It’s two minutes to midnight, people. The waiting really is the hardest part, isn’t it?
Sorry, double musical cliche there, but only one worth the link IMHO.
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The situation as it stands now:
- A lot of sources are reporting at least two, and some of them three, potential buyers for Saab. BAIC and Merbanco have been mentioned regularly. We know that Merbanco is definitely interested and BAIC have said they’re “assessing their options”. Renco have also been mentioned in some reports, but there’s been no confirmation from anyone there.
- My own source at Saab said last Friday that they’ve had talks “with more groups than what’s been reported”
- The Industry Ministry Secretary, Joran Hagglund, has hopped on a plane for Detroit, apparently in order to assure GM that the Swedish government remains prepared to honor loan guarantees for an EIB loan should a buyer who passes muster with the EIB be selected. “If the new buyer were to use the funds in the same way, for energy efficiency and green technology projects, the loan approval process could be quite quick,” Hagglund said. “There’d be no need to start at step one.”
- Jan-Ake Jonsson and other Saab execs are also Detroit-bound to make a presentation for Saab’s future. Godspeed, fellas.
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Here’s a question worth pondering……
Have the Koenigsegg Group left the building yet?
GM have a decision to make in the next 48 hours and chances are they’ve got a group of proposals in front of them right now. But what if they don’t like any of them?
The Swedish government have had extensive dealing with Koenigsegg and they know the plans they had and the reasons why they felt compelled to pull out. If push comes to shove and GM don’t like what they see, will the government simply let the cards fall where they may, or will they do what they should have done months ago and get motivated?
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And what if GM decide to keep the brand for themselves? Is this a realistic option for a bankrupted and government-owned GM?
And what would it mean for us?
Personally, I really don’t know. Not to be too melodramatic, but that’s a question I’d rather not ponder.
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Let’s say you’ve got a freebie option.
You can decide one model that you’d like Saab to build in the next 2-3 years. The options are wide open as to the style and class of vehicle. SUV, coupe, roadster, sport sedan – anything’s open.
The future of the company does NOT depend on your decision. You can play the whole field.
What do you build?
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{ 56 comments }
“It’s two minutes to midnight, people”
Swade, can’t understand your youtube link. I’m not allowed to see, some copyright issue.
Thanks you’re covering all this mess.
Do you think any action from Swedish Government is starting up ?
All that is left after the Koenigsegg pull out are questionmarks, I guess.
Have tried a different link, Wilfried. Up the Irons!!!!
I think SAAB should build a proper SUV, a SAAB UNIQUE VEHICLE
With many bells a whistles but lots of soul.
K-G with Merbanco as a majority shareholder. Interesting.
What Saab to build? Take that 9-X Air, dust it off put a proper interior in it and some wing mirrors and market it as a roadster that would show the world what saab is capable of doing.
@me, love that idea my friend.
Perhaps Koenigsegg haven’t totally left the building? A little bit of naivety and poor choice of partners in the group, was all that really failed them.
I’d like Saab to build a new hatch/coupe. It’s what I’ve been waiting for.
I still don’t think SUVs are Saabs territory, especially if someone else (like GM) has to build them for it. I suppose there will be some takers, but I really think the 9-5x and the next gen 9-3x will cover most bases.
I posted a comment on how Saab is not going to survive in the Q&A with Johnson. It was way down but I wonder what you guys think…
GM is not going to keep the brand. There’s a new obsession in Detroit to keep things lean and focused. Jonnson can’t do anything – even the most creative accounting can’t show profitability any time soon.
If I were GM with an affinity for the brand, I’d kill the company as is now. Then after the company was dissolved, I’d buy back certain assets at a discount rate and create a very lean, niche company with cars that resemble the Aero X more than the 9-3 and price the models for about $100-200,000 US. I’d market it as Saab was always marketed – rugged, minimalist but very sleek, efficient and practical cars. Only this time, it’d be competing against high end buyers.
