photos on the ad so we can't see what other mods lie within.

I love the owner's words in the ad:

NOTE, the car is very low!

No kidding!

This one's for sale for 40,000 SEK, which currently translates to US$4,667 or GBP3,200.

I don't always love the end product, but I love the passion that Saab owners put into modifying what are seen by many as very conservative automobiles.

We're yet to see what sort of aeronautical goodies, if any, that Saab might pack into the new Saab 9-5 or 9-4x next year.

But another manufacturer with a new vehicle about to hit the road has got the jump on Saab and has included a reasonably 9-4x-ish interior with some "born from jets" touches.

The vehicle is the Peugeot 3008 and like the 9-4x, it's intended as a soft-roader and is due for release in the near term.

I'm not so fond of the application of Peugeot's cat-like styling to the front. I don't think it stands up anywhere near as well as Saab's adaptation of the Aero-X language to the taller 9-4x.

Inside the car, they've got an interior that reminded me a lot of the 9-4x in terms of the general shape of the center stack, etc. The grab-handle's a nice touch, though I wonder if it'll fit the car's intended use (more likely to be speed bumps in shopping center car parks than outdoor trails).

It does manage to look fairly rugged, doesn't it? And pay particular attention to the little slip of clear plastic in front of the steering wheel.

Here's that little slip of plastic as a feature photo.

It's a heads-up display, though not as many other manufacturers do it. Others tend to beam information on to the windscreen in front of the driver. This system is perhaps a little more jet-like in that it direct information on that little screen, which is closer to the driver and doesn't take up much, if any, of the driver's road vision

It's a nice, clever touch. And to think that Saab were the company born from aviation. Peugeot should be working on the car's pedals and chains, shouldn't they?

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Thanks Ken!

I have the best photo that was ever taken of my Viggen as my desktop wallpaper on one of the computers I use and as I fired that computer up this morning, I thought to myself "Wow! What an awesome looking car."

This is the photo, taken by my mate Stu the lens genius. Many of you will have seen it before:

My mate Richo in Sydney had a Viggen until recently. His was actually much better than mine. He'd BSR'd it and it had a brand new engine installed last year with only around 4,000kms on it when he sold it. The young lady who bought it, Suzanne, got one heck of a good car for very good money.

I had the chance to drive Richo's new car on the weekend, a BMW 3-series coupe. He bought it brand new. It's got the detuned 6 cylinder so the performance isn't hot, but it's quite adequate. It's very comfortable, looks pretty good (if you like that sort of styling) and definitely has quite a presence by the roadside.

Seeing my old Viggen photo again this morning made me compare notes in my head. Richo's old car vs his new car. I can only do this from my perspective and I've only had a short drive in his new car but it was enough to form an impression.

The impression that I got was one of solidity. That's probably the best word I can use.

The car looks solid. It looks like an evolution of its forebears and therefore has a solid history behind it.

The car feels solid. There are no moments as you open or shut things, as you operate any controls, as you drive, that suggest any sort of fragility. There are no "oh, I didn't expect that" moments whatsoever. There are no moments where you wish they'd done something different.

The best example I can think of - and it's a small one but demonstrates the comparison perfectly - can be found in the stalks that operate the indicators.

Just to catch up on the news that was reported whilst I was away.....

Last week, it was reported that Saab had signed confidentiality agreements with 27 potential investors.

I should point out that one of our regulars here at SU, Ed K, works in mergers and acquisitions and was quick to point out that 27 confidentiality agreements can mean very little in the M&A world:

In a competitive M&A sales process for a company (as in the case of the sale of Saab), companies with any interest at all in a company or the industry in which such company operates regularly sign confidentiality agreements in order to get their hands on an information memo (and the valuable information contained therein), even if they have zero interest in purchasing the target.

But as ctm pointed out in the same thread, a group of 27 is a bigger pool of 'potentials' than just two or three, and should hopefully provide enough real interested parties.

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From 27 to 10

The Financial Times and Bloomberg filed the most significant stories about this over the last few days.

Bloomberg are quoting one of those 'sources familiar with the situation' and saying that the number is down to around six serious interested parties. The implication, of course, is that the rest of the "Saab27" are just as Ed suggested - people trying to get a look inside.

From Bloomberg:

The bidders include an individual investor, a consortium of Swedish companies and at least two private equity firms, said the person, who didn't want to be named because the talks are private. None of the most likely bidders are automakers, the person said.

It would be slightly disappointing if that last sentence were true. In case you missed it in comments, we did have a Koenigsegg executive sighting last week in Trollhattan.

The Financial Times were a bit more generous:

Jan Åke Jonsson, Saab's managing director, told the Financial Times the brand would open the doors of its operations in Trollhättan, Sweden, to about 10 investor groups, out of more than 20 that have "shown a serious interest".

"We are starting to have presentations on the business in more detail to potential buyers," Mr Jonsson said, describing them as private equity groups, other financial investors and "international carmakers".

"Our current plan is that there are about 10 we will review the business in detail with, then see whether we need to go further into the list," Mr Jonsson said.

Saab would aim to shortlist two to three of these in coming weeks with the intention of finding an investor by the second half of May or beginning of June.

Those reports sound pretty accurate to me.

To have 27 parties suffiently interested in Saab to investigate them is a positive outcome, but to have as many as six being worthy of further investigation would be a fantastic outcome.

Saab are going to have to tie in with GM in the near-to-medium term, but I think they'll try and move further away as progressively as they can. In fact, I can almost see what a few people have suggested here in the past - Saab becoming a bit like Lotus in terms of having some vehicles for sale, but also lending out engineering expertise to those who need it.

It just seems to fit.

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From Automotive News....

....with thanks to the guy who's name I can't look up right now as Gmail seems to have blown up

I'll get up to speed on the Saab stuff shortly, but first....

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Friday in Sydney - a tale of two Beamers

I featured a Google Images shot of Sydney when I posted the other day, but just to prove I was really there, here's my own little postcard photo taken from my spot on the Manly Ferry.

The place sure does look pretty on a day like that, though it's still nuts.

That night, we headed off to the Belgian Beer Cafe, the NSW Saab guys' unofficial home, for another get together over dinner.

Richo was kind enough to organise a ride for us, though as he no longer has his Viggen, we were totally reliant upon his taste and discretion for our transportation.......

.....yes, we were in a Beamer.

Well, we were spread out between two Beamers, actually. That dark one is Richo's own 325 Coupe, which I drove after dinner (more in a moment).

We also had this little baby, which is what I was driven to dinner in:

The M3 belongs to a mate of Richo's named John. He was kind enough to take myself and my young bloke, Geoff, over to the BBC and join us all for dinner.

Let me tell you, that M3 is one incredible driving machine. It's got plenty of presence, though it's not nearly as loud in the metal as it is when you press the loud pedal. It is one immensely powerful machine.

This M3 has a little 'M' button on the steering wheel and it's like a switchable automotive steroid injection. John showed us the M button in action, driving at a moderate speed and keeping his foot in the same place whilst hitting the M pedal. Wow! No change in pressure at all on the gas pedal but the whole attitude of the car changes and it's super-aggressive.

Incredible stuff.

I've given Richo plenty of grief about his decision to sell his Viggen and buy a new BMW and whilst I'd still rather see him back in the Viggen, I can now better understand his decision for the BMW. It's a very solid car and quite a bit better than I'd expected.

I drove it back from dinner to our accommodation and whilst it's the baby six of the BMW-bunch, it's still got enough punch to keep you interested. The finish is exceptionally good and the attention to detail is, frankly, kind of jealousy inducing. But that's what successful companies can do.

My thanks to Richo and John for the experiences and of course, just for catching up.

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Dinner with the Sydney Saab guys is always fantastic and Friday night was no exception. It was mostly familiar faces with a couple of new ones too (G'day Sue and Alan!) and it's always good to get together again with a group of guys with whom I waste so much time via email.

Here's PT enjoying one of Belgium's finest:

Brendan bought his black 99T and Joe Lobo had his Turbo X there as well, so we had the Black Turbo bookends there.

Hawkeye had his Concours prizewinning BioPower 9-3 there as well.

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Saturday.

Carlton lost, so Saturday sucked. Meatballs for dinner.

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Back home on Sunday - time to sell the Alfa....

We came home this morning and I had plenty of work to do. I've been flat out raising money for the Alfa's replacement car. I had 7 auctions on Ebay, which finished Saturday morning, and I also had to prepare for the two people who were coming over to check out the Alfa I've got for sale.

Yes, good photos did the trick again....

The first group was a young kid with his parents. It was going to be his first car and after a ride in the car with me at the wheel, his folks came to the opinion that this probably wasn't the ideal car for him :-) -- They were concerned that he might get into trouble a little too easily in it. The young bloke looked suitably disappointed.

The second guy was in his early 20s and knew a little about them, having had an Alfa project that didn't get finished a few years ago. He really liked the car and seems quite keen on it. He's got to speak with the Ministers for Agriculture and Finance (i.e. the parents, from whom he'll borrow the money) and should get back to me within a couple of days.

Fingers crossed.

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MX5 or 944??

I'm feeling like I'm in a dilemma once again. The Alfa will be replaced with one of two models of car. It'll either be a Porsche 944S or a Mazda MX-5. The only problem is that I can't figure out which.

I'm really drawn to the Porsche. That badge just seems to have a giant magnet in it and I can't help but being drawn back to it. BUT, I'm really worried about the maintenance cost if/when something goes wrong. And I know something will go wrong - something always does.

My brother-in-law in Canada got an old MX-5 last year and I drove it when I visited him in Vancouver. I'd never driven one before and it really was a lot of fun. It'll be a little cheaper than the Porsche I'm looking at and is reputed to be more reliable, and would most likely be cheaper to maintain.

So....which to go for (if I get the chance)?????

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Internal stuff out of the way, time for some Saab updates.....

Further to the post about there being no V6 engine in the 2010 Saab 9-3 for the US market, I can now confirm that this is not just a US thing.

I've been told quite reliably from Saab that this will be a global thing. There will be no V6 offered in any market in the Saab 9-3 from 2010.

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The reason why there's nothing new from me in the last 24 hours, and there'll be nothing for the next 24 hours either, is because I'm currently enjoying views like this one.....

...and no, that definitely ain't Hobart.

I'm actually writing this from Richo's office in inner-Sydney. Tonight I catch up with a bunch of Saab nuts at the Belgian Beer Cafe before going to the football tomorrow (which was the whole basis of the trip - an 18th birthday thingy for the young bloke).

Anyway, things will be quiet, so please continue to talk amongst yourselves.....

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Here's one for the techies.....

Saab's have a tendency to understeer, which in most situations is safer than losing control in an oversteer situation.

Ted Y recently picked up on an article about understeer in an old version of Road and Track magazine that he purchased on Ebay.

I'll let Ted tell you the rest as he understands this stuff much better than I do:

I was reading "Sports Car Design 44" in the May, 1958 issue which was discussing understeer/oversteer, applied power and a technical description of how to determine a car's roll center, based on its suspension geometry.

Then I noticed a factory-provided graph showing the results of an understeer test, which I didn't know any manufacturer actually performed. The part that caught my eye though was that it was provided by Saab. It showed that they were careful to make sure that the Saab 93 would maintain its understeer even when fully loaded, for safety reasons, unlike the comparison DKW which went to oversteer when fully loaded.

Here is the image, which should be fairly self explanatory.

Click to enlarge

Now all you technophiles can feel free to clue us in as to the benefits of Saab setting the car up this way.

Thanks again to TedY for the scan.

Now THIS is something grrrrrooovy.

Saab Germany have teamed up with Saab's official tuning house (and Saabs United sponsor) Hirsch Performance AG, to develop the latest in a long line of Carlsson Edition vehicles.

Below is the press release translated from the original German by Mr G.Oogle.

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Saab 9-3 Erik Carlsson

• Special model for the 80th Birthday of the rally legend
• Modern all-wheel technology and turbo engine with 240 hp

Rüsselsheim. Two victories in the Saab 96 in the legendary Monte Carlo Rally and a hat trick in the RAC Rally in England have made the Swede Erik Carlsson a rally legend. Also known as "Carlsson on the Roof", the Saab ambassador celebrated his 80th Birthday in March. For the Swedish premium brand, that is reason enough to remember their tradition and sporting successes with a special model - the Saab 9-3 Erik Carlsson.

The Saab 9-3 Erik Carlsson Saab presents itself as a typical combination of sportiness and safety - with 240hp engine and the ultra-modern four-wheel drive XWD (Cross Wheel Drive) and electronic differential lock ELSD.

Sport-feeling - outside and inside

A doppelflutige exhaust system, a subtle, silver-colored front spoiler, a diffuser on the rear and standard 18-inch wheels give the Erik Carlsson Saab 9-3 a sporty appearance. Optional is a sports exhaust system, a sports suspension and 19-inch alloy wheels.

The interior continues the sporty-elegant impression: door, cockpit and center console in Carbon Fairings optics contribute to the sporty character and the tactile quality of leather dashboard, hand brake and shifting.

Saab Drive - Power with Responsibility

The heart of the new Saab 9-3 Erik Carlsson is the engine developed with Hirsch Performance with the modern four-wheel Saab XWD technology. The two-liter turbo engine makes 240hp and a torque of 350 Newton meters. That makes a sprint from stand to 100 in just 7.3 seconds, top speed is 245 km/h. Despite the impressive performance, the fuel consumption is only 8.2 liters per 100 kilometers.

The modern Saab XWD all-wheel system distributes the torque of the motor depending on the needs continuously between the front and rear axle and ensures optimal grip and stability in all situations.

