You are browsing the archive for 2010 January.

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Saab Support Convoy – Luxembourg

January 29, 2010 in Saabology

The nature of this weekend’s Convoys has changed, quite naturally, from a show of support with a plea to save the company, to a show of support with a celebration!!
Luxembourg have added themselves to the list of convoys on this weekend. Here are the details:
——
The starting point of the convoy is at the “Glacis” parking in Luxembourg-city at 10:00 CET, from where we’re going to drive to the two Saab dealers of the country, first to Garage Kremer, Z.I. Merscherberg in Mersch and then to Garage Grun, route d’Arlon in Strassen. The convoy will be finished around 16:00 CET.
Our convoy will take place under “special” conditions: the Luxembourg car show named “Auto-Festival” is starting this Saturday. This event, which has been a tradition since 1965, is where all car dealers in Luxembourg organize “open days” for two weeks including the two weekends. It attracts several thousands of car interested Luxembourgish people who visit showroom after showroom. So our convoy will certainly not pass unnoticed!
An additional bonus:
One of the two Saab dealers from Luxembourg (Garage Kremer) will have a new 9-5 to expose during the open days this weekend.
——
People interested in joining this convoy should contact me (Swade, on swade99-at-gmail.com) and I’ll pass your email onto Marc.
——
A full list of the Convoys on this weekend:

——
and an addition note with regards to the Memphis convoy on this weekend:

The Memphis SAAB Support Convoy, scheduled for Sunday, January 31, 2010, has officially been re-named “SAAB Independence Day Rally” (from “SAVE SAAB SUPPORT CONVOY”). We have lost a few participants, but we will go forward, no matter what. Start time has been changed from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

Please take note if you were attending.

Tags: 8 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Saab Saved Celebration – Ghangzhou, China

January 29, 2010 in Saabology

SAAB fans in Guangzhou, China were so excited and impressed by the deal done during the week by Spyker to purchase Saab from General Motors that they decided to come out and celebrate on Thursday, 28th January.
Around 30 vehicles and more people turned up to show their appreciation for Saab and for the deal done to keep the company alive.
A forum post with plenty of photos is here. Click through on that one, because there’s some well cared for Saabs there with some serious mods being done.
A selection photos is included below. Griffin Up, Ghangzhou!
20100128_abf417b41fbf40dd2372aNyB7EWpJScF.jpg
20100128_f12638f57d8db618fb65dzI4PHi0pzIT.jpg
——
With thanks to Kenny for the details!

Tags: 7 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Memo to The Economist – We never gave up hope for Saab!

January 29, 2010 in News

As written in The Economist today:

Last month, after two attempts to find a buyer for Saab had failed, GM ordered the winding-down of the firm’s operations. Even the brand’s many supporters, mobilised by the website Saabs United, had given up hope…..

But this is a bit more like it:

Whether Saab will survive in the long term is less clear. Its new 9-5 is a good-looking car and Saab’s engineers are relishing the chance to show what they can do when liberated from the dead hand of GM. But sales will need to recover quickly from fewer than 40,000 cars last year to nearer 100,000. Much will also depend on Saab’s ability to produce distinctive cars assembled from a medley of components bought from suppliers. The task is hard, but with the reservoir of goodwill that Saab can still tap, it is not impossible.

The road Saab faces is a tough one, but for the tenacious, no road is impassable, right?
Griffin Up!

Tags: 29 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Vote for the Saab 99 Turbo AGAIN!

January 29, 2010 in Saabology

Well done, everyone. We got the 99Turbo through to the final round of voting in the Jalopnik contest to get some new cars included in a supplementary release of Forza Motorsports 3 (an X-Box game, for you non-gamers).
Now, it’s time for the final vote.
You can vote for 5 cars, just make sure the Saab 99 Turbo is one of them.
We have a copy of Forza 3 at home, so I’m looking forward to selecting the car that’s sitting in my garage and using it to soundly whip other cars of it’s vintage.
Click here to send this baby to Forza!!!!!
saab_rally_99T.jpg
–