Over the course of 5-10 years, as the brand gained strength and most importantly, maintained profitability, I’d market it down like the porsche cayenne.(in principle, not in execution – the cayenne SUV is awful as a car guy) Like Porsche, I’d eventually trickle the brand down to a more luxury mid-range of $50,000 priced cars and use the tech from the halo range of cars to spruce it up. I’d never make a “cheap” Saab and I’d never violate the brand image as badly as GM did.
In response to the last issue, I’d definitely make an Aero X type car. The super-rich still have money but in this age, a Lamborghini just doesn’t seem right. A aero X with a cockpit canopy will definitely have the high rollers queuing/drooling for it if its marketed right. Although I can’t afford it (now) – just seeing the damn thing gunning it on the highway would make my day.
Me, I agree. If Saab could build a totally unique SUV, that would be great. Not just something GM decided should be in Saab’s range.
Exactly my thoughts, Zippy. K-egg Group supported financially by Merbanco. Seems like the ideal combination to me.
+1 to those who said the unique SUV. The XC60 is out now and you know what, it looks quite gorgeous. I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t buy one (if I have the funds). The 9-4X needs to launch ASAP and its successor, a true BioPower hybrid (+ a diesel hybrid), needs to follow for the global market.
Swade, thanks for make the link visible.
I doubt that life after death will be so energetic.
I do not believe in the purgatorium either, before entering hell. When it is over, it is over. Game out.
Would be cool to end like porsche with 7 bn € (over 10 bn $) debts and being bought by VW.
BTW, Lambo don’t attract people as it looks like a Audi in the inside, same buttons, levers, same AC control display.
Markac, I didn’t meant SAAB should build a SUV, but tried to give the acronym a new meaning.
To me the 9-3X CONCEPT from 2002 is the way SAAB should go in terms of SUV, but on the other side I’m hopping the 9-4X will find lots of buyers in the USofA.
Dude, a new 900 / 9-3 inspired hatch !!!!!
:-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-)
What’s wrong with you people….. SUV whatever blah blah blah….
PS: I still like the idea of a Koenigg-Saab, maybe it can still happen?
Bring.Back.The.Hatch.
As I’m one of many unemployed Swedes at the moment, I’ve come to appreciate my 96 V4s low fuel consumption.
So my suggestion would be a small family car, Golf-size. Still a proper car, but more in line what is bought in Europe at the moment. A car made from scratch with good aerodynamics and low weight in mind. With a variety of engines/enginetypes, all as efficient as possible and one clearly aiming at low consumption. 3.XL/100km.
It would make up for lack of power by being fun to use. In appearance, road holding and image.
Now I just have to make Saab give me the job i’m missing so I can get cracking
/mech. engineer
I agree with Mike900…BRING BACK A HATCH!!!
Preferably a 9-5 5-door.
The 9-3x Crossover Coupe concept was a lost opportunity for Saab (thanks GM). An SUV type car incorporating elements of the 9-3x CC and the original 9X is the kind of SUV Saab should build. Perhaps the next gen 9-3x? By then I think the 9-4x will have come to the end of a relatively short life. I’d give it 3-4 years at best. I’m sure GM will have replaced it’s Caddy sister by then, and I don’t think Saab will follow suit.
Mike, I’m certainly not backing SUVs, but I did like the 9-3x CC concept which wasn’t an SUV anyway. I really like CJ’s idea of a re-made 900 Aero twin turbo. 3dr hatch please!
Replacing the 9-3SS and getting it right, has to be the most important task for any new owner of Saab. Anything else is superfluous at the moment.
If the brand is doing fine, then I would argue for a new Sonnet. Preferably midengined and rwd. Hybrid available for those that believe in Global warming and that buying hybrids will save them/us, turbo-4 or 6 for the rest of us.
9-1 as a entry car, somewhere between Mini and Golf in size. FWD, XWD, turbo engines, again hybrid(s). 3/5 doors vriants.
9-5 GT coupe. I’d like that, but it would have to be V6 or V8 engined to play with the big boys. Incorporated Aero X styling in some details.
to William: ..and we call it..; the new Saab 90 !
I’ve always driven Saabs because I was always more interested in airplanes than cars, so for me the choice 25 years ago was easy… (99T>900T>9000T>9-5V6t>..)
So what I would like to see them built is a very aviation-inspired car, especially the interior/dash, with preferrebly a V6 twinturbo (one that gives that typical turbine-like push in the back, like the old 9000 Aero did..).
@ AutoAnal…you say “I’d never make a “cheap” Saab and I’d never violate the brand image as badly as GM did.”
You really think the current ( even + 5 years) market could support MORE high end ($100k +) cars?
And in the other statement, you said CJ could never be able to make this happen…. If Saab is so in the tank, why did the Koenisegg deal make it as far as it did with as much backing as it did?
and you say GM should dissolve Saab and then BUY BACK assets at bargain basement prices… Will it not cost GM Billions to shut Saab down? Why would they pay to shut down, the PAY AGAIN to buy things they already own now?
PS; the Show Must Go On…
very fitting video, superb machine…!
Good Luck CJ..!
If it was my choice on what SAAB should build next. I’d go for a smaller hatch vehicle. I’m not usually an advocate for hatches, but think about it. A lot of people in the world are down sizing their cars because of fuel prices, so it would only be right to add a smaller, more fuel efficient yet practical car to SAAB’s portfolio right? Thats my 2 cents anyway
My ideal … something I’d actually buy given my needs & circumstances. A 9-3 based hatch … with a twin turbo 4 cylinder diesel engine – maybe diesel hybrid? Something that’s practical in terms of carrying passengers/payload, goes like stink and doesn’t bankrupt me filling up the tank every 2nd day.
9-1, make an entry level Saab. Price it so it’s affordable. New Saab customers.
My daughter is in the market for an SUV.
My wife wants a new 9-5.
I am just fine with a 9-3.
Make service as good as Apple.
Hard to decide between a 9-1 and a new 9-3.
The little hatch would compete in new territory for Saab, so hopefully find some new customers… plus a lower cost of entry would help in the current economic climate.
On the other hand, a well designed 9-3 range including a 3-door Coupe, 4 door saloon and 5 door SportCombi, multiple turbo’d and twin-turbo’d petrol, diesel and plugin hybrid engines and FWD/XWD drivetrains would refocus the marque to what it is known for, plus you’d cover a lot of market segments with the one platform. A 1.8t FWD 5 door SportCombi could be the affordable, stylish and safe family runabout… a 2.0T+Hybrid saloon the eco-conscious premium commuter/business car… a 3-door 2.8 twin turbo V6 XWD coupe could be a BMW M3/Audi RS4 competing hero car.
Saab used to be good at getting a lot of mileage out of a single model line, remember?
With those two models sorted it’s a toss up between a 7-seat X3-sized SUV and a 2-seat roadster AKA return of the 94/Sonnett; market would dictate the former, I’d prefer the latter.
I want the real version of the 9-3x or 9-x designed a few years back, except with much more futuristic styling. XWD, hatch functionality, upright seating, higher than the current 9-3x but raked so it competes in the same class as the BMW X1 and Range Rover LRX.
I would like to see Saab build a 9-3 using the existing sedan epsilon architecture, drop in a twin turbo 400hp v-6 with xwd, 6 speed manual, install the Hirsch suspension currently offered by that company as an upgrade to the current suspension, and call it the Viggen. This is the car the Turbo X should have been. Let’s have the Viggen line comparable to BMW’s M models or Audi’s S line of vehicles. I would order one immediately!
i had a feeling about K-G too but with all the media coverage on them, could they reinsert themselves?
i was very encouraged my k-G’s business plan and even more encouraged to find out it is mostly Saabs!!
