Happy New Year To You All

What a year it has been. In the year leading up to 2012 we saw countless deals where Saab had looked to be saved with start and stop production and with it all ending with Saab declaring bankruptcy in December of 2011. To say it has been a tough year for Saab fans would be a complete understatement and would not even begin to paint a picture of the frustrations we have all felt. As a group though, there were many things that happened to make us all feel very connected no matter how far apart we may be.

The year 2012 started with a worldwide rally. The We Are Many, We Are SAAB events that took place January 14-15 sent a strong message that Saab fans are still here as the fans, groups and clubs united around the world to say, someone buy our car company and build us some cars.

Some of the things I will take out of the past year are things that I hope I will grow stronger with in the years to come. There are two camps when it comes to what people think of Victor Muller but one thing he has given me is the never give up attitude. He had said he would never ever give up and he didn’t. That is one thing that will continue to push me as I go forward in anything I do in life. Sure in the end it didn’t work well for him but you can’t fault someone who gave their everything to the cause. I believe for me, the best quote to sum up what this looks like to me is an anonymous one that says, “Do or do not, there is no try. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” In the end, if you have done all you can then success or failure is secondary to the effort you put out and for that, Victor will always have some respect from me.

We can’t forget that another huge thing we saw last year was a community of Saab owners and fans who came together and united to purchase the last production built Saab 9-3 from the Spyker era for the Saab Museum which had just been saved itself in January. Near the end of April last year, we posted about trying to save the last 9-3 and started collecting donations for it. Within just over two weeks this was accomplished with donations coming from all over the world. I often talk about what SAABSUNITED means to me and this best sums it up in a group of people who love the brand so much that they unite when needed and put differences aside. Saving this cars was no small feet and was accomplished even with some doubts about being successful which again brings that quote to mind of “Do or do not, there is no try. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”

In the end, our brand was bought through bankruptcy and we are still playing the waiting game. In the very short term though, I have seen parts become more available and see Saab Parts and NEVS working well together and I expect more from both in the near future. I constantly see NEVS adding more job listings which to me is promising. I have a dream for 2013 to be an exciting and ground breaking year for the future of Saab and I can promise that we will continue to bring you everything as it happens.

2012 was a year that a lot of people would like to sooner forget then remember but for me, there were still some incredible things that happened to make it in a way worth it. Sometimes you need to fall to be picked up again and become better then you ever were.

From all of us at SAABSUNITED, Happy New Year to all of you.