10 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

EnG Editorial – It’s upward from here edition

January 29, 2010 in Editorial

Well, folks, I’m still elated to wake up this morning and know that the struggle for Saab’s leadership and ownership succession is over and done except for the actual signatures. Naturally, there could be a hiccup there, but I’m not seeing anything that’s going to be a problem, nor does Swade (to my knowledge at this hour). It’s a relief and it’s a challenge. Actually, the challenge is one that I welcome. We’ve been frustrated with the snail’s pace of marketing and development under the GM flag, and I see all of that about to change in a big way. In my opinion, we will see that the Spyker Saab way will be one of faster movement and greater opportunity due to the “get it done” tenacity shown in the negotiations for Saab.
In short, this will be a very exciting time for Saab. New products, new leadership, new growth.
I say this because I’ve seen in my news feeds writers that proclaim troubles and difficulty for Saab Spyker Automobiles before it sees its first weekend of existence! A small sample of the headlines:
Spyker’s Muller May Struggle for Cash to Revive Saab (Business Week)
Saab 9-5 and 9-4X: Promising, but Enough to Sustain Spyker? (New York Times)
Deal done, Spyker faces tough road ahead with Saab (Reuters)
I don’t doubt that these people have some valid points: this company’s immediate future will be tough. On the flip side, I take issue with the “potential failure” vibe versus the more neutral “let’s see how it works out” take on the situation.
I invite you all to see these naysayers as who they are: writers trying to sell advertising on the internet and in their printed publications. They are not generally businesspeople. They generally do not have the insights that the Saab Spyker leadership have. They are not privy to the Saab Spyker business plans. They do not fully understand the company and its capabilities. Therefore, I believe that their criticisms are not necessarily well-founded. Their opinions are, for the most part, conjecture and hearsay.
I leave you with this thought: these “nattering nabobs of negativism” were the same people that proclaimed Saab dead in June, October, December and continued to proclaim Saab dead up until this very week. What further proof do I need?
Let’s write our own history. Don’t let these curmudgeons write it for us before it’s done.

133 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Special offers from Saab USA Parts

January 29, 2010 in sponsors

And now, a word from our sponsors……
——
As you are all painfully aware, the task to Save Saab was a monumental challenge. The original deal to sell Saab to The Koenigsegg Group fell apart at the last moment and an original deal to sell to Spyker also collapsed. It was the relentless pursuit of Victor Muller, CEO of Spyker, to save the brand from extinction.
We would be remiss if we did not take a moment to thank all of you for your support in this cause. It was your time, telephone calls, letters and countless e-mails to our U.S. Senators, State Senators, Congressman, State Representatives and the board members of General Motors that captured the attention of the world. Your passion in our storied franchise was instrumental in saving Saab. Congratulations on a job well done!
In celebration of this breaking news and as a warm Thank You for your support, please find below extraordinary specials on critical maintenance items.
Thank you for your continued loyalty to the Saab Brand and particularly to Saab USA Parts. We are all excited and enthusiastic about the future of Saab as we now rebuild our cherished brand.
Safe Driving,
Saab USA Parts
——
Swade here again…..
Saab USA Parts have a big range of discounts available to celebrate this special occasion, offering up to 35% off a range of high-demand items from their catalogue.

Tags: , 11 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Another look at celebrations at the Saab Museum

January 28, 2010 in Saabology

I received some more photos from yesterday’s celebrations at the Saab Museum, attended by most of the employees at Saab after they were given the afternoon off.
If you want to see a couple of videos from the event, then please click here. Highly recommended.
To the photos then….
These were sent in by Miho and Henrik S and it looks like such a good time was there to be had. The sense of relief and hope for the future is almost palpable.
And that 9-5 and the Spyker do look good together. They don’t quite look like family yet, but definitely firm friends.
saabsaved01.jpg
SaSpMuseum2.jpg
Plenty more photos after the jump…..

Read the rest of this entry →

Tags: , 38 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Ny Teknik want to know – what do you want in a Saab?

January 28, 2010 in Saabology

Swedish tech-mag, Ny Teknik, have published an article seeking to get feedback from Saab fans as to what they think a future Saab should include.
I wrote a little thought piece of my own a week or so ago, asking for a stripped out basic car that’s engaging and fun to drive – man and machine.
Some of you chimed in there, but you might want to answer some of Ny Teknik’s questions as well.
——

General Motors has owned Saab since 1989 and Saab cars have become more and more GM-like.
Now approaches a new era. Under new owners Spyker Saab will be rolled into the new songs and probably get a different profile than what Saab has today.
Even today begins Saab’s engineers to sketch the future Saab models.
Ny Teknik helps you to make your voice heard and say what you want your next Saab to look like.
What should characterize a Saab?
What characteristics should it have?
What should it look like?
What engine should it have?
Should it be electric?

——
If you feel like answering all these and more, then click here and let Ny Teknik know what you think.
They’re a big mag in Sweden, so the outcome of this exercise should be interesting for Saab’s home market.

98 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Thursday Night Snippets – ‘here they come’ edition

January 28, 2010 in News

Just trying to catch up and round up some of the press articles of the last 24 hours.
First to the positive news…..
——
The EU will move quickly to review and (hopefully) approve the Swedish government’s plan to provide loan guarantees to Saab.