An important part of the system is the electronically controlled torque distribution (TTD - Torque Transfer Device). The force is distributed between the axles. A valve increases or decreases the hydraulic pressure on the Nasskupplung inside the TTD is activated or deactivated, and so gradually the rear axle. The degree of slip is, how much the rear wheels are driven. The force distribution between the two axles can, in extreme cases, vary by almost 100 percent. The electronic locking differential (ELSD) - also a standard part of the special model - works on the same principle: It distributes the engine driving the rear axle in practice, also with close to 100 percent of the wheel, which has more grip.

The Saab 9-3 is Erik Carlsson as a sports sedan from 42,350 euros, the Sport Combi will cost 43,950 euros.

I've just been chatting with a contact at Saab in Sweden and he's provided me with the following information:

• The investment process moves into a more intensive phase
• Over 20 potential investors
• Small number of auto companies interested but the majority are investment groups
• Interest comes from Sweden, elsewhere in Europe, the US and Asia Pacific region
• All have been vetted by Deutsche Bank and have the capability to become investors
• All have signed confidentiality agreements and have been sent a 'teaser brochure'
• Some have moved into the next phase and have either visited Trollhättan already or have booked a visit in order to take part in more detailed discussions.

Note that Deutsche Bank are engaged by General Motors to find Saab's buyer, which means that GM's interests are paramount in this process, but also note that GM's best interest is served by Saab surviving to engage in future contracts with them. It's hopefully going to be a win-win.

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I noted in comments as I was putting this together that there's also coverage at Reuters and in the Swedish media (thanks ctm)

E24 report the following:

"There are now 27 interested parties to Saab Automobile. Yesterday, the first of them visited the Saab factory in Trollhättan.

- Interest has been growing. Saab has signed confidentiality agreements with 27 potential buyers. The interest from Wednesday's visitors was very large, a source tells Dagens Industri.

One interested buyer per day are received by Saab, so the this period is expected to be rather long. First, the "heaviest" ones visit factories and meet with management, and yesterday's secret visitor was one of the more serious buyers.

Saab is reported to first talk to those who have the greatest capacity, capital and skills to take over the auto company."

And Reuters have this to say:

Loss-making General Motors unit Saab Automobile said on Thursday it had signed confidentiality agreements with 27 potential suitors in its efforts to find a new owner to help it survive the downturn.

Saab's court-appointed administrator said earlier this month that about 20 potential buyers were looking at the company and that a deal was expected to be completed in June.

"It is of course positive that there has been this level of interest," Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs said.

The Swedish carmaker had held meetings with representatives of potential buyers this week, she added.

"We are now in an intense and more organized phase of presenting the company to potential interested parties," she said.

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Thanks to ctm and Tompa/Moose in comments!

UPDATE: text amended below. There will be both a FWD and an XWD version of the Aero model.

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First, let me take you back to news that broke at Trollhattan Saab in October 2008:

Heard from some reliable sources that there is talk, (or already even determined?) that there will be no v6 in the 9-3. Low volume and emissions being the reason. Originally planned to be updated to the v6 today in the Insignia. Now, its scratched.

Is this the last year you can order a v6 in the small Saab?

That news came from someone who set up an email account with the name "Djup Strupe" (and for those who are new around here, Djup Strupe is Swedish for Deep Throat, and is the name I ascribe to all inside sources)

My comments at the time were primarily concerned with the image loss that Saab will suffer as a result of a decision like this. Saab have been on-again and off-again with offering a V6 for years now and former SaabUSA chief and Saab guru Bob Sinclair himself stated that he wanted a V6 offering for years, and that Saab lost a number of customers because they didn't have one.

--

Today I can confirm that the 2010 Saab 9-3 to be offered in the US market will not have a V6 available in any trim level. The V6 is off the list for all models - sedan, Combi and convertible.

I've received this information from Djup Strupe and the source is rock solid reliable.

The full specifications of the 9-3 range were not made available to me but it seems the Aero will be offered with the same 2.0T engine as the base model, with the main differences being in terms of trim level and perhaps the specification of the XWD system.

In short, there will be a base model FWD Saab 9-3 2.0T, a XWD Saab 9-3 2.0T (I assume with no eLSD) a FWD Aero Saab 9-3 and an XWD Aero Saab 9-3 (I assume it will have an eLSD option), which will also have the 2.0T engine.

Added to that, of course, will be the Saab 9-3x, which will come with the full XWD system (incl eLSD and self-levelling) as standard.

From what I can tell, the Aero version of the Saab 9-3 will be close to a Turbo X spec car but without the V6 powerplant and available in both FWD and XWD spec.

Aside from the V6, other items gone for 2010 include premium natural leather seats, some of the walnut trim, Fusion Blue and Polar White paint on the sedan/combi and Steel Gray and Electric Blue from the convertible.

New colors for 2010 will include Glacier Silver Metallic and Arctic White, though their availability will be limited to specific models.

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So, there'll be no V6.

I should mention that at this stage, I don't know if this is worldwide or just in the US market. My hunch is that it will be worldwide.

My first reaction is one of concern. No-one likes losing something as good as that V6 engine and the damage it may do to Saab's reputation is something that must be considered.

I'm also concerned for Saab's dealers and salespeople. If Saab can't lower prices in accordance with a major shift like this then dealers are going to be left in a pretty difficult situation. Saab expect around 15% or more of sales to be Aero models. If the price doesn't come down, why would anyone bother?

BUT......

Remember that this is a 2010 change.

In 2010 there will be a new Saab 9-5 and as I said back in October last year, I'll donate a kidney to my neighbor's cat if the 2010 Saab 9-5 doesn't come with a V6 option.

So the 9-5 will be further differentiated from the 9-3. Not only will it be noticeably bigger, but it'll be the vehicle with the V6 option. I'm not totally convinced that it needs to be the only vehicle with a V6 option, but that's Saab's choice.

Given Saab's low volume expectations over the next 12 months, I can see why they might have taken this decision. The Aero is a small proportion of sales and total sales are going to be small in the next 12 months anyway.

Still, for a brand that wants to position itself amongst the bigger players in the premium market (and make no mistake, they still have Audi and BMW in their sights from what I've seen) the lack of a smoother, more refined engine option doesn't read like a positive step.

Opel have unveiled their hot-tomale version of the Insignia - the OPC - and it's going to make you either hopping mad or quite hopeful for the future. If you look at it from the back it could also make you feel a little sick. You have been warned.

Pics and quotes from Carscoop, via VW Vortex

So why would it make you hopping mad?

Basically, this reads like the Turbo X drivetrain but with the sort of output we all wished we'd seen on the Turbo X

The top-grade Insignia comes with a specially modified version of GM's 2.8-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine that produces a satisfying 325HP that is channeled to all four wheels.

The first ever four-wheel drive Opel OPC model also benefits from a new electronically controlled, rear limited slip differential (eLSD) which can transfer up to 40% of torque to whichever (rear) wheel has more grip. This is the same system that is used on the Saab 9-3 Turbo X.

Four-wheel drive system and eLSD aside, Opel's engineers have also fiddled around with the Insignia's suspension system as well as with the brakes. Stopping power is now provided by a set of Brembo vented and cross drilled discs.

Twin-turbo or twin-scroll turbo? More information was required, so I clicked through to the GM Media site, where there's no mention of a twin turbo on the brief press release. That makes me think Carscoop might have messed up just a little in the semantics.

So why might it make you hopeful for the future?

The Insignia is, of course, on the Epsilon II architecture. The Turbo X is on plain old Epsilon, which may go some way to explaining why it was limited to 280hp. It might have represented a sort of ceiling that GM/Saab were willing to dish up on Epsilon straight from the factory.

The good news here is that the 2010 Saab 9-5 will be on Epsilon II, and therefore much more capable than even the Turbo X.

If you feel yourself throw up a little inside your own mouth right now, that's because your eyes have subconsciously registered the rear-end view, below.....

That is truly shocking. The side and front views are much more friendly to the eye.

I'm not a fan of the interior, either.....

The Insignia OPC puts out 325hp and 400Nm of torque, it'll get to 100km/h in six seconds and the addition of XWD (though they don't call it that) ensures that it should be difficult to get askew.

It's interesting that Carscoop instantly pitch it against Audi's S-Line and others. That should be Saab territory, but considering the looming separation I guess there's no point in pretending that everyone's still friends.

Being the kind of person I am, I'll be hopping mad for a little while but really, when all that's said and done, the specs on this car are what I'm really interested in. Their meaning for the Saab 9-5 will be known later this year.

I can't wait!

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Thanks to Taylor from LotusEnthusiast

All is quiet....

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Saab finalised their redundancy plans yesterday and gave notice to 701 employees that their last day would be this Friday.

The original plan was for 750 people to go, with 650 of those being blue-collar and 100 white-collar. As it turns out, there's only 55 white-collar workers leaving, with some having re-deployed to other vacant positions. 646 blue-collar jobs have been lost.

Of course, what we all hope for is that Saab will need these people back again some time in the near future as work ramps up again.

That all depends on the success of the search for a new owner.....

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And on that front, Saab executives have put their Easter eggs aside for the week because they're extremely busy playing host to potential buyers.

The race is on, with Saab hoping to get things sorted before the unnecessary complication that is a GM bankruptcy takes effect.

Eric Geers seemed a little tense about it all in a short article from TTELA today:

"It will be hard the next few weeks," says Saab's information director Eric Geers. Starting already this week is expected to an unknown number of stakeholders have come to Trollhättan, to acquaint themselves more closely with the company....

"Time is an important aspect, as everyone knows," said Geers about the rushed schedule. But as soon as we have the financing completed, we started our business plan. The last few days, the threat against the Saab owner General Motors further strengthened, according to reports from the U.S..

And quite what the consequences for Saab could be appears to be unclear to most.

"You do not really know what will happen if GM ports in Chapter 11. But the key for us is to continue the job of separating us from GM and to build up service for the future, " says Geers.

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And away from Sweden.....

The other day I talked about my Monte Carlo jobs for the weekend - subframe brace, headlamp bulbs, and smoky side repeaters.

Only one was too difficult to finish, and you won't believe it, but it was the smoky side repeaters. One of them barely has enough cable attached to reach the fitting, mening that if I took the existing orange repeater off, the cable may get lost forever inside the guard.

I'm not sure what's going on with it, but I think the plastic inner guard lining might have to come off this weekend so I can have a look.

The headlamps were their usual thumb-busting pain-in-the-clacker, but the end result is fantastic.

And the subframe brace was an absolute pleasure to fit and what's more, the results are fantastic! The car feels noticeably more solid in the bends now. Lars has made up a fantastic bit of kit, there. It doesn't look as pretty as the name brands you might be used to, but it's very effective.

Photos to come on the weekend.

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Oh, and another reason things might be quiet around here.....

Some guy's just loaded all-new episodes of Wheeler Dealers up on YouTube.

I've just been watching them do up a Citroen DS. Awesome!!

You can't see this, but as I sit here writing this article, it's teeming down with rain outside and despite the fact that it's not even 10am yet, it's almost as dark as I've seen a day get here in Hobart.

You may not know this, but Australian drivers are not required to run their headlights during the day. There are studies to show that it's safer to do so and some countries do require daytime lighting, but Australia isn't one of those countries.

When we get a day like today where it's very dark and wet, there are a lot of people doing something they don't normally do - they're driving with their headlights on in the daytime.

Consequently, I can guarantee that the phones at the Royal Automobile Club of Tasmania will be ringing like crazy all day, and RACT service vans will be seen in driveways and shopping center car parks all over the city, providing a jump start to cars that have flat batteries due to lights being left on.

This is something that should never happen in your Saab and you've got Saab designers and engineers from way back to thank for it.

Saab headlamps are wired in such as way so that when you switch off the ignition, you switch the lights off, too.

This is not a new thing, either. My 1979 Saab 99 Turbo had this feature and I'm pretty sure my Saab 99E from 1972 had it as well. That 99E was my first Saab and I got the 99Turbo not long after that. As I got more familiar with features like this - in a 1970s car, mind you - it deepened my appreciation for the way Saab design and build their cars.

Back in the 1970s I'm pretty sure there were no other cars on Australian roads with their lights wired through the ignition. Even today, in 2009, there are many companies that don't have such a clever little feature designed into them and that's a fact that always makes me wonder. It works so well, why wouldn't others do it, too?

Next time you see a neighbor or a car at the local shops that needs a jump start, say a quick thankyou to the smart guys in Sweden who designed clever stuff like this into your car.

Here in Australia, our fearless leader decided it'd be a good idea to throw around some money in order to keep our economy ticking over. Consequently, most of us Aussies are getting a $900 payment from the Australian Tax Office in the next few weeks - and never mind that it was our taxpayer money in the first place!

I've asked each of my four site sponsors in the right sidebar to provide some ideas as to how a Saab owner could best spend $900 on their Saab. Saab USA Parts were the first to respond, and Fred's ideas are below.

Maybe you've got a little spare green coming your way under a similar scheme? If so, consider these as ideas to help get your car ready for the northern summer.

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The best way to spend $900 on a Saab is to pamper it with a Spring Clean using Original Equipment Saab Cleaning Products (kit exclusive to SUSAP - $74.95).

Then touch-up the body using Saab Touch-Up Paint ($17.50);

Restore scratched/faded headlamps with a Headlamp Restoration Kit ($59.95);

Install a new set of black powdercoated Saab Stainless Steel Plate Frames ($29.90);

Put a Saab Jumper Cable Safety Kit in the trunk ($77.76);

Place an Emergency Hammer / Tire Gauge in the glovebox ($21.59);

Install a set of Saab Wheel Bolt Covers to cover up rusty lug nuts ($10.95 for set of 20 with removal tool);

Cover your car with an Original Equipment Saab Car Cover (Saab 9-3SS - $149.00);

Be sure to keep a Saab Golf Umbrella in the trunk ($29.70);

Treat yourself to a Saab T-Shirt ($19.97), Saab Cap ($21.60), Saab Sport Glasses ($27.00) and Saab Turbo-X Driving Gloves ($32.35) from the Saab gear page;

Safe Driving,
You friends at Saab USA Parts

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That amounts to around US$600, which is just under $900 Aussie dollars. Of course, if you had $900Americanos, then you could make up the difference with a Saab USA Parts gift voucher, the balance of which you can whittle away as you need various bits and pieces over time.