What I would love… a XWD drive C900 with the pneumatic valve timing and hydraulic hybrid and the 6 speed manual. And make a car without bluetooth and satellite radio. Instead include boost and turbo gages.
I have been a 9-5 driver since ’99, 9000′s before those, 900′s before those, after five 9-5′s and pretty fed up with ten years of the same platform,i choose the Turbo X last year, it was a great choice.
In comparison, the old 9-5 was sluggish without the XWD and ELSD. Sure now the new 9-5 will be my choice nest year with XWD and ELSD et al………….
but for Saab the 9-3 would have to be the model of choice if just manufacturing one vehicle, it is the one that sells……..
and Europe, Asia, lovers of smaller cars and maybe more so in the future the US will be looking for more downsized vehicles…. Let’s hope.
Saab will continue to Live On, no doubt about it.
Bring back the Hatch! Make it a 9-3. Give the consumer a choice fuel efficient yet powerful 4 cylinder turbo front wheel drive or super powerful 6 cylinder TurboX AWD !! after a while bring back the 9-5 again offering a choice between 6 cylinder luxury cruiser or 6 cylinder high performance monster that can compete with the BMW M3 (when they had 6 cylinders). The SAAB would be more fuel efficient slightly less powerful but superior in in other performance comparisons. Audi is already doing this with much success. The only problem is they are uglier than any SAAB (past or present) The Audis will be uglier than BMW once their new design comes out.
That 9-X/hatch concept someone made up here a while back would be good! I’d buy that. It was great looking.
Swade I greatly enjoy how you try to examine every possible option in terms of buyers for SAAB!
As for my ideal Saab vehicle (aside from the hand built by koeniggSAAB aero X) I’d love to see a small 9-1 type hatchback to battle the Cooper S/A1. something with a 1.8L or the current 2.0L turbo.
Its a growing segment and I think SAAB could tap into a new demographic that would LOVE SAAB’s “saabiness”
Hatch, for Christmas’ sake. Saab needs to build what Saab is famous for!
i would like to see Saab build some stylish sports seden without compromising too much comfrot to start with; we always have to be cautious and conservative at the beginning. Then add some Halo models like the 9-3s equivalent to M3/c63 and the 9-5s equivalent to M5/e63 to boost up the brand image. Once we start to make profit, we can consider building the 9-1 to attract younger customers and a sports coupe/roadster, or even the Aero X to attract customers looking for higher-end/more performance oriented products.
Aero X and Aero X sedan! The sedan should look very much like 2 doors were added to the car w/out any other change. kinda like the Porsche. Doesn’t have to be Porsche cost level. Price it around the price of an M3. HP= 300 to 375. v6 twin turbo XWD!
1980ies 900 Aero the legendary black turbo remake with all new technology.
Back in black!
That would be something.
Saab won an award for lean production only a few months ago.
As for your statement about “creative accounting”, you make it sound as if Saab wasn’t profitable.
Creative accounting is exactly why Saab’s books showed a loss as late as 2007. In reality, if you “creatively” factor in sales of Saabs in the US, then suddenly Saab shows a nice profit in 2007. We know basically nothing about the preceding years. If the same accounting practices were carried out back then, then we may never know the true story about Saab’s profits (or losses).
Given that Saab finally have a refreshed portfolio, and have gained a lot of attention and publicitiy recently, I think it is not far fetched to see them return to profitability.
As for the car of my dreams, I think it would have to be a 9-3 sedan (based on an up to date platform) with XWD, BioPower100 (one that handles E85 as efficiently as regular 95 octane gasoline), twin turbo, all the nice new technology from the 9-5 and I’d like it to be solid while retaining sport-like performance.
If SAAB made an Aero-X the showpiece in their collection with these specs they would sell like hell for a good price, strengthen the brand and pave way for the other cars in their line up.
With a carbon fiber body, it would be light, thus low on consumption of its E85 BioPower, It would also be safe as a F1 car, car lost but the driver unharmed.
Put XWD, e-LSD and all the high end tech as Xenon light, video mirrors, head up etc in it and apply a triple stage turbo (the first extremely small for low revs, mid size for mid range and the third stage for the overtake of the Porsches and K-seggs). Include an obligatory (?) SAAB week in Trollhättan when picking the vehicle up including all kinds of driving lessons (fast, safe, handling, real elk tests, responsible etc), SAAB history, museum, and a VIP treat including a little mind blowing trip in a JAS 39 Gripen for starters.
Isn’t it great to dream?
my dream car is right now a NG9-3 or a 9-1 with 1.6T -2.0T XWD:)
The car that is imho the logical next evolutionary step, is a plug-in hybrid. It will not be possible within the given time frame, though, because batteries are not yet up to the task.
Batteries should not weigh more than 100 kg, and should fit neatly under the trunk or back seats, yet deliver enough energy for a range of 150 km; and I mean realistic range, not driving through the Australian dessert at 50 km/h (Tesla Roadster), i.e. also cruising 160 km/h at the motorway.
Additionally, the car should have a Diesel engine delievering about 120 kW.
The aerodynamics must get much better than present day Saabs, including the new 9-5. I would suggest a drag coefficient of not worse than 0.26, assuming average width and height. Such drag cannot be achieved with a wagon, imo, so we will need a hatch; to me, still the best compromise between aerodynamics and “cargo-ing”.
9-1 Hatch, Air
9-3 Hatch, Air, SportCombi plus 9-3x
9-5 Hatch, Sedan, SportCombi plus 9-5x
New Sonett
And maybe some 9-4x
With a focus on efficient, sporty engines and some hybrid or maybe electric versions.
Cowboy up!
I want them to build:
A completely mental:
Xwd
Hatch, comes in 2 door only
400bhp
resurrect the Viggen name
Aim it squarely at RS4 and M3 territory
yes bring back the Viggen!
The next one should be lighter. Very much lighter.
1.Lots of thoughts come to my mind in these hard days but I think this one is important:
I don’t believe GM even thinks of closing Trolhattan unit. If we consider moving 9-5/9-3 cabrio tooling from Germany/Austria…. They wouldn’t do it only basing on belief that Koenigsegg deal will succeed. GM knows Saab’s value and they know that they will find a buyer for it.They just realized that they don’t need it in their mosaic of brands. Let’s wait patiently for what is going to happen. I’m sure Saab will still make cars.
2.I’m for Merbanco. After Swade’s first interview with CJ shortly after K-segg was told the “winner” it was clear that CJ has more passion and understanding of Saab. No problem they have no experience in car industry. Saab has got good management and technical people. They need investment, good economical planning and some marketing.
3. BAIC would be a perfect option for…. Opel.
I can imagine new generation Opel Corsa commercial: “Now you can buy it 35% cheaper” (thanks to parts made in China). Not an owner for Saab whose whole history is a history of innovations. Someone who is in need of technology himself will not be able to contribute in modern solutions in near future. Saab history was the history of innovations and Saabs future should be also like that.
There’s one other option: completely fold SAAB into Opel/Vauxhall, integrate Trolhättan into GME’s manufacturing base and essentially have flexible plants producing higher volume Opels/Vauxhalls and lower volume SAABs in parallel. Design operations could still be autonomous, as to retain brand character.
Pedro: That would have been good before according to me, but I think it is very unlikely now. I would be surprised.
For me, I’d ask them to first build a 9-3 coupe/hatch, something along the lines of the new VW Scirocco. Fast, economic, spacious and VERY well built. We need to put away the “not as well built as Audi” situation, with great styled and constructed interiors using high quality materials (the week point with the existing 9-3?), then a new convertible version, a saloon and estate. When these are selling like hot cakes(!) let’s start on the halo Aero X type model and blow the top end BMWs and Mercs away!
Good to dream isn’t it! 
Cowboy UP!!