European Union regulators said on Wednesday they would review as soon as possible Swedish authorities’ plan to guarantee a 400 million euro ($562 million) European Investment Bank loan to Swedish carmaker Saab.

The EU has to assess a proportion of the amount guaranteed to ensure that it doesn’t break EU rules on state aid.
——
Edmunds Auto Observer report that the Saab 9-5 should be appearing in the United States in the second quarter of this year.

Smith also said the Saab 9-4, a crossover based on GM’s “Theta Premium” or TE platform that underpins the Cadillac SRX, also will soon be produced by the new company, although he was not specific about when the 9-4X will begin production.

All of which is good news, of course.
——
Encouraging words from Victor Muller for those of use yearning for Saab to return to its roots.

Muller vowed to keep the identity of Saab and praised the network of dealers and brand enthusiasts who were quick to show their support for the brand GM said on December 18 it would wind down.
“The interest in Saab is basically very easy to understand, Saab is an iconic brand,” Muller said.
“The typical element of the Saab brand is its Swedishness…I think one would be very short-sighted to think that the Saab buyer would be very pleased to buy a Saab from Mumbai,” he added.

But of course, that will take time and money, which is where the detractors start creeping in……
——
There’s a Bloomberg report out today which cites some analysts who are skeptical about Saab’s chances under Spyker ownership.
Time and money – the time taken to develop a much-needed new model vs the money available in that time to do so.

“Saab risks burning through its cash if it invests on a new model before stabilizing sales and distribution of the 9-5, but delays in introducing another model could jeopardize long- term viability,” said Jim Hall, principal of Birmingham, Michigan-based consulting firm 2953 Analytics. “They’re damned if they do and damned if they don’t” proceed with new models.

It’s a fair point.
Developing new cars costs money and Saab will be carrying a large amount in debt. Sales of the 9-5 and 9-4x are going to have to service this debt as well as developing a much-needed new 9-3.
——
Sergio Marchionne – as you’ve already heard – is also skeptical about Saab’s chances under Spyker, most notably because of their small size.

“I think it’s very difficult to be a niche player and profitable. Marginal players will continue to be marginalized. We cannot build on hopes and dreams.”

Victor Muller’s answer to this was “well, we’re just going to have to prove Mr Marchionne wrong”
….which is exactly what’s going to have to happen.
——
I don’t have a link for you, but I recall a comment here some time ago where someone reported that a prospective buyer for Saab would be very pleased when the discovered the full extent of what the engineering people had hidden out the back.
Maybe that’s one of the keys, along with a new 9-5 and 9-4x, to Saab’s re-establishment in the marketplace.

47 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

On Saab distribution in Canada

January 28, 2010 in News

I’ve received some information via email from our SU regulars, Bruce S, in Canada.
Late last year, Bruce made some enquiries via GM North America to see what would happen with Canadian distrubution of Saab cars. This was around the time that the plan to reduce US dealers by on third was announced.
He received a response at that time, but shortly afterwards the Koenigsegg deal collapsed and we were all seemingly back at square 1.
He’s received confirmation today that the details forwarded to him still apply, and more importantly, he also received permission to have that information shared here at SU.
Note: This is preliminary information only. I’m sure more information will come out as things progress. I know people will be keen for more detail than this, but right now, this is all we’ve got.
The important bit is in bold….

Thank you for your letter to Mike Colleran and your interest in the Saab brand in Canada. Saab is working on a solution to continue Sale & Service operations in Canada with a unique Saab network. This is planned to start during 2010, once the sale of Saab to the new buyer is complete. Between now and the start of the new Saab Company, GM Canada will offer Saab Service through select GM Canada dealers. In most cases they plan to use a GM dealers who had previously owned a Saturn / Saab Dealership. In some cases this is not possible and they will use a suitable GM dealer near by. GM Canada plans to do a customer mailing in December to notify customers of those locations. If you don’t receive a mail, you should contact the GM Canada Customer Assistance Center and they can direct you to a convenient location.

I guess the good news here is that we’re not necessarily starting from scratch.
Work was apparently underway to establish a new Sales and Service operation and that work will continue.
Upon enquiring if this was OK to share, Bruce received the following:

Yes you may, we are working to define a realistic start date in 2010

I’m confident that Saab-Spyker will be doing all they can to get these markets established again as quickly as possible.
–
Thanks to Bruce for the heads up!