The Saab Car Club of Australia held their biennial national gathering in Canberra over the Easter weekend.

As promised, here's some more photography and info from the event.

The photos have come from one of the Saab community's most avid photographers, Steve Bunton, and you can click here to view the full portfolio.

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The gathering of the Saabs in Canberra.

This 900 Convertible won best overall car at the Concours. Only 37,500 kms on the clock, apparently!

SU regular and master of all fastidious owners, Hawkeye, prepares his Saab 9-3 BioPower for the Concours. Rumours that he strapped his wife and child to the front of the car in order to prevent stonechips on the drive from Sydney are yet to be confirmed.

Unfortunately there's no full shot of Hawkeye's car, but here's one very clean corner. Hawkeye's car is a 2008 model and was one of the first ordered in Australia. It's now done around 13,600kms.

And we have a winner!! Hawkeye won the the NG900-to-9-3 class in the Concours (a rather wide-ranging category, if you ask me.

Of course, our intrepid photographer had his Nordic-tuned Saab 9-3 Aero there as well. Sweeeeeet!

We've seen one in motion in Spain, and now our mate Andreas from Carpix has been out filming a 2010 Saab 9-5 in northern Sweden.

The film has appeared on Tekniken's Varld and there's a writeup in Swedish at that link for those familiar with the lingo.

The rest of us will have to make do with looking at the video. The car appears to be in convoy with a Saab 9-3 SportCombi. Location unknown, but it's good to see testing continues.

I've embedded the video after the jump as some people have trouble watching video on this site.

Here's a screenshot to whet the appetite.

Thanks to Napahlm for the heads up!

It seems a lot of Saabists took the opportunity provided by the Easter long weekend to get together and hang out a little.

As previously mentioned, the Aussie Saab Car Club got together in Canberra for their national event. I'll have a bit more on that later, but here's one of the shots I've received from the weekend.

That's Brendan B's Black 99T leading the way, there, and I suspect those Turbo X's might belong to a few other SU regulars as well (Joe Lobo and Clive, who's nom-de-blog escapes me at the moment)

As mentioned, more on that later, but it looks like they had a good turnout and a great time.

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SU regular, Saabrobz, visited the Elmia car show in Sweden. At a Swedish car show, you know you're going to see a lot of Saabs and once again, Elmia didn't disappoint. Nobody does modified Saabs quite like the Swedes.

Saabrobz has a number of shots on his Flickr page, but here's a few for your perusal.

We've shown this Saab 9-5 here before, but it's always worth another look:

And who ever said a 5-door Saab 9-3 cannot deliver the hotness?

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Finally, our mate Baracuda hooked up with a friend of his for a Turbo X and Saab 9-3 Biopower photo shoot in Germany.

Now there's a couple of very sweet rides. I love the rims on the BioPower.

More of these shots, here.

I have no answers to the question that makes up the header for this post. I really don't know what will happen if Saab are still under GM's ownership when they file for bankruptcy (which looks inevitable now, by the way).

Saab are courting up to 20 potential buyers, with maybe 5 of those being serious and the rest either just looking or indulging in some wishful thinking.

In my mind, the best course would be for one of these potential owners to purchase Saab in the very near term and transition the ownership in an orderly manner. This would give Saab minimal disruptions and ensure that their loans could be applied for quickly, and their future cars would come out as close to the schedule as possible.

Of course, those potential owners want to get Saab at the cheapest price possible. And that means they might want to sweat GM out rather than purchase Saab quickly.

The latest bankruptcy news from the US isn't encouraging:

Sources close to the plans say that President Obama's auto task force has ordered GM to prepare the groundwork for a "surgical" bankruptcy, even as GM executives publicly stand by their out-of-court restructuring plans.

...."If we need to resort to bankruptcy, we have to do it quickly," Henderson said in an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

One plan the task force is looking into was mentioned last week by GM Chairman Kent Kresa. In that plan, a new company would be created with all of GM's "good" assets, such as the Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC and Buick brands, while the old company would be saddled with the "bad" ones, like Saab and Saturn. Eventually, the company with the undesirable assets would be liquidated.

I'll put my moral outrage at Saab being classed as part of "bad GM" aside for a moment. The real matter at hand is what this would mean for the potential sale of Saab.

It seems that if an orderly transaction isn't forthcoming before Obama's 60 days are up (i.e. the end of May) then Saab will be part of this liquidation process. It sounds like an owner could buy them for a lower price, but I also worry that parts of Saab's operations could be broken up and sold off separately.

I'm just worried that the organisation could become fragmented in this situation, that a smooth transition would be thrown out the window and that a new owner would be picking up desireable pieces of Saab, but not all of it.

I honesty do not know how this situation could play out. It's completely beyond my frame of reference.

If anyone out there has an insight or some experience with such situations then please feel free to fill us in.

I just want Saab to make it to a new home in one piece. I want them to stay Swedish, not get sold off in pieces with bits moved here, there and everywhere.

Todd Agostini from the Autos section of examiner.com sat down for a chat with Steve Shannon at the New York Auto Show a few days ago. The exercise was in conjunction with Saab History so Ryan was behind the camera, capturing the conversation for posterity.

There's a few lollipops in there, but over all it's as forthcoming an insight into Saab's current situation as we could expect from a GM guy in the US marketplace. The most interesting question for me was the one relating to what the two parties, GM and Saab, have got from the relationship over the last 20 years. I think the ledger is firmly stacked in GM's favour there and Shannon's lack of response as to what Saab got from the relationship (basically, it's survival) is a case of damning GM with faint praise.

The conversation lasts 22 minutes and is well worth a look. Thanks to Todd for the heads-up via comments.

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It's worked in France and Germany so it seems the Brits are going to have a crack at the scrapping bonus.

ALISTAIR DARLING, the chancellor, is set to end months of speculation by announcing a "scrappage" scheme to encourage people to trade in old cars for new in his April 22 budget....

....Details of the scheme are still being finalised in discussions between the Treasury and the business department, headed by Lord Mandelson. It is expected to involve a £2,000 allowance for people trading in for scrap a car more than nine years old against the purchase of a new or nearly new vehicle.

Two grand is a reasonable allowance, I reckon, especially if your nine old banger really is an old banger.

I'm sure the usual suspects will be the main beneficiaries of this scheme, but it might be a good time for Saabists to get a few more pennies off.

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I have some great photos to show tomorrow from the Saab Car Club of Australia's national gathering in Canberra, including one of our mates here at SU, Hawkeye, taking a prize in the national Concours.

Great stuff!!

Until then, enjoy this classy shot from Total Abstainer, via Flickr

Hey,

I hope you don't mind the relative quiet around here but I've been enjoying some relative quiet of my own during this Easter holiday break. Our young bloke and his girlfriend have come home to visit so we've all been playing games and generally just having a good time.

Today, though, I got a little more car-focused once again.

Last weekend I did something rather important. I did the post-900 clean out of our garage. I managed to take a full load of crap to the dump in the back of the 9000 on Saturday. So why was this important?

Well, now that the garage is cleaned out, the Alfa has moved in there, which means that my Monte Carlo, for the first time since I bought it back in January, is my primary vehicle. this makes for quite a change. The Monte has always been the-car-in-the-front-yard, or the-car-I'll-get-to-later. Now it's right in the spotlight.

As, such, it's in for some attention. I've been holding on to some Phillips H4 bulbs from Elkparts for a while now. Hopefully they'll go in tomorrow, as will my smoky side repeaters and the subframe brace Lars made up for me.

In the next week or so I'll get some new front dampers installed, along with my steering rack clamp and brace, and finally the one I'm waiting for - the Hirsch ECU and wastegate. That's going to make for one nice little ride.

I had some other things planned as well, but I've decided to leave the makeover of the Monte at the mild stage and save some money.

Why?

Well, the Alfa's in the garage so that it can receive it's final tidy up to get it ready for sale. Yep, I'm on the move once again.....

Road tests from the motoring media have been few and far between lately. It's all been Bondholders this and Debt ratings that. You'd think none of these car companies are in the car industry (and for some of them, you'd almost be right).

It would come as no surprise, then, that this story from The Times Online was a welcome relief. They recently joined in the Arctic Circle Saab 9-3x test drive program and recorded their sentiments online.

How's this for a useful summary:

Verdict Might just save the firm

From all the reports we've read about the Saab 9-3x, we know that it's pretty good.....but that good??!

They certainly seem to give it a pretty good wrap in their full report. I guess we'll have to wait until we can drive it to find out for ourselves. Until then, click through to Times Online and read their short review.

Here's a fuller snippet:

In his day, thirtysomething years ago, Per Eklund was one of the greats. Now in his sixties, he's been showing me things I didn't know any road car could do, least of all a worthy, sensible Saab. A vast circular track has been carved in the ice, and he's just done a lap of it at 60mph with the car's nose pointed straight at its centre.

Out of sight of Saab's staff, I also have a go, and find I can do it too, albeit it rather less elegantly. So good is this car's four-wheel drive that, even with all electronic safety systems turned off, and even when you're sliding and pointing in a strange direction while going around a corner at considerable speed, the car is still under full control.

Thanks to all who sent through links to this one...

I got this one through via email and initially I was a bit concerned about publishing it as it's not all positive (though mostly).

But this place is supposed to be one that shows neither fear nor favour, so here we are. I'm willing and hoping to believe the suggestion that the problems Stingray encountered were particular to the test vehicle he was given. If you've got a 2.0T with XWD then perhaps your thoughts as an owner would be worth committing to 'paper' and sending in for a fuller perspective.

Personally, I'd love to give one of these a try. The 2.0T is one of my favourite engines and the XWD system is, even by Stingray's evaluation, a cracker.

So here were go. My thanks to Stingray for sending in the following.....

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Driving thoughts, 2009 Saab Sport Combi 2.0 XWD.

A week ago I was in contact with the salesman who recently sold me my first Saab, a CPO 2006 SportCombi Aero... A car I enjoy "flying" very much. I was eager to try out another Saab they had on the lot, a 2008 TurboX! This could be my only chance to drive a TurboX so I was making arrangements to take it for a drive when he mentioned they had just got in a 2009 XWD Combi... I was shocked as I didn't think they had hit the states just yet... so off to the Saab dealer I went. Keep in mind, I am a aircraft mechanic and a car enthusiast, in no way a professional driver or writer!

My first impression was mild as it was a creamy white color that seemed like it needed something... maybe more metallic, maybe more pearl effect... there was just a lot of white. It looked like any other Combi, except for the little XWD badge on the deck lid.

Sitting inside I felt at home in that Comfy Saab Seat that I just recently learned to appreciate... the dash arrangement was a little different from my 06, but still familiar. The brushed stainless look from my Aero was replaced with wood grain and the steering wheel had some perforated leather like material that I did not like.

I turned the car on and right away noticed the "buzzy" little 4 cylinder.... vibrations to the steering wheel.... Terrible. As I pulled out of the parking lot, right away I noticed "this is no V6". The engine was peppy.... but not earth shattering. Still, it took my commands and responded with zest!

Driving the XWD was a dream, it took the 90 degree and "S" turns effortlessly..... it rode every bit as nice as my Aero... but I felt like I was riding higher..... I think the XWD is 30mm higher than the standard combi. Let me just say, this thing grips! The XWD grabbed hold of the road and would not let go.

On the open highway, the XWD got up to speed and cruised as if we were at 30,000 feet with no turbulence. I would imagine that this car would be great in the winter driving season here in the North Eastern United States. Overall a very nice car, but the engine at idle had a terrible vibration that transferred to the steering wheel, which shook like a bunch of drunk girls in a disco. I mentioned that the tech should take a look and see if something was amiss.

I wish I could see it with a V6 and some more aggressive looks for the XWD......like all the press photos from Geneva. If it had been a V6, and in Red, it would be in my driveway..... no.. it would be parked in my "hangar", after all they are "Born from Jets"

74 Stingray

Two things popped up on my Flickr feed this morning and I thought they tied in together pretty well. Consequently, you're seeing them here.

Safety is one of Saab's brand pillars and they've been (somewhat unheralded) safety leaders for years now. Check this video for some great historical info on Saab safety.

First, a reminder as to why it's important.

And then an example of Saab safety in action.

As you can see from this shot, the front has been wrecked....

.....as has the rear. Airbags were deployed....

.....but as is should be, the Saab passenger cell is intact.

Perhaps a slight kink at the B-pillar, but I'd suggest everyone came out of this OK.

Safety is an integral part of your Saab. It's been that way ever since they started making cars. It can't save you from every possible situation, but you'll stand a better chance in your Saab compared to almost any other car you can buy.

It saddens me that there are a number of people who work for Saab, in several countries, who don't like me much. The main reason for that is probably because I've been critical of the way Saab's been (or not been) supported in their jurisdiction - and often that's been because the country they work in wanted to push Cadillac.

It saddens me, but I'll live with it.

The reason I took that line and was so vehement about it is because I'm a Saab fan. I'm not a GM fan, I'm a Saab fan. I was so critical because I could see GM money that could have gone into building great new Saabs (or marketing the current ones a whole lot better) going into making crap Cadillacs that didn't sell to anyone regardless of the bottomless bucket of money GM threw at them. If Saab had have received that support it would have yielded a much greater return.

I've long believed that the Saab philosophy on building cars was the perfect philosophy for the times we're moving into. Small cars that act like much bigger cars in terms of performance, space, utility and of course, safety. People have said for years that Saab were ahead of their time with many of the features on their early models and it's true, which is why Saab's philosophy from the 1970s is still so appropriate today. How many other companies could build to the recipe they were using back then and have it still be relevant? Maybe Porsche, Ferrari et al. and that's about it.

