GM has announced that the would-be buyers of SAAB AB have backed out of the deal. The Swedish government will not bail ut SAAB, so it looks like the marque is going to die.
This is sad, because SAAB made such interesting (if quirky) vehicles.
I remember the first SAAB I saw-it was one of those 2-stroke engine jobs-sounded like a popcorn popper!
I guess it is almost impossible to run a small vehicle plant profitably-their sales were down to 100,000 cars/year. And Sweden is a pretty expensive pace to make cars.
I’ll have a shot of akvavit tonight, in their memory!
I will as well.
I think the brand has enough of a following (particularly in Scandinavia) that someone will buy the brand. They managed to sell Hummer for goodness sake!
I’ll admit that I haven’t driven any of them, but I have a hard time imagining the most recent Saabs, which were all GM rebadges, really captured the quirky charms of the old Saabs (Plus, a Saab SUV? Really?). I hear some of them even had the ignition on the steering column!
This is sad, although it confers upon me, as a SAAB driver, an even greater degree of quirkiness. Now, I don’t just drive a car by an obscure maker, but one which doesn’t even exist anymore.
I have a 2002 9-3 hatchback and I absolutely love it. Not the least of its many appealing characteristics is that it’s different. It’s also very fun to drive, as well as being practical. I just wonder if it’s now going to be impossible to find parts if something breaks down on it. And where do I get a replacement key made? My key is one of those fancy rectangular things instead of the normal kind - do I have to have it custom-made by a machinist?
Just a nitpick: Saab AB (http://www.saabgroup.com, 14000 employees) is doing fine, while Saab Automobile AB (http://www.saab.com, 3400 employees) is in trouble. The two companies share the brand.
So you’ll still be able to buy a brand new SAAB in the future, but it might not be a car.
I liked the pre-GM SAABs as they were in fact quirky.
But, they were pointless and horrible to maintain. Just not built well. GM made them better which tells you a thing or two.
Any ways, I do not think its that great of a loss as far as the car world is concerned.
I really liked the Saab 900S from the mid-'80s. Very pretty car.
SAAB kind of needs to die at his point. They we’re not bringing much to the table in terms of cars people found compelling.
Saab hasn’t been making interesting/quirky cars since 1994, when they started using GM platforms and engines.
Saabs have been built on Subaru chassis lately, via GM’s partnership with Subaru. Subaru makes a darn fine platform, and Saab tuners made the best of them.
If they can scale down and grab a niche, they can survive. Some companies just do not have the structure or margins to scale up/down in staffing to survive.
I had one of those. An '87 900S. Red. Handled nicely, but it was no ball of fire. In between the base 900 which was a dog, and the turbo. Good car, though. 1987 was the 50th anniversary year of the company, and they sent me a coffee table book about their history.
Didn’t the 9000 jointly produced with Fiat haev a column ignition slot?
Shame, Dad was just getting into Saabs too. Although since he’s a second hand buyer at all times, there’ll be enough models perhaps to do him until we decide his driving should be curtailed.
This looks more suitable for IMHO than GQ.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
The SAAB 9X wagon is a badge-engineered Subaru WRX wagon with a SAAB price tag, they are known as Saabarus to the Subie mechanics, if you just buy a WRX wagon from Subie you got an identical car that was MUCH cheaper.
Unclviny
I used to have a 73 Saab 99EMS that was a fun vehicle. Computer controlled fuel injection and all, including the ignition switch down by the shifter. 
That was the SAAB 9-2X. We own one - an Aero, which is the same as the WRX. THe 9-2X non-Aero is a regular Impreza, not the WRX.
It’s not an identical copy, either. SAAB upgraded the car with the steering rack from the STi, more insulation to make it quieter, upgraded upholstery, different suspension tuning to make it more SAAB-like, and an upgraded instrument panel (which the WRX’s got in the next model year). We like it because the styling is less boy-racer than the WRX, with a nicer NACA-shaped hood scoop instead of the snorkel on the WRX.
I’d agree with you about price if you paid full retail - the improvements weren’t worth the roughly $4000 SAAB was charging for the car over the Subaru. But they were heavily discounted, and at the discounted prices were one of the best deals on the road. We got ours brand new for $9,000 of the list price, which made it $4,000 cheaper than a WRX for a better car (WRXs are never discounted around here).
The good news for us is that even if SAAB goes under, we can get parts and maintenance for just about everything on the car through Subaru.
The latest news on SAAB is that it is in fact shutting down its car manufacturing. If you’re looking for a deal on a car, I’ll bet you’ll be able to find some amazing discounts at SAAB. So long as there remain decent supply chains for parts and maintenance, these cars could be a good choice if they’re discounted enough.
Why does everyone keep capitalizing Saab? It’s an acronym, but the company stopped capitalizing it a long time ago.
No great loss, no need for a great Saab story.
Let’s hope a deal can be done in the future and closure is turned into a mere saabatical.
In the late 90’s early 00’s my mom had a 9-5, then a 9-3, both convertible. Both were horribly uncomfortable to drive, WAAAAY over priced and spent nearly as much time in the shop as out. Also, the only Saab store nearby was in the ghetto.
As far as I’m concerned, good riddance.