Tags: , 41 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Saab and Spyker together at Tynan’s Saab, CO

January 28, 2010 in Saabology

I got some great images in today from Sean Tynan at Tynan’s Saab in Fort Collins, CO.
_AGM8452.jpg
It seems their foresight – read below – has given them a little marketing jump. Here’s the story on how they came to have the rolling stock in place to take these images:

We have a 2008 Spyker C8 Laviolette finished in Champion Silver Exterior with Full Quilted Tropicana Leather Interior, Brushed & Turned Aluminum Dash, and Full Options sitting on our Saab Showroom Floor.
This particular unit was used by Mr. Victor Muller and Spyker Cars North America as their National Press Car for 2008/2009. This car had an original MSRP of almost $240,000.00 dollars US, and it is a rolling piece of artwork! We were very fortunate to aquire this car about 60 days ago just prior to Victor Muller and Spyker Cars pursuit of the Saab Brand!
I had the good fortune to meet Mr. Muller and spend several hours with him in Denver back in early October of last year. He was on his way to a wedding in Aspen and he was kind enough to carve out some time for me. After our meeting I came away very impressed with Victor, Spyker and their incredible bespoke automobiles.
We then decided to aquire a Spyker to offer for sale in the Rocky Mountain area since currently there is no Spyker dealer in Colorado, and I am pleased to say we were able to obtain this very unique and special automobile!

And here are the images – a classic Black Turbo along with it’s new stablemate, a Silver Spyker C8 Laviolette.
_AGM8455_57_61.jpg
_AGM8506_7_9.jpg
_AGM8473_6_9.jpg

Tags: , , 27 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Video: The mother of all convoys

January 28, 2010 in Uncategorized

Yeah, I’m still wired up over the Saab Support Convoys.
This is from the Saab-mad Dutchies……



Great stuff!

Tags: , 9 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

US Saab dealership structure to remain intact

January 28, 2010 in News

UPDATE: A message to all Saab dealers from JAJ and VM
——
One of the emotionally charged episodes from last year was the plan to signifcantly reduce the Saab dealership network in the United States.
Back in November last year, 81 of the 218 Saab dealers in the US received letters stating that they’d be Saab dealers no more. The plan was to proceed with 137 of the dealers only, with many of Saab’s oldest dealerships foregone, possibly because they weren’t considered big enough or new enough.
That plan was widely criticised, including here at SU where we did our best to map the remaining dealerships. The good news today is that that map is now considered redundant as Saab dealers in the US have been advised that they will all be retained.
Via email from Djup Strupe:

Today I received an official phone from my GM/SAAB Sales Rep. stating that all dealers in the US will be going forward with the new SAAB Spyker Organization. This is great news.
He stated the obvious that the close on the deal would be mid-February. All dealers in the next few days will be receiving an explanation letter and a packet with a new dealer agreement, floorplan documents etc.
In addition he stated that we would be having an all dealer conference phone call and also in the next few weeks an all dealer meeting in person to go over the details. In addition he stated that there were production schedules and sales estimates formulated and that all dealers would be participating in consensus to replenish our thin grounded inventories.

Victor Muller hinted at this early in his campaign to purchase Saab, so it’s great to see it become a reality.
Saab will need as many dealers as it can get, including the smaller ones that offer such great service to their loyal customers.
I guess it’s up to some of those dealers to choose to retain Saab now. Many of them are multi-franchise and I know that some had already shipped out their Saab stock. I hope they all come on board because Saab need the best distribution network they can get.
Anyway, that’s another piece of good news for the day. Now we just have to figure out how they’re going to tackle distribution in Australia, Canada……..

Tags: , 51 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Video: JAJ and Victor Muller at the Saab Museum

January 28, 2010 in Uncategorized

This one starts with a question in English by Peter Backstrom, then an address in Swedish by Jan-Ake Jonsson, followed by an address by Victor Muller.



–
And another, featuring an interview with JAJ and VM afterwards.
“It’s all about making cars that people want”



Thanks to Patrik for the link!

Tags: , 30 Comments »

Avatar of Swade

by Swade

Save the Saab 99 Turbo! Get it into Forza

January 28, 2010 in Saabology

Jalopnik are holding a competition whereby people get to vote for certain cars to be included in a downloadable extension pack for the X-Box game, Forza Motorsport 3.
The Saab 99 Turbo featured in a recent poll (that I didn’t get to publicise) and was ditched, but it’s been given a reprieve and a second chance of life in honor of Saab’s recent sale to Spyker.
Your task – get your cyber-ass over to Jalopnik and vote for the Saab 99 Turbo – NOW.
There is a deadline on voting, so please don’t dilly-dally.
Saab 99 Turbo
Thanks to Joel for the tip!

Tags: , 30 Comments »