Considering all this, the story at Automobile Magazine that I received a link to overnight should cause steam to come out of my ears.....thought it doesn't. I'm not that surprised at all, really.

The most important of GM's upcoming models will be an all-new sub-CTS entry, a small car that will "reach the market probably in 24 to 30 months," Shannon says. The baby Caddy has to ride on a flexible platform, as GM is looking to get the biggest bang for its buck: it is considering sedan, wagon, 3-door hatchback and convertible variants for the new car.

And yes, that's Steve Shannon, the guy in charge of Saab until they bought in The Cat In The Hat and combined Saab, Cadillac and Hummer in order to justifiably increase Caddy's budget by just a little bit more.

So what we have here is GM doing two things:

1) They're damning themselves with their own decisions

Saab had a full range of cars for the 9-3 model line back in 2003 and I'm led to believe that range included a hatch model. What we got was the sedan in 03, the convertible in 04 and the combi released for 06.

Saab also had the 9-3x variant canned around this time because someone (believed to be Bob "we're-designing-the-most-Saabish-vehicles-ever" Lutz) had the idea that a vehicle like the 9-3x wouldn't sell in America. Subaru couldn't have been more pleased.

And now GM want to introduce a small Caddy that basically has 80% of the variants the 9-3 should have had - sedan, hatch, convertible, wagon. The only thing missing is the allroader version.

2) GM are missing the point with Cadillac and will shoot it in the foot (again)

Cadillac are meant to be large, steroid-injecting, luxo-barges for the conspicuous consumer. The only new developments we seem to see at Cadillac are at the smaller end of the market. The mid-size CTS that everyone's fawning over (good, but not that good - and yes, I've driven it), the SRX that's to be built alongside Saab's 9-4x and now this baby Caddy they're talking about.

They're selling the brand's heritage down the crapper, which I guess is a case of what else is new?

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It's not like I give a damn about the future of Cadillac. They can wreck it any way they like.

The main point is the first one - the fact that they wrecked Saab prior to all this and now they're thinking of moving Cadillac right into the segment that Saab should have been occupying. It's a backflip of monumental proportions and should really condemn them for the mistreatment of the brand they already had in that space.

And that point brings me back to the one I started with, about certain Saab people not liking what I do so much.

All you Saab folks at GM in countries around the world who didn't like what I was saying over the last few years - this example with Cadillac is a good case to show why I did it.

You were sticking up for the company that puts food on your table, while I was sticking up for the brand they were choking. Neither of us is essentially wrong, but please don't think that I made your life as a Saab person any more difficult.

Your GM bosses did that. Not me.

Thanks to Karen for the link!

It's a sad fact that almost all the news from the car business right now is news about 'the business' with very little about the 'cars'.

Witness: the headlines in my Automotive News email alert for the day. Now this is a business newspaper, but it just struck me how many of today's big stories are about debt and finance. It's the times we live in, I guess.

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I haven't sent anyone along to the New York Auto Show press day this year as we saw the Saab 9-3x debut just a month or so ago and I wasn't assured of getting assistance or invitations for people anyway.

Ryan went along, though, and he has photos of the Saab stand for those who are interested.

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Barrett Jackson auctioneers in the US are selling off another group of cars from the GM Heritage Collection this weekend.

I've just perused the list and there are no Saabs amongst them. It looks like a number of pace cars from racing and other assorted low-level show cars.

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The not-so-good news of Saab dealer closures in the US has slowed in recent months, though another has just announced they'll be closing their doors in the next few months.

This one is the Accent Auto Group in Milford, New Hampshire.

Press release and story are here.

Thanks Paul!

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From Flickr.

A scanned photo from around 1962 in London, apparently. Somehow I have the feeling that you could reproduce that one even today if you could find the right car.

The following is a letter sent out to Saab dealers from Saab's Managing Director in Sweden, Jan-Ake Jonsson.

There's nothing that we don't already know here, but it's good to see the encouraging news being passed around from the top.

My thanks to Djup Strupe for forwarding a copy.

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Dear Saab dealer,

April 8, 2009

First of all, let me thank you for your continued support throughout this challenging period! I would like to take a moment to give you a brief update on where we are and what is happening next and share my views on some of the positive signs which makes me confident that we will succeed in securing a viable future for Saab.

Over a month has now passed since Saab Automobile AB filed for reorganization. We are continuously making progress and a few days ago we had the creditors meeting at the Vanersborg District Court. This meeting was a check point to confirm that the reorganization plans are moving forward as expected.

At the meeting the reorganization plan was presented and the creditors had the opportunity to ask questions. The plan was supported by the creditors, and the court ruled to continue the reorganization.

Our top priority is to secure a new ownership structure. I am happy to share with you that there is significant interest in Saab. Currently, we have a list with around 20 interested parties, already vetted by Deutsche Bank. We will within short start the direct discussions with these potential buyers.

In parallel, we continue our constructive dialogue with the Swedish government, who are very supportive of our efforts to create the new Saab.

Why am I confident that we will succeed in creating the new Saab? First of all - our business plan is solid, creating a highly customer oriented brand with a lean and effective operation:

• • Fresh products - renewed and expanded line-up: We will launch 4 new models within the next 18 months; the 9-3X, new 9-5 Sedan, new 9-4X and new 9-5 SportCombi
• • Shorter lifecycles
• • Access to new technologies from GM, as well as other external partners
• • Cost efficient and properly dimensioned organization with a lower break-even point
• • Strong brand backed up by our focus on unique, safe and environmental friendly cars
• • Strong customer base and loyal dealers

Again, thank you for your support and efforts.

Best regards,

Jan Ake

These images popped up on my Flickr feed earlier today and I felt compelled to share them here.

For those who enjoy good photography, especially good Saab photography, this portfolio of just 14 shots is highly recommended.

Kudos to the photographer, Stenza, on the shots. Here's just a couple of them.

Saabs are selling in lesser numbers during the current difficult circumstances, but they're still selling. And used Saab purchases are still humming along, probably at a much better pace than new ones.

i thought I'd share a couple of stories that have come in through various sources.

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Business buyers still there....

Tompa sent through the following numbers, which were lifted from a sales story in TTELA. It seems business buyers in Sweden are still buying Saabs. In fact, they're buying more Saabs than what they were before in proportional terms.

Saab has a bigger share of the corporate car market than it has in the private market.

New (In Percent)
1: Volvo 31,9
2: Saab 19,1
3:Audi 10,1
4: Volkswagen 8,8

And in the green market, Saab are still maintaining a very large market share:

Green car sales (In percent)
1: Saab 49,1
2: Volvo 32,7
3: Toyota 9,0
4: Ford 2,6

The TTELA story studied the long term trend in the company car market and found that not only has it increased in size in the last decade, Saab have also increased their share of it, no doubt through the addition of BioPower models to their range.

Company car sales 2008 compared to 2000 (In percent)
1: Volvo -3,7
2: Saab + 1,3
3: Audi + 1,4
4: VW - 3,0

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....and people are still buying Saabs in the second hand market, too.

Here are a couple of short stories about SU regulars who have picked up new-to-them Saabs in the last week or so.

First, from baas900i in comments:

then again for someone like me who wants GM FREE i was passing a dealers today and spotted a viggen and after a 30 minute test drive, 20 + minutes of 'price fixing' i am now the owner!

i give up!

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And from an email chain that went round our regular Aussie crew this week:

Brendan: WTF have I done, I've just bought a Viggen Convertible!

Alex: I swear its not my fault, all i did was show him the car.....Nice work B

Alex: Has all the abbott stuff you can throw at it: Viggen Rescue Kit, Koni suspension, Abbott ECU, Big brake kit

Brendan: Full story - The car is at Saab Wreck, it appears that the front end of it was run into the back end of another car. So needs a bit of work. The car is drivable, but will be trailered back to Sydney for repairs. It'll be a couple of months till it's driving around again. BUT it does have all the good bits on it :)

Brendan's car sounds like it's had a very similar accident to the one my Viggen had before I bought it. A minor shunt in the front that the insurer's have thought was too much trouble to deal with.

I'm quite sure it'll come up smelling like roses and prove to be the bargain of the year.

--

So two Viggens seen and purchased. Viggens have a funny way of doing things like that to people.

Congratulations to you both. Enjoy one of the best cars Saab have ever made.

Will Saab extend their post-ownership relationship with GM to the point of building the next Saab 9-3 on the new Delta II architecture?

Will they go it alone, or partner up with a different company?

If they choose the former, then this is most prolific car with which the next Saab 9-3 will share some DNA - new Opel Astra.

Official photos are now online. I've lifted this one from Autoweek.nl and there's a gallery of images available there.

That's a nice looking motor, that is.

It'll come with a range of engines from a n/a 80hp treehugger unit to a 270hp OPC variant. It's bigger than the old Astra, too, with the new dimensions taking into potential Saab 9-3 territory.

The future of the Saab 9-3 was said to include a move to making it a more compact car, thereby creating a bigger differential between it and the Saab 9-5. A move to Delta II was therefore definitely on the cards.

The proportions on this car look pretty good, so it's a chance. The move away from GM infers that they might go another way so it'll be interesting to see what happens.

Thanks to Albert VDB for the link and info!

Kroum has spotted Range Rover doing yet another partial copy of Saab's work. One of their concept vehicles last year looked very Saab 9-4x-ish and the new 2010 Range Rover sees them pinching one of Saab's trademark pieces.

....digital dials like on the S-class. They're deeply cool, and allow the designers to reconfigure the instruments depending on whether you're cruising on a motorway or plugging across a meadow to your horsebox or driving a night (there's a Saab-style nighttime setting).

I've always wondered why somebody hadn't copied Night Panel already. Now someone has.

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What do we call this?

Saaberrari?

It's a one-off vehicle built by a guy named Leif Mellberg. I've seen it before but there's precious little info about it on the web as far as I can tell.

The reason I'm posting it here is because this one-off custom Saab is for sale. It's on the Swedish site Blocket, selling for 475,000 SEK, which is pretty pricey (around $81,000 Aussie dollars, or $57,600 US).

I believe it's based on a 1987 Saab 900 chassis with a 250hp worked Saab turbo engine.

Thanks Golfhunter!

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So, to the headline....

On the whole, gay consumers, regardless of genitalia, own the same sort of cars that their hetero counterparts own. The largest slice of brand ownership goes to makers such as Toyota, Ford, etc.

Subaru are the company perceived as being the most gay friendly, by a long, long way.

But an interesting result in a survey conducted by Gaywheels.com indicates that if you're gay, you're 18 times more likely to own a Saab than the heterosexual guy next to you.

And it's not just the guys. Gay women are 11 time more likely to own a Saab than hetero women.

The results were gleaned from comparing Saab ownership as a proportion of both the hetero and LGBT markets. What it means is that Saab take a disproportionally high slice of the gay pie.

It's a market Saab should be targeting, no doubt about it.

Thanks to Taylor from LotusEnthusiast.net

This Easter will see the Saab Car Club of Australia have their national gathering, this time in the nation's capital - Canberra.

The following is a release from the SCCA about the event. All comers are welcome to meet the club as they gather and join in the driving events.

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A group of members from the Saab Car Club of Australia will be driving their Saabs to Canberra this Easter for the Saab car Club of Australia national get together, held every two years. Saab car club members and their families from around Australia will be arriving with various Saabs from older models to the very latest Saabs, to enjoy the club events including touring and sightseeing, visiting local wineries and enjoying Canberra restaurants and hospitality and importantly showing their Saabs around Canberra.

The main event for this weekend will be the judging of the national Saab Car Club of Australia Concours, where the various Saabs models will be prepared and polished for this major event, the club also invites the public to join in and view the cars and talk with club members, this event will be held in the Treasury car park at the old Parliament house, starting at 10.30 am, on Sunday 12th April.

The Saab Car Club of Australia has active branches in NSW, Queensland, Victoria/South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia, and provides our members with a choice of social, technical and driving events and has a strong membership base of owners.

Saab Car Clubs have been operating since Saab started to build cars, Saab is a established international brand and is supported by Saab owner Clubs across Europe, all of North America, Asia and many other countries, the Saab owners clubs represents 1000's of enthusiastic Saab owners.

This national event also coincides with the announcement on Saabs new models to be soon released in Australia, including the new Flex- Fuel Bio power engines and the two stage diesel powered models to be available across the full model range, plus the release of the 9.3 Aero V6 range with increased performance, proving again that Saab continues to show leadership in innovative cars and engines.

Saab company representatives in Australia and Commonwealth Motors in Canberra are supporters of this national event and the Saab Car Club of Australia.

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I really wish I could make it up there myself, but I don't have enough leave available to go along as well as make other commitments that I have for the year. It'd be great fun, though, and if you can make it there then I'd encourage you to do so.

Taken by one of SU's quieter friends, Rickard, at the entrance of the Saab Museum in Trollhattan.

As he notes in the tag to the photo

I've never seen 9-X with this frontlight active before!!

Me neither.

Absolutely fantastic!

While Swade's away on business travel (always tons of fun -- not), I'll throw in a few nuggets about how the General is faring here in the United States.

In a nutshell, things are "not too good".

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According to my own Djup Strupe in the GM Spring Hill plant, the GM plans are pretty simple at the working level: if it costs money, stop doing it. That much you could probably guess without too much trouble.

However, one thing that surprised me was that even though these edicts are out there, there are major exceptions for developments of "next generation" automobiles.

In his case, I'll guess that he's referring to the long-rumored hybrid version of the Chevrolet Traverse. In either event, I believe that this could be a great loophole for development funds for certain Saab projects. Maybe. If I'm really wishful. At least the technology could make its way to Saab through the sharing arrangement. I'm not holding my breath, but it could happen, especially is one of the Saab bidders needs a little "extra" to close the sale of Saab.

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Bob Corker, the junior Senator from my home state of Tennessee wrote an open letter published in the news this week:

UAW's resistance thwarted plan to help GM survive By U.S. Sen. Bob Corker • April 5, 2009

In December our office tried to broker a deal that would have resulted in bipartisan support and provided a viable road map for General Motors to move forward.

As we worked through that plan, every stakeholder agreed to shared sacrifice except the United Auto Workers, where we met resistance.

In fact, somehow in offering a plan to help the company survive, one that made common sense and would have garnered bipartisan support, I became public enemy No. 1 with the UAW and the AFL-CIO.

Unfortunately, none of us can know what would have happened if there had been cooperation among all the stakeholders in December and we had been able to move forward with our plan to solve decades-old problems and protect taxpayer investment.

We do know the results now. In one fell swoop, our government has taken over a company -- it fired the CEO, replaced the board, is involved in making decisions about which plants will survive and what kind of cars they will make, and now appears to be directing the company to bankruptcy.

In bankruptcy, the same UAW contracts that were the focus of our negotiations in December would change dramatically and bondholders would take huge write-downs on their investments. Unfortunately, because these steps weren't taken in December, billions of taxpayer dollars are now down the drain and more stringent, draconian measures will be put in place.

Regardless of what got us here, the members of the UAW across Tennessee are my constituents, and though they may have disagreed with my approach this fall, there should be no doubt that I want the very best for them, their families, and the many people throughout our state who depend on the auto industry.

I called to congratulate Fritz Henderson as soon as he was announced as GM's new CEO. Fritz and I have had a lot of interaction over the past six months and enjoyed a good relationship. I have offered my support in his efforts to do what's best for GM.

I have also spoken with Steve Rattner, head of the administration's auto task force, and sought his strongest assurance that politics will be left out of the decision-making. I certainly hope that is the case.

If the administration uses factors like efficiency, flexibility and the quality of the workers, our modern, adaptable GM plant in Spring Hill should do very well. Spring Hill is the kind of facility that represents what made the American car industry a world leader in technological innovation. Hopefully it will play a key role in GM's resurgence.

I completely agree with Mr. Corker. The UAW has been obstinate and out of touch.

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Which plants to close? The question gets a little political.

From the above referenced article in Forbes:

According to industry analysts, Lansing and Spring Hill are modern, recently refurbshed and critical to future success:

The Lansing and Spring Hill plants should be safe if operating decisions are made rationally, said David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich.

"Spring Hill is still a relatively new plant and has been refurbished to make it much more flexible than it has ever been," he said. "It's a very good plant, and when the economy recovers, those GM crossover vehicles are going to be very strong.

"It would be a shame for GM not to be able to meet consumer demand because they closed one of the plants. If they walk away from that plant, that would be a very strategic error," Cole said, "but in politics anything is possible."

Yikes, so what to politics have to do with making cars? Quite a bit according to another industry analyst quoted in the same article:

"Spring Hill could be on the bubble because it's in a red state [Tennessee], and Michigan is a blue state," Merkle said. "The governor of Michigan is a Democrat, too, and she needs all the plants she can get."

For those of you outside the US, "red" has come to denote Republican, while "blue" has come to denote Democrat. President Obama is a Democrat, and these opinions imply that he and his minions will help those that elected him and punish those that voted against him.

For the record, Tennessee's governor, Phil Bredesen, is also a Democrat.

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Finally, in an act that rivals the proverbial re-arrangement of chairs on the sinking Titanic, General Motors is slowly auctioning the GM Heritage Collection to raise funds and save on maintenenace and storage costs.

The Barrett-Jackson auction in Palm Beach, Florida tomorrow (April 9), will include many of the latest to be sold.

Most of the cars are real yawners in my book -- who cares about the last Saturn Ion made, for instance? Three that I'd choose to bid on:

1941 Cadillac Series 61

1956 Oldsmobile Delta 88

1972 Pontiac Grand Prix

We should never neglect or forget about the Aero-X. Naturally, we tend to focus on the cars that we can actually drive and concepts tend to be flash-in-the-pan affairs, but this one should be different.

No-one would have believed that Saab would go from this:

....to this.....

....but they did, however briefly. It's amazing what a small team of dedicated engineers can achieve. The Holden Monaro is another case in point. It was a private, after-hours project that turned out to be a fantastic success and a great statement for the company.

The Saab Aero-X could be the same thing with the evolution of the more radical elements to more production-capable elements (i.e. roof and doors) and a darn good driving experience.

The main reason I'm still thinking about what is a pretty remote possibility is because of an email I received a few days ago.

It's from Chris S and I think it's pretty self explanatory:

Swade, I work in a nice town in Michigan called Birmingham. The other day I was driving back from a meeting, passed a building called the "McCann World Group", and right in the lobby window was my dream car. The Saab AERO X!! I stomped on the breaks.

Being a Saab nut I couldn't help but snap some pictures and pass them along for your viewing.

The Freakin' Aero X....right in the display window! I was amazed. This car is beautiful in pictures, but to see this metal sculpture in person is unreal. The body lines, the front end, the overall shape and attention to detail. Its sex on wheels....

Cheers!

Chris

Now, I should add here that the Aero-X that Chris saw was most likely (I don't know for sure) the Aero-X copy that GM had made up for display purposes. The real Aero-X lives at the Saab Museum and whilst it does move around for car shows from time to time, SaabUSA had a mockup vehicle made up for displays like this. It's quite convincing, but it doesn't have all the details of the original in terms of the interior, etc.

Whether this was the real Aero-X or not is irrelevant. What matters is the undeniable effect that the Aero-X has on all who see it in person.

This is Saab's 8c Competizione and everyone knows the enormous positive PR that car has given Alfa Romeo, not to mention the continued reverence it will build for the brand in times to come.

Chris' enthusiasm about seeing the car was palpable. My own reaction when I saw the car for the first time was one of awe. It's a truly fantastic machine and on some level, it must be do-able.

I'm not talking about a madcap vehicle with a canopy roof. I'm talking about a smooth driving, hard cornering coupe with a Kamm back and true Aero-X looks and style. Something around Audi TT size and class.

It's got to be do-able and it'd be the perfect calling card to announce that Saab is back in town.

Build it. We will come, and many more with us.

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Here's the Aero-X as Chris saw it the other day.

Thanks to Chris for the email!

Follow the links and you might see the reason for the title.

I'm still away with work. When will it end??

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Autoblog report that GM are running rabid, making extensive preparations for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The report states that GM could be split into two separate entities; one "new" unit consisting of the General's successful brands (read: Chevrolet and Cadillac) and an "old" unit made up of its less-profitable endeavors (Hummer, Saab, Pontiac and Saturn).

If the plan is enacted, the all-new GM would assume some of the debt from the bankruptcy (primarily, unsecured debt) and that GM's bondholders would lose a substantial amount of value if the Chapter 11 filings go through.

I really hope Saab can secure a sale soon and avoid all this mess. I'm not sure how it would effect Saab in its current state, but it doesn't look like a great thing to be a part of.

Then again, it may be music to a potential Saab investor's ears.

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The Detroit News ponders recent news that people are actually interested in investing in Saab or Opel/Vauxhall. They just don't seem able to believe it:

The Financial Times again, reports out of Sweden, that Saab has received interest from 20 what it calls "active parties". No suggestion as to why a company which sold 93,000 vehicles last year, and needs annual sales of 130,000 to break even, would be attractive to investors. A Swedish court Monday gave Saab more time, until May 20, to restructure in bankruptcy.

The reason why is that Saab have new models coming soon, can make money once free from GM and are a freaking cool company. Dig?

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I don't have iPod or phone connectivity in my car, not even a hands-free kit. I don't have an iPhone, either. in fact, I don't eve own a phone of my own and probably won't for years.

Yet somehow this picture seems significant.

From Flickr.

In a complete left turn from Swade's hard-hitting news coverage, I bring you some of the oddities that I've run across while shopping for a new convertible. Not really new, but one that's new to me. After a brief flirtation with the notion of buying a Viggen convertible that's reasonably close to me, I've decided to stay with the C900 for many reasons, but the primary one is personal preference. I'm just a classic 900 guy. The 9-3 convertibles that I've driven (I didn't drive the Viggen) have also convinced me that they are just a touch smaller than I can reasonably drive regularly.

Seeing all of the nutty things that people will do to a car and seeing all of the mistakes that people make while trying to sell a car is just plain fun. You never know what in the heck these people are thinking when they choose their path. Read on for a few Saab oddities.....

This is the cover of the April 7 issue of Auto Motor and Sport magazine from Sweden and there's a nice 5-page spread on Saab and the 2010 Saab 9-5 inside.

They've tweaked their CGI a little for the front cover and whilst I don't know for sure, I have a feeling that they'd have to be getting closer and closer to the real thing with each new version.

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And as an aside, we almost got Tiago's CGI included in the inside story. Just before they went to press I got an email from them seeking permission to use Tiago's image but, which I passed on to Tiago.

Unforuntately the lag between checking inboxes in both Australia and Europe meant we were just a little too late to get the image included.

Disappointing, but congratulations to Tiago on having the image held in such high esteem!

My thanks to WooDz for sending the link through on this one.

The Saab Fashionista concept is a design project by a French design student named Mayeul Walser. As you can see, there's more than just a little Aero-X in there, which is a good thing and a bad thing. You can't top the original, and maybe the edges are a little sharp for my liking. But on the other hand, the Aero-X is a modern classic in design, a thing of beauty, so it's a natural place to start.

The interesting thing about this concept design is that it's been drawn up specifically to match the dimensions of the Chevy Volt. The idea is to create a four seater coupe that would fit on the Volt's Delta II underpinnings.

The car features some funky weird doors and some good sweeping lines, though I prefer the original Aero-X's smoother edges. I guess what I'm saying is that I'd just love for Saab to whack some normal doors on the Aero-X and then build the sucker.

This is a nice idea, but when all is said and done, the original is just too stunning to modify.

I like the idea, especially the attempt to real-size the car onto a platform that will actually be used. I hate the name and for my tastes, the Aero-X will always be a winner. But kudos to Mr Walser for having a crack at adapting it for real life, if only in a concept drawing form.

You can read more about the Saab Fashionista concept here.

Thanks again, WooDz.

No comments required. Just click to enlarge.

The 2010 Saab 9-5 has appeared around Trollhattan, and in convoy. Things are starting to get a lot more public.

Saab aren't going to show us the final product, but they're obviously happy to get these out and about and seen on the road.

That's six cars in convoy with two Audis and .....is that a Lexus?

Evaluation vehicles for comparative purposes, or just caught up in the traffic?

This is definitely my favorite angle at the moment.

Looks great at the back.

These photos will pop up in Auto Motor and Sport very shortly as well a nice big feature on Saab.

I wonder which motor show will have the distinction of being the last where Saab shows as a GM brand?

Maybe New York?

The Saab 9-3x makes its North American Debut on April 8th. Here's the low-down from SaabUSA:

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NEW 2010 SAAB 9-3X: FROM TROLLHÄTTAN TO MANHATTAN

DETROIT - Saab will introduce the 2010 9-3X at the 2009 New York International Auto Show on April 8, a rugged all-rounder aimed at active individualists seeking an alternative to a large crossover or SUV. It is the vehicle's North American debut, following its world premiere last month at the Geneva Auto Show.

Developed and manufactured at Saab's headquarters in Trollhättan, Sweden, the 9-3X is designed to stylishly transport outdoor enthusiasts to their adventures. It features distinctive looks; a versatile SportCombi body; higher stance; and advanced all-wheel-drive technology. On top of that, the 9-3X also offers fuel efficiency and functional storage without limits on the kinds of roads it can travel.

In the 9-3X, the acclaimed Saab Cross Wheel Drive (XWD) system - which made its debut in the Turbo X limited edition model last year - will be combined with the fuel-efficient 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine. The 9-3X embodies Saab's "EcoPower" technology philosophy, which aims at combining a dynamic driving experience with an efficient use of resources to achieve responsible performance.

Distinctive appeal

Saab designers raised the chassis of the two-wheel-drive 9-3 SportCombi 1.4 inches (35 mm) and added automatic body-leveling so the 9-3X can handle a rugged driving terrain regardless of the load on the rear axle. It is designed for those who frequently travel gravel or unpaved roads, without compromising the driving experience on asphalt.

Sometimes life has a habit of getting in the way, like today. Once again, I'll be out due to work commitments that really suck so writing here will be thin on the ground. The savings grace for me is that all the big news happened last night. I could break it down into 7 different blog posts but together, we put it all in one.

One concern that I've had is that the news media wouldn't cover yesterday's great Saab developments with the same vigour they used when Saab went into reorganisation.

Many have covered the news and quite well, but one that hasn't is Autoblog.

They've also ignored several recent Saab stories that I've emailed to them, so I'm asking for your help to get their attention.

Webmasters like to know what's going on with their sites and if there's a spike in traffic, they usually look to see why. Seeing they've developed this habit of not reading my mail, I'd like to get their attention the internet way and point them towards today's great Saab news.

So.....

Saabs United readers: please click here to visit Autoblog's Saab section and let them know we're thinking of them, hoping they'll spread the good Saab news to a wider audience.

Autoblog writers: please check out the following link to get the run down on what happened in Sweden yesterday.

• Saab Creditors Meeting - GREEN LIGHT

Thanks all.

First of all, I want to thank all the guys in Sweden for keeping us up to date on the aftermath of the creditor's meeting. The news came in thick and fast and once again, Saab's United was the place for non-Swedes to keep pace with what happened, when it happened. I'm extremely thankful for your input.

