That Sound You Hear is My Weeping
Some dark, dark news is circulating this morning--Koenigsegg has pulled out of its tentative deal to purchase Saab from General Motors. As usual, