Autocar have a special bit on Saab in their print pubication this week. UK readers might want to check that one out as I know that Hilton Holloway has recently visited Sweden in person so there should be some juicy stuff in there, in addition to the 9-5 stuff they published earlier in the week.
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News reports started swirling again about Beijing Automotive being interested in Saab. This was thanks to a (big publication out of China) Gasgoo report that mentions the following:
Beijing Automotive Industry Corp (BAIC), the local partner of Germany’s Daimler in China, may bid for General Motors’ Saab unit after its attempt to acquire Opel looks unlikely to succeed
BAIC were one of the original three suitors for Saab a few weeks ago, but seemed to lose interest when they put in a last-minute bid for Opel. I haven’t heard anything of them since that time from any sources.
My take: This is weeks-old news and personally, I’ll not spend any more time with it. It’s just one paper dredging up some old news and a bunch of others following.
One of the Dagens papers in Sweden has a far more interesting (and as far as I can see, accurate) story saying that Saab people are now in Switzerland and in final discussions with their three real potential buyers: Renco, Koenigsegg and Merbanco.
I’d love to be a fly on the wall in that room!!
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And with that meeting in mind, Autocar has published a story online stating that Koenigsegg, in a partnership of some type with the Swedish government, will be the winning bidders for Saab.
I’m quite unsure about this, especially given Maud Olofsson’s recent mumblings, and the PM’s as well. I can’t see the government taking any risk with Saab other than loan guarantees to the right bidder.
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The US house of reps has just passed the cash for clunkers legislation.
From Autoblog:
…..if your car gets 18 mpg or less and you trade in for a new vehicle the achieves at least 22 mpg, you receive a $3,500 voucher, or $4,500 if the mileage of the new vehicle is 10 mpg higher than your previous heap. SUV, pickup truck and minivan buyers are eligible for a $3,500 voucher if their vehicle gets at least two mpg higher than their trade-in and $4,500 if the vehicle gets five mpg more than their older model. The vehicle has to have been insured for the last year and there is no trade-in value beyond the voucher. The program is also available for leases. Dealers are required to provide proof that the vehicle (1984 MY or later) has been crushed or shredded, and the government estimates that around 25 million vehicles are eligible.
So if you’ve got an old(ish) clunker Chevy out in the back yard, this might be the time to cash it in for a new Saab.
There are plenty of good incentives around.
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