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So....with the creditors and the court satisfied that Saab have good prospects for the future, is there any further reason for the Swedish government to continue holding out on loan guarantees??

Remember, the Swedish government is a creditor too, and was represented in the court by a taxation representative.

I hope they push hard for these loan guarantees now. It'll make finding a serious, quality buyer that much easier.

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On buyers, it seems the Automotive News and Autoblog reports about Saab having 20 interested buyers were true.

My most recent correspondence with Saab was via a communique received last Friday and at that time, they were still only talking about 10 buyers.

It's a great result for Saab, though, to have so many people to deal with. I hope they're all bringing something good to the table.

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There's been some conjecture about whether Saab can make 130,000 sales again in the near future. I definitely think they can, but it's going to take some bold product decisions and pricing to do it. With GM's legacy costs off Saab's back, though, Im confident they can.

IIRC, the last really good sales year was 2007. Back then, the 9-7x was doing well in the States, but the real reason for the sales bump was the 60th Anniversary models, which featured fantastic equipment at very keen prices.

It's that sort of product decision, combined with a new Saab 9-5 and new Saab 9-4x, that can bring Saab back to 130,000 and hopefully beyond (a TTiD/XWD combination wouldn't hurt, either).

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Speaking of bold decisions....

How much would a half-page ad in the New York Times or the Boston Globe cost?

I'd love to see Saab tell its important markets that it's here to stay. Big bold adverts in key market news publications would really send a message.

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Coverage of the meeting and the outcome:

Automotive News (sub):

A senior tax authority official, representing the Swedish state, as well as a representative of GM, which is also one of the chief creditors to Saab, told the court they supported the plan.

Lofalk said that about 20 potential buyers are looking at the company and that a deal is expected to be completed in June.

"So far, short descriptions of Saab, so-called teasers, have been sent out and comprehensive contacts have been undertaken with different interest parties," he said....

....Lofalk said in a court filing that a concentration of production and the launch of new models would boost capacity utilization at the company while efficiency measures lowered its breakeven level to an annual production rate of 130,000 vehicles.

"Saab also expects a positive cash flow already in 2011 as well as good returns at a production level of 150,000 cars," Lofalk said.

The Local:

It expected volumes to be lower in 2009 and 2010 than in 2008, when Saab built 93,000 cars, but should make 150,000 cars by 2011, owing to three new models that would be rolled out this year and next.

Lofalk said the life cycle of Saab models had been "far too long."

"Saab aims to have shorter life cycles for its products in the future and thereby have more modern cars" to compete in the European premium segment, he said.

I don't know if you can call a 38% decline in sales good news, but I think under the circumstances it's quite possible.

Saab has been seeing sales declines of around 60% in recent months, so a sub-40% in this environment - global recession and reconstruction uncertainty - is quite a result.

March is traditionally a good month for car sales in Britain, and 2009 was no exception with Saab GB leading Saab's global market.

Saab GB sold 2,444 vehicles in March. This was down by 38.7% on the 3,988 vehicles sold in March last year, but that's much better than the current trend for Saab and must have been heartening for the hardworking crew there at Saab GB.

Almost every brand in the British market suffered a decline in sales in March. The only exceptions were Corvette (irrelevant with just 8 sales) and Alfa Romeo (surprise surprise!!). Many brands suffered a much bigger decline than Saab.

So....a sales fall, but congratulations to Saab GB as I'm sure you beat your forecasts!

Thanks Clive!!!

The meeting held in Vanersborg to fill Saab's creditors in as to their reconstruction progress and decide on their immediate future has come and gone - and apparently Saab have the green light to continue.

Whilst 1300 creditors were initially invited to attend, most had been paid and only a few dozen turned up. There was probably more media personnel in attendance, to be honest.

The creditors that turned up asked for a creditors committee to be formed. I don't know the exact purpose of such a group, but I imagine it will be to keep creditors informed as to Saab progress as they continue their reconstruction efforts.

By all accounts, it sounds as though the creditors in attendance were quite positive about Saab's future and willing to support their continued efforts.

Saab also lodged a reconstruction plan with the court and you can view it (in Swedish) here as a pdf file.

If any of you Swedes can summarise the document for us, it would be much appreciated.

One thing I was able to glean from it is some immediate production planning:

There's also a mention there of what looks like a 'breakeven' point at around 130,000 vehicles and a plan to sell around 150,000 vehicles by 2011. Remember, here, that Saab's best ever sales for a year happened just a couple of years ago, with around 135,000 vehicles being sold, so this plan is reasonably ambitious.

Then there's this forward planning:

That first lot looks like it's production in Sweden and the second lot is vehicles that will be developed in Sweden.

It looks like the immediate future is concerned with the 9-3, 9-5 and 9-4x and the lack of a 9-1 in that planning might be disappointing to some, but existence is more important in this situation, I guess, and if the 9-3 is proposed to be smaller, then that might go a long way to satiating the desire for a throw-around Saab.

All in all, it's been a great morning in Sweden for news, then.

Here's to the future!!

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UPDATE:

The latest summary from TTELA:

The reconstruction can continue

Vänersborgs District Court announced BY TWELVE time to Saab's reorganization will continue, but only until the May 20. A creditors' committee is appointed, and this included the representatives of the creditors are General Motors, IAC Sweden, Tax and a staff included.

The media interest was very high and reporters and photographers took up several rows from the floor in Vänersborgs kommunhus when the creditors' meeting took place during Monday morning. The representative of the creditors took up a handful of rows with ten seats on each. The massive influx of over 1 300 creditors did not happen.

President of the Court of Cecilia Tisell started to go through what is applicable to today's meeting. That creditors may request that a creditor committee is appointed. Creditors can also make a requirement that it be terminated, if they do not believe in the new reorganization plan.

When the creditors' meeting was closed after just one hours, none of the creditors' representatives demanded that the reconstruction would cease. In contrast, the number who felt that a creditors' committee should be formed.

Darn this daylight savings change. The meeting has already begun.

You can listen to proceedings on Swedish radio here (thx Dippen)

The comments so far:

* According to news in Swedish media now, documents at the court reveals over 20 "active" interested buyers.

* Saabs debt to GM is bigger than noted in previous documents. Then it was said to be 6 billion SEK. Now it is said to be 9.6 billion SEK.

* There are some 1,300 creditors, but according to journalists only something like 10-20 are present at court this morning.

* From TT

Rolf Åbjörnsson, a lawyer representing Saab and Opel dealers, think that the whole process is very strange given that GM has settled most of the liabilities towards creditors.

- The question is what it is to be reconstructed when the liabilities are largely paid for. There is much that is odd about this. Maybe it is all about buying time and to put pressure on the Government," he told TT.

He is in favor of a continuing reconstruction, despite earlier expressing criticism at the administrator Guy Lofalk.

- Whatever he says in there, I as a representative of the Saab dealers want the reconstruction to continue.

Hans Renman, representing three foreign and two Swedish suppliers, points out what an unusual reconstruction this is.

- I don't know about a similar process where you get paid during the reconstruction. My clients are of course happy because they have been paid for basically everything, but they are also anxious about how Saab sees the future and therefore it should be interesting to hear the reconstruction plan.

Thanks to commenters who have posted so far.

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From TT

...... the media interest is very large and reporters and photographers took up several rows. The representative of the creditors took up a handful of rows with ten seats on each. The massive influx of over 1 300 creditors did not happen.

President of the Court of Cecilia Tisell started to go through what is applicable to today's meeting. That creditors may request that a creditor committee is appointed. Creditors can also make a requirement that it be terminated, if they do not believe in the new reorganization plan.

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Live update from Dipper:

one creditor from Saab Sales - he asks for a creditor committee should be put in place

now a creditor from the swedish tax office (the gov)is asking: " we want a creditor commite and the reconstruction should continue"

The union is asking to be part of the creditor committee

Paul Åkerlund from IF Metall will be part of it, Anette Hellgren also.

breaking news: Magna Styer wants a creditor committee also

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I'll be keeping an eye on the news services, but any live updates you can post here would be much appreciated.

The low turnout from creditors is encouraging.

All is quiet, eh?

The only piece of news that matters today is the creditors meeting that's due to happen in just hours from now. I'll probably be asleep when it all goes down so I'll set up a "make your own news" post for any updates that the Swedes can provide.

There has been an article doing the rounds via AFP today, and it sums up the situation quite nicely.

STOCKHOLM (AFP)--Creditors may seal the fate of beleaguered Swedish car maker Saab AB (SAAB-b.SK) Monday when they gather for a court hearing to determine if the group's legal restructuring process can continue.

Some 1,300 creditors have been summoned to the hearing in the Vaenersborg district court in southwestern Sweden, Swedish news agency TT reports.

Now, as I mentioned over the weekend, the vast majority of Saab's creditors have already been paid, so the original list of 1,300 creditors has been reduced to a large degree. Furthermore, there's a huge list of creditors that are due to be paid tomorrow, so they should be quite happy at the moment as well.

There's still going to be a few, however, and amongst them will be the Swedish government and General Motors themselves.

Back to AFP:

The company's days could be numbered if any one of them opposes the restructuring process that Saab launched on Feb. 20 to stave off bankruptcy and become an independent unit after it was dumped by its owner U.S. car maker General Motors Corp. (GM).

"If a creditor demands (that the restructuring process be halted), the court has to decide whether to do so," one of the court's three judges, Cecilia Tisell, told TT.

The court's decision would then be based on whether Saab's survival plan looks realistic.

"We can halt the restructuring process if we find that the aim is not being achieved," she said.

The thing that worries me is that Swedish government have said all along that they're not willing to support Saab directly because they don't believe in Saab's chances of making a profit. Maud Olofsson has been quite explicit about this, saying things like "if General Motors can't make them profitable, then how could we be expected to make them profitable" or words to that effect.

So if the government still doesn't think Saab have a realistic chance, this is their opportunity to say so and effectively wind up the company. I don't believe that's going to happen, but I've got to recognise the possibility.

A lot will depend on the plans that are presented by Jan-Ake Jonsson and administrator, Guy Lofalk. They've been working away for six weeks now, fine tuning Saab's future and preparing the company for new ownership and I'm quite sure that Jan-Ake would leave no stone unturned.

AFP again:

Should the court find against Saab, the company would either have to declare bankruptcy or find a buyer.

The reorganization is a Swedish legal process headed by an independent administrator appointed by the court who is working with Saab management.

The process allows parts of Saab to survive and could enable suppliers, who would lose all the money owed them by the company if it filed for bankruptcy, to get some money back by agreeing to accept partial repayment.

So, we wait and then wait some more.

April 6, like February 20, could be another red letter day in the modern history of our favourite little car company.

Let's just hope it's a good one.

If you're like me and you keep track of Jalopnik, maybe it seems to you like there's a 24 hours of LeMons race every second week.

There's another race going on this weekend at Carolina Motorsports Park and look at who's leading at the halfway point....

Good luck to RBankRacing.com for day 2.

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I have been a total couch potato today and I've been glued to YouTube watching episodes of Wheelers and Dealers.

You might have previously seen the Saab 900 Edition of the show (note the "thanks to" section in the credits at the end :-) ).

The basic premise is that they look for a modern classic, try to buy it at low cost, fix it up and then sell it at a 'profit'. There's no profit involved if you take the mechanic's time into account, but it's still an interesting process to watch.

The sales guy comes across as a bit greasy but once you get past that it's a really enjoyable show. The mechanic's a blast.

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What got me hooked into it is that I'm still considering what car I should replace the Alfa with later in the year and one of the options I'm thinking about is Mazda MX-5 like this one.

I started looking them up and came across the Wheelers and Dealers episode where they buy one.

I also came across a post on Dan S's Racing Ready blog where he's thinking of picking one up as well.

Must be something in the air.

I'm still considering a Porsche 944, too. Maybe even an older one like this.

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A Sunday Saab-O-The-Week for you.

Spotted on Flickr and titled "Three Types of Transport".

I know which one I'd choose.

Last week I was on the road, which gave me my thrice-yearly opportunity to once again appreciate my hatred of the ubiquitous Australian rental car, the 2008 Toyota Camry.

Modern manufacturing has done many great things for the automobile, but the need for modern profitability has created one of the things I hate most of all - the left-or-right center console. Designers make the center stack so that it can be fitted in either right or left hand drive cars, they save a little bit of money and supposedly, people are happy.

The Camry has it, and plenty of other modern cars have it nowadays as well.

Autobloggers in the US are going ape-droppings over the Ford Fiesta at the moment as Ford are running a brilliant little marketing scam where they've only allowed a limited number into the country and people had to apply to drive them. Supposedly, it's a great little car, and the car-bloggers queued up to create their own Fiesta moments. A few succeeded.

As with the Camry, these short-term Fiesta drivers will be faced with a generic left-or-right center console:

It's not offensive.

My problem with it is that it's impersonal. And whilst it may not be such an issue in a small car like the Fiesta, in a larger car like the Camry the buttons and dials to the far side of the console take a reasonable amount of reaching.

From the Saab 900 onwards, Saab curved their dashboards towards the driver. It was a simple change, but combined with superb ergonomics in terms of control placement, it was a change that made the driver's life one heck of a lot more comfortable and enjoyable.

If you're driving a car that's meant to be driven, then the experience should be enjoyable. A driver's car should be driver focused (which is one of Saab's current brand pillars) and a Saab should always be a driver's car.

Saab took the driver-focused cockpit first conceived in the Saab 900 to a new level when they released the Saab 9000, seen below in Aero form:

.....And they refined it further with the button dash layout in the Saab 9-3 and 9-5, with the 9-3 Sport Sedan version of 2003-2006 shown below:

New cars in the future means new designs and of course, Saab need to be profitable. I hope this need for cash flow doesn't come in the form of a cheaper center console arrangement that takes the focus away from the driver.

Having seen the Saab 9-4x, I'm encouraged by the belief that this won't be the case. The 9-4x featured an evolution of Saab's driver-focused interior and I'm pretty sure it'll be the interior treatment that's used for the 2010 Saab 9-5 as well.

Nevertheless, Saab won't hear it unless it's said - the driver focused nature of the Saab interior is a major selling point. Please don't change it unless those changes make it even better for the driver.

My thanks to Dippen once again for another translation, this time from a brief radio interview given by Eric Geers to Swedish Radio.

I'm quite sure they're all working flat out to get everything ready for Monday's meeting. Eric Geers seems to be pretty happy with how things are going.

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Saab is ready for the meeting with the creditors.

It may be quite empty at Vanersborg court on Monday when the reconstruction team will present a solution to the situation Saab is in. The reason for this is the most of creditors have already been paid.

Saab Exec. Director Communications Eric Geers thinks that there will not be that many creditors on the meeting on Monday and it can even be the case that nobody shows up.

- Then we will go home, and carry on with the reconstruction he says with a smile.

But if someone shows up then Saab is ready to explain the situation.

- We are there to inform about the current status of the reconstruction and to answer any questions asked, says Eric Geers.

Eric Geers means that the best thing that can happen for Saab on Monday is that the judge gives Saab more time.

- What we do expect is that the judge takes a decision and hopefully the decision is that we can continue (with the reconstruction)

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I mentioned a few days ago that the majority of Saab's creditors have been paid and a huge portion of the remainder are due for payment the day after the hearing in Vanersborg. As predicted, this may make for a quiet meeting on Monday, but I'm sure there'll still be plenty of interest.

Creditors may have been paid, but they're still suppliers and still have an interest in what Saab will do in the future - which is what this plan is all about.

If I may be so bold......

My advice to Saab's executive - don't make the same fatal mistakes that GM's executive made at their Senate Committee hearings in Washington. Make sure your full business case is ready. Make sure it's communicated and make sure it's understood.

I work in a field where I'm evaluating people's work every day. The one thing they don't realise is that they know their job better than I do. If I don't understand something then I need them to tell me about it.

It's the same with the judges that will be hearing this submission. You know the car business. They don't. Make them understand.

The following was a report earlier this week in TTELA.

Dippen's kindly provided this translation for us. Thanks mate.

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Saab is gearing up for visit of potential buyers.

There are about 10 potential buyers and in the coming weeks most of them will visit Saab to have a look at the plant.

- We want to make a good impression, says Eric Geers, Saab Exec. Director
Communications

According to him no dates are decided upon yet but we can assume that there will be several visits in the coming weeks.

And even if Eric Geers does not want to comment on who the potential investors are, it appears that he is ready to receive both Swedish and foreign investors.

As TTELA has informed previously, it is not only investors associated with the car industry that have shown interest.

The visits are the next logical step to a possible sale of Saab Automobile. Guy Lofalk, from the reconstruction group informed TTELA last week that extensive information about Saab has already been handed over to the the highest ranked potential investors.

Having in mind that the potential investors will visit Saab there is plenty of activity at Saab. The manufacturing area and offices will be inspected and there will be a presentation of the company for the potential investors.

- We want to do a good impression and therefore we are carefully studying our business plan and preparing the presentation of our business says Eric Geers.

He compares the process, from the potential investors point of view, to that of buying a house.

- Imagine that you want to buy a house. You want all the information available so you can make a decision, says Eric Geers.

But are you, just like buying a house, cleaning and dressing things up just to make a extra good impression?

- No, that is not what this is about. We know what we have and we believe in our product and the business plan that we want to sell, says Eric Geers.

Automotive sales in Canada sure are taking a wierd turn in 2009.

You have companies like Honda and Toyota being way down for the year, whilst Audi, Mercedes and even Saab are in positive territory for the year.

Click to enlarge:

Thanks to Pierre L!

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Nice to see GM Europe are still thinking of Saab on their Driving Conversations blog.

I think they probably picked this up from Flickr. It's entitle Saabs in Poland.

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And finally, a good read from BNet about Saab in the not-so-old-but-not-so-new days.

It's about the plant in Malmo that they used to operate and how it demonstrated all the good and bad things about being a manufacturer in Sweden. Conditions for workers - good. Incentive for workers - bad.

There are some great links in that article, too. It's worth checking a few of them out.

It's the end of another week and I've received a quick update from Sweden as to where things are at. They like to watch the news evolve in the press during the week and then set things as straight as they can.

Investors

I don't know where Autoblog got the number from as they don't cite a source, but in a post today about Saab (a rarity) they're claiming that there's 20 investors currently talking with Saab.

Saab themselves continue to say that there's "more than 10" and that they're both automotive and non-automotive in background and that there's parties from Sweden and beyond involved.

April 6th Creditors meeting

There will be a creditors meeting at 10am on the 6th April which will be administered by the court of Vänersborg. This meeting will act as a „check-point‟ for the court to confirm that reorganization plans are moving forward as expected. Guy Lofalk, who is Saab‟s court-appointed reorganization lawyer, will be reporting on the process and Saab Automobile‟s Managing Director, Jan Åke Jonsson will be presenting the Saab Automobile business plan.

There will also be a chance for registered creditors to ask questions. As a result of this meeting the court will decide whether Saab is on track to continue to the three-month point in the reorganization process. This decision will be made by three Judges and the court‟s ruling may be communicated on the same day or it could be announced a number of days after the meeting.

The wake from SS Obama

The good ship SS Obama sailed through GM's turnaround plan during the week and tore it to shreds. Saab remain unfazed.

Quite simply, in terms of how Saab operates, the current GM situation has not affected our progress. We are still focused on reorganizing effectively, carving out the business and securing investment.

Jan-Ake Jonsson: "Good progress is being made with the reorganization, we are confident in our business plan and the intensity of investor activity is encouraging."

Political news

Saab noted the visit to Washington by Swedish Industry Minister, Maud Olofsson, but had nothing conclusive to pass on about that meeting, with a promise to keep people up to date as concrete news is available.

My thoughts: Size matters

Saab noted comments that their relatively small size could prove to be an attractive point for investors and work to their advantage given the current circumstances facing GM. Industry Ministry secretary Joran Hagglund made comments to this effect and Maud Olofsson went to Washington only to find out that Saab was right off the White House's radar.

New Cars

Previous news from Saab has consistently mentioned the three new cars they'd be releasing in the next 18 months.

My most recent communication with them mentions "four cars in the next two years". I've asked for some clarification.

The original three cars were the 9-3x, 9-4x and 9-5. I would assume that the addition to this list might be a 9-5 wagon but will keep you posted if I hear anything else.

March Sales

Saab have not gone into this reorganisation period with their heads buried in the sand. They knew that sales in 2009 would take a massive hit, which they have.

But they appear to be bouyed by sales in some markets, which are actually better than expected. I imagine Canada might be one of those and preliminary news indicates that the UK might be encouraging this month as well.

The % figures are still down, but in terms of internal targets during reorganisation, many countries are actually very much alive.

The new 9-5

The new Saab 9-5 was driven on public roads around Trollhattan during the week and by senior executives at Saab, too. Needless to say, they were all very pleased with the car.

Summary

Saab are proceeding well in their reorganisation effort and they look forward to the creditors meeting Monday.

Negotiations continue with the Swedish government and discussions with a number of interested investors are also progressing.

The aim continues to be centralising design, engineering and production in Sweden with four new model planned for release in the next two years.

Enough about the politics, eh?

What about the cars?

One of the three new vehicles that Saab will release over the next 18 months is the Saab 9-3x, which has received a great welcome so far from the press and is starting to roll off the production lines as we speak.

Tekniken's Varld drove the vehicle recently and they compared it to one of the main competitors (especially in the Swedish market) - the Volvo XC70.

Scanned pictures from the magazine are available here. My thanks to Tompa for the quick translation.

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In the company's most dire times ever, Saab launch a new model version that already on paper seems left behind. The new 9-3X takes up the terrainlook from amongst others, the Volvo XC70. We find out how much of a SUV the 9-3X really is.

The financial crisis hardly helps Saab that just now are undergoing it´s worst steelbath ever. The reconstruction of the company and search for a new owner might mean that new products come second, while it´s more important than ever to show off.

The "We can"- feeling is strong with the Saab people when we lay our Lovikka mittens on the first 9-3X in the area close to Jukkasjärvi in Lappland. The concept of a hightened Combi, all wheel drive and chunks of glued on plastic á la galonfabric pants have a taste more of millenium change rather than a bright future.

As early as 1998 the Volvo V70 XC was launched and two years later Audi launched it´s A6 Allroad. Internaly Saab has had several all wheel drive X models on the go for quite some time, but General Motors business plan has not always been in sync with Trollhättans "We can" mentality.

- We call the Saab 9-3X "Allrounder" instead of "Cross-over", say Andreas Eskegren, Saab productstrategy. The 9-3X is supposed to deal with most things a small family demand from a Combi.

The 9-3X design may not be super fresh but the newsfactor is present when we study the car. Hightened suspention (35mm) together with other attributes give a all-terrain look. In addition the 2,0T BioPower (210hp/300Nm) can now be combined with XWD- all wheel drive wich at present places it as the only enviro car in it´s segment.

I got an email from a guy named Ruud Blokhuis a few days ago and it was so ........ unbelievable.......that I had to email him back and ask if it was an April Fools Day prank.

It wasn't.

If you're in The Netherlands and you're considering purchasing a Saab at the moment, then I would like to suggest you make your way to a town called Apeldoorn.

View Larger Map

When you get there, look around for Saab Apeldoorn and ask for Ruud. Tell him Swade sent you. This guy deserves your business.

The previous dealer had a combined Saab-Alfa-Seat shop that went under late last year. Ruud and Fernand have re-opened the showroom as a Saab-only store and apparently the feedback from the locals has been very good so far, with some dropping by even before they officially opened their doors on April 1st.

They say that a recession is the best time to start a business. In this case, Ruud and Fernand have got their timing absolutely perfect as the only way to go is up.

I really hope their faith and courage are rewarded and that the locals get behind them. If Saab can make their way through this current situation then Saab Apeldoorn should have a great future. You've got to be passionate to open a showroom in this climate, and passion is what makes for success with a brand like Saab.

My best wishes to Saab Apeldoorn. You guys have kohunas bigger than coconuts!

Actually, it seems like all markets are small markets at the moment......but...

If you've got sales data for your market and you're not in one of the big(ger) three - US, Sweden, UK - then please send in your numbers and I'll add it in here.

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UPDATE

Germany

The German market has actually seen a fairly big rise in the last few months, with a scrapping bonus leading to great results for some companies.

Not for Saab, though.

Saab sold 197 vehicles in March, down by 54% from last year.

In the 1st Quarter of 2009, they've sold 427 vehicles, down by 58% from last year.

Thanks Till!

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Canada

I know I've already mentioned it, but it's a small market and it was GOOD news so I thought I'd push it again.

I'm not sure what the final numbers are for the month - they'd be rather small, I think - but Saab Canada recorded a 126% sales rise in March compared with March last year.

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Australia

I've seen single months where Saab sold more here in Australia than they've sold in the first quarter of this year.

That said, it must have been a better month in March compared to January and February as they sold nearly half the quarter's volume in one month.

Saab Oz sold 71 cars in March (54 9-3 hardtops, 15 convertibles and 2 9-5s) and have sold 148 for the year so far. The equivalent 2008 numbers were 114 (for the month) and 344 (for the quarter).

Thanks Kurt!

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Netherlands

The Dutch market has fallen by around 25% however as in other markets, it's a tougher story for Saab. Sales this year are around one third of last year's and 2008 was way down on the year before.

Saab's sales are affected to some degree by the trouble Kroymans are in right now. A division of Kroymans went in to receivership recently and dealerships are having trouble getting vehicles into the market.

Saab sold just 42 vehicles in March, less than a quarter of the number sold in the same month last year (181). There have been 340 cars sold so far this year, down from 857 for the first quarter in 2008.

Thanks Albert!

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Norway

Uncertainty weighs heavy in Norway, too.

Saab sold just 34 vehicles in March (7 of the 9-5 and 27 of the 9-3) compared to 106 vehicles sold in the same month last year.

There have been 118 Saabs sold in Norway this year so far.

Thanks Per!

Ah, if only I could get into a 99T again.......they're still my favourite old Saab.

I've owned two Saab 99 Turbos in my lifetime and the better of the two, a Cardinal Red model that was as close to pristine original as you can get, has recently changed hands and been purchased by a young fella in Queensland.

Simon sounds suitably pleased with his purchase (though less pleased with the insurance hassles) and has created a website to chart the journey.

This is the car, a beautiful 1978 99 Turbo that I owned briefly in 2005. I sold it to a guy from the Blue Mountains, who's done a little work here and there and put it up for sale some time last year.

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Those familiar with website operation would be acquainted with the concept of the "long tail". That is, you create well-written content that gets referenced by many people and as time goes on, your old material gets served up again and again, thereby having repeated potential to earn you an income.

I wonder if the producers and presenters of the classic Saab 99 Turbo review from the late 1970's ever realised the lasting impression that review would create.

If you could go back in time and tell the producers that their review would end up on the internet and be viewed by a guy who wasn't even born yet on a site called YouTube and that viewing it would lead to unborn-guy purchasing a Saab 99 Turbo, they'd probably stare at you like you were mad and then say "what the heck's an internet?????"

That's pretty much what happened, though. Simon, with some encouragement from a university contact (and SU regular, Ben K), got interested in old Saabs, saw the video and got really interested, got familiar with the only Saab 99T that was for sale here in Oz - and now he's ended up buying it.

Congratulations, Simon. Enjoy it and make sure you sell it back to me when it becomes too much of a burden.