I don’t think it would work. Too much distrust between Opel/Vauxhall and Saab. Anyway a similar thing was once tried by BMC with Riley and Wolseley and we all know where that went. If Saab stays with GM, then GM will just finish the job it’s been doing all this decade, and to all intents and purposes, in five years or so perhaps, Saab will be gone.
I’m reliably told “Cowboy Up” means “quit your whining and take it like a man” or words to that effect? Is that what we do here?
I think a better definition of “Cowboy Up” is “grit your teeth and hang on, it’s going to be a bumpy ride”. It seems to have about 15 varying meanings!
Daniel and Markac: the way I see it, if that isn’t the solution, then SAAB can very well be closed Oldsmobile style, i.e., no new product and just let it die painfully until the 9-5, 9-4(if it’d even see the light of day) and 9-3 end their product cycles.
I just don’t see anyone coming up with a business plan and acquisition finance overnight.
Pedro, remember it aint over until the fat lady sings. And she is not in the concert hall yet.
Pedro, perhaps that’s where “Cowboy Up” comes in? Grit your teeth and hang on,it’s going to be a bumpy ride! We can still get there though.
Months have passed since Koenigsegg was annouced as the sole party GM was negotiating with. In the meantime, SAAB’s been bleeding cash and the EIB loans are only one part of the equation as a buyer has to fund what it would pay GM and fund SAAB while it is bleeding cash. Add to that the fact that the press surrounding the deal breaking up will likely have a further negative impact on SAAB sales, i.e. more cash drain, and you have quite a bleak picture.
The more time passes without a deal in place, the least business plan assumptins hold, and the harder it gets for the deal to be successful. I hope I’m wrong, but I think that at this point it’s either GM or die.
Hi Swade – Given the criteria you mention, only one car, it has to be the one that will sell in the highest volume to get Saab visible, generate cash (and profit!) and provide an entry to the marque for new buyers.
It has to be the small car that Saab has been missing from its line up for 30 years now… A premium hatch to rival the A3/Golf/1-series/C30 etc. I can’t see anything else that would work.
Not the 9-4X (limited market, doesn’t fit with the “green” credentials they are increasingly focussing on).
Not the 9-x Air or Aero X, great “halo” models but not enough volume to make good business sense in Saab’s current state.
BUT – this new model would have to leap-frog all the competition in terms of performance/economy/handling/comfort and most importantly, quality.
Hears hoping for a positive outcome tomorrow…
Fliptop
This is an easy one for me, I’m a convertible guy. Give me an updated 9-3 convetrtible with the 2.0T tuned to provide around 260 HP. Throw in a DSG style clutchless manual and a class leading interior for the current prices of mid to upper $40k range. By the way the Saab convertible has been and still is the best selling European rag top in the US. I’ll need to replace my vert in the next couple of years and will be doing it with another Saab (I hope)
I’m from the northeast U.S. and have never been to Wyoming, although I once worked with a man that grew up in Rock Springs and whose parents were acquainted with Butch Cassidy’s lawyer. Anyway, here’s my interpretation of the expression “Cowboy up.”: It literally refers to mounting a horse, especially in preparation for performing a mission that might be difficult or dangerous. Another version (probably the original) is the order given before a horse race “Riders up.” And in the old West the commander of a cavalry company would have said to his first sergeant “mount ‘em up” and the sergeant would then order “Soldiers up.” Similarly, the foreman of a cattle crew would say “Cowboys up.” at the start of a cattle drive.
When Mr. Johnston writes “Cowboy up.” I believe he means he’s ready to mount up and ride hard after Saab. Furthermore, he appears to be a guy that gets it, finally, after so many “suits” that didn’t.
My vote for the single car that Saab should make if it could make only one car would be a modern car that captured the look and feel of the classic 900 three door turbo. I get the impression CJ would agree.
Cowboy up and godspeed my man.
That’s a better definition of Cowboy Up. There appears to be at least 15 of them!
I agree with you and CJ. A car with the spirit of the old 900 turbo 3 door, is what Saab really needs.
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