I've had limited online time in the last 5 days or so, so this is my effort at tying together the recent news stories surrounding Saab's effort at reconstruction and the possible sale to a new owner.

there's a good chance you'll already have encountered some of these stories in the news, but I'll try and tie them all together to make some sense.

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Saab and the IF Metall union have both recently said that there are around 10 investors looking into the possibility of buying Saab.

Swedish Industry Ministry Secretary, Joran Hagglund, came out earlier today and said there's around 3 to 5 interested parties.

The difference?

Hagglund is contending that of these interested parties, only around half are actually serious about a possible Saab purchase. The rest are just trying to get a peek up Saab's skirt to see what's going on. My words, not his.

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Everything comes to a crunch on Monday, April 6, when Saab creditors are invited to Vanersborg to hear the latest progress report on Saab's court-protected reconstruction process.

Maud Olofsson, who hasn't exactly been a supporter of Saab in the last six weeks, is currently in the US and has been speaking to the administration there to try and gain assurances that their kicking of GM's ass won't have a detrimental effect on Saab's potential sale.

Why would she be interested in that?

Some (all?) of Saab's Swedish wage bill has been covered by the government since reconstruction began. If Saab can't be sold, that money disappears into thin air. If Saab CAN be sold, then the new owner has to repay that money. That's a good thing, as it means that Maud has some skin in the game, however insignificant it is.

April 6 is going to be a big moment for Maud Olofsson, however. Bigger than we all might have anticipated.

At that meeting, Saab's creditors can ask the judge to wind up proceedings if they're not convinced that Saab have chance of making it. That group of creditors has shrunk significantly in the last week or so, however, because GM have come up with payments to suppliers.

They've already paid 908 million to over 1,300 suppliers and the remain 471 suppliers are due to get paid on April 7th, the day after the hearing in Vanersborg.

That makes for a lot of relatively happy suppliers, but one remains and she's got a grumpy demeanour and a liking towards wind farms - Maud Olofsson.

With so many creditors being paid, one of Saab's last remaining and biggest creditors will be the Swedish government. THEY can ask the judge to wind things up if they're not happy.

So April 6th will be an interesting time. It's time for Maud to either poop, or get off the pot. With a wages bill outstanding and the reality of killing a national icon looming, I'm predicting she'll do the latter.

Reason 1

Supposed Saab-fan and new GM chief, Fritz Henderson, has inferred that Saab are part of a "Bad GM" stable. He didn't say that directly, but you'll get what I mean:

Henderson ruled out the idea of spinning off its Buick brand or any other brand not already targeted by the company's restructuring plan -- Saab, Hummer and Saturn.

"It's part of the good GM," Henderson said of Buick. "It's a core brand."

Henderson was speaking to the Detroit News.

It's alright, Fritz. It's a club we can't wait to get out of anyway.

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Reason 2

Despite being launched on April 1, GM's Total Confidence plan for prospective buyers was not a joke.

The plan combines GM warranty coverage and Onstar with two new initiatives.....

• Payment Protection: where your payments will be made for you for up to 9 months if you get laid off within the first 21 months of vehicle ownership. Interestingly, GM employees are not eligible.
• Vehicle Value Protection: where they'll fiddle the books and make up some value if you pay half your lease and then want to trade up.

Now, I've got no problem if GM want to kid themselves with names like Total Confidence and I'm sure some people will benefit from this.

I DO have a problem with GM excluding Saab cars from this new plan and then proceeding to use an image of a Saab car in its promotion.

It's a small matter, but a matter of honour nonetheless.

Well done to the guys in comments who pointed this out.

"We'll provide you with all these benefits, except we won't if you buy the good looking car in the picture."

Hypocrisy at it's best.

First, to the good news.

A real-life, non-April fools Saab sales rise!!

My thanks to Saab Canada for giving us something to smile about with a 126% sales rise in March 2009. That's off a pretty small base, so take little notice of the large percentage.

But anyone posting a sales rise at the moment gets a tip from my hat!

thanks Kroum!

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And to the United States........

Saab sales were down once again and we all know why so I won't keep spinning the record (I'm also pretty busy with real work - go figure!)

Total Saab sales were down by 57.3% in March 2009, with 1,265 vehicles sold for the month compared with 2,962 in the same month last year.

Individual models:

Saab 9-3

Down 67.7%

689 vehicles sold vs 2,133 last year.

Saab 9-5

Down 48.4%

163 vehicles sold vs 316 last year

Saab 9-7x

Down 19.5%

413 vehicles sold vs 513 last year.

Yes, the Saab 9-7x was just 276 units away from being the best-selling Saab in the United States last month.

I'd like to extend an official welcome to Hirsch Performance - Saab's own official tuning house - as supporters of Saabs United!

I'm quite chuffed to have these verifiably mad Swiss tuning masters supporting the site. Not only are they sponsors, they're also the ECU tweakers for my Saab 9-3 Monte Carlo. Yes, I've managed to grab a no-longer-for-sale Hirsch Trionic 5 ECU for the Monte and it will be installed soon. I can't wait.

What follows is the April 2009 newsletter from Hirsch. They have a number of new products and a number of special offers available at the moment.

I'm hoping we'll have some more Hirsch news relating to wider availability to share in the not-too-distant future, too.

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01. XWD exhaust system

New: Stainless steel dual sports exhaust system for all Saab 9-3 XWD

The best sounding Saab ever. Despite the distinctively sporty sound, the Hirsch Performance sports exhaust for the 2.0T and 2.8 V6 XWD has been finely tuned to avoid the typical booming at motorway speeds that can be an annoying companion for many sports exhausts. These exhaust systems were developed for the recently launched Saab 9-3 Performance by Hirsch special edition vehicle.

The sound could be described, but really needs to be experienced.

As an option, the exhaust system is also available as a set together with the new Hirsch Performance rear diffusor.

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02. Suspension for XWD

A sport suspension from Hirsch Performance is now available for all Saab 9-3 2.0T XWD and Saab 9-3 2.8 V6 XWD cars. Just like the original XWD suspension, both systems are delivered including self-levelling rear dampers.

Hirsch Performance sport suspensions lower the centre of gravity, thus improving handling and braking performance, as well as creating a sporty stance. The suspensions have been developed to ensure that comfort and handling are well balanced, and that the Saab safety systems operate correctly under extreme conditions.

The sport suspension will lower the Saab 9-3 2.0T XWD 25mm in the front and 10mm in the rear.
The sport suspension will lower the Saab 9-3 2.8 V6 XWD 25mm in the front and 15mm in the rear.

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03. Springtime for wheels

10% Springtime discount on all Hirsch Performance wheels

The beautiful spring weather is attracting people outside, and also onto the open roads. What could be a better time to either replace the winter equipment with summer wheels or just to upgrade the driving experience with lightweight 18" or 19" wheels?

To make the upgrade decision easier, Hirsch Performance offers a 10% special discount on all wheels.

Order today, as the discount is available only until the end of May !

The 10% springtime discount on wheels cannot be cumulated or combined with other discounts.

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04. Saab 9-5 Styling

The Saab 9-5 is an insider favourite among business professionals who spend a lot of time on the road.

Comfortable, safe and economical with plenty of space. To make the driving experience a bit more interesting and create a sportier, more individual look, Hirsch Performance is now - for a limited time only - offering an attractive deal on styling products:

Buy one of the following:

• a TiD dual sports exhaust (since diesel engines can sound pretty cool, too)
• or a sports suspension (Saab 9-5 MY02-)
• or a set of 18-inch Hirsch wheels (Saab 9-5 MY02-)

- and receive the matte chrome grill (MY06-) or mesh grill (MY02-05) free of charge.

Mesh grill MY02-05, value Euro 250.00, matte chrome grill MY06- value Euro 300.00 (RRP excl. VAT, promotion valid till end of May)

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05. 9-3 V6 Styling

Hirsch Performance has put together an attractive styling portfolio for the most glamourous model in the Saab range, the 9-3 V6.

The bootlid spoiler or roof spoiler and diffusor give the rear a sportier appearance, which coupled with the powerful look of the large twin exhausts, the Hirsch 18" wheels with Michelin PS2, and the lowered suspension make a truly stylish impression.

Get a 10% discount on all Saab 9-3 2.8 V6 exhaust and suspension products. (promotion valid till end of May)

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06. Special offer - Software performance upgrades for used cars

Since December 1, 2008, a 30% discount is offered on all Hirsch Performance software performance upgrades for vehicles from MY05 and older. Thanks to the positive response and high demand, this promotion is continued.

This special offer gives owners of used Saabs a chance to enjoy the Hirsch Performance driving experience at a very attractive price.

The offer is valid for software upgrades for the Saab 9-3 and Saab 9-5 from MY05 and older. The recommended retail price* is reduced 30% .

Click here to view available upgrades per vehicle type, model year and market

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07. 280hp upgrade back in stock

The 280hp upgrade for the MY02-05 Saab 9-5 Aero which due to unexpectedly high demand has been temporarily out of stock is now available again.

The April Fools Day jokes are coming out thick and fast on the automotive interwebs today.

The Autoextremist is now going to head up a new Chinese motoring consortium that'll swallow both GM and Chrysler, called Fu-king Motors.

Swedish tuning company BSR have a new electric assist motor that they can attach to your car for an extra 30hp.

And with just 59 days to go before bankruptcy restructuring, GM have a new car-buying incentive program they're calling Total Confidence.

What? That last one isn't a joke?

Wow.

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American Saab nuts considering a purchase at the moment (are you out there?) should read up on the tax break you can get on your 2009 income tax return if you bought/buy a qualifying car between Fenruary 16th and January 1st 2009.

The deduction is limited to the state and local sales and excise taxes paid on up to $49,500 of the purchase price of a qualified new car, light truck, motor home or motorcycle.

The amount of the deduction is phased out for taxpayers whose modified adjusted gross income is between $125,000 and $135,000 for individual filers and between $250,000 and $260,000 for joint filers.

I thought there might be a hitch on the "qualified new car" terminology, but it seems like the only limitations are the price and the qualifying purchase period.

So if you're thinking of it, go see your local Saab dealer and make him/her smile.

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Speaking of Saab dealers.....

After I noted that Justin Lin, the guy behind the new Fast and the Furious movie, drives a Saab, I got an email from Anthony R at Martin Cadillac/Saab of Beverley Hills.

Anthony's the guy who put Justin Lin into his Turbo X last year and says that Justin chose the Turbo X in favour of a BMW 5-series, in large part because of the large number of Beemers already on the road in LA.

Thanks Anthony and hang in there, bud!

Any other dealers put a celeb in a Saab? Apparently Billy Gates drives one. Who sold that?

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A Saab 9-3x spotted on Flickr.

That looks like the carpark just downslope from the Saab Museum to me.

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I'm still catching up on all the news I've missed in the last few days due to living in a cave. I'll hopefully get up to speed soon.

Saab sales rose by 50% in March 2009 thanks to a sympathetic Swedish public listening to submliminal messages in a recent speech by Maud Olofsson.

Whilst people thought she was saying "Rick Wagoner's a very naughty boy" there was a secret message at an alternate frequency, previously only audible to those living in the rugged Canadian Nanuvut territory whilst they were chewing fish. The secret alternate message was "I had my first kiss in a Volvo", which drove a large number of unsuspecting and sympathetic listeners into Saab showrooms, albeit with a desire to chew raw fish.

OK, none of the above actually happened, although Maul Olofsson may well have shared her first kiss in a Volvo. I wasn't there, so I don't know.

April fools???!!!!

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March's sales data was every bit as miserable as previous months since this whole GM's going to let Saab drift thing happened. Whlst you and I might be happy about it, the market's a little scared and when you combine fear of a car company with fear about the economy in general, you get low sales.

CTM has slotted them into comments and here they are again for your perusal.

Sweden March 09

Total market: -23%

1: Volvo V70
2: Volvo V50
3: VW GOlf
4: VW Passat
5: Ford Focus
6: Saab 9-3 - 390 (1188) - down 67% / YTD: down 63%
7: Kia Cee'd
8: Toyota Avensis
9: Audi A4
10: Saab 9-5 - 279 (664) - down 58% / YTD: down 56%

Saab's market share now under 5%.

Cadillac BLS: 1 sold car in March (-94%) and 2 so far this year (-98%).

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Well, at least we can still rag on Cadillac.

At this pace they'll need two hands to count their sales for the year!

Thanks ctm!

Hey all,

Sorry for the 24 hour gap. One of the bad thing about being in Tassie is the number of hotels with web access is pretty small. It's even worse when you stay at a place that claims to have access, but their access doesn't work for you.

So, I'm switching hotels today. The thought of another sleepless night wondering if I'd wake up to headlines I hadn't covered is a little hard to take.

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Justin Lin, the guy behind the latest Fast and Furious movie, drives a Saab.

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If you didn't catch the story in comments, the 10 or so potential buyers who are interested in Saab are now known to the IF Metall union. Apparently they're coming in to Saab to have a look around soon.

It's all beginning to happen. And with a 60 day deadline hanging over GM's head, I reckon they'll be keen for it to happen quickly, too.

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The next big date on Saab's calendar is Monday, April 6. That's the date of the big creditor's meeting to look over Saab's current situation and decide if they should continue on their current restructuring course.

There is an article in the Stockholm News about this next landmark date. Recommended reading.

The district court decides if the plan for restructuring holds. The creditors' meeting will be held at the session chamber of the municipal council in Vänersborg, since the interest from media and employees is believed to be massive.

Up to three judges could participate. District court judge Cecilia Tisell is one of them.

- There has to be a viable business concept. The proposal has to be persistent and realistic. The creditors' views are important, she says to news agency TT.

According to Swedish law shall the restructuring end if the official trustee or a creditor asks for it and "the objective with the restructuring is not considered to be reached".

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Semi-normal services should resume this evening. Thanks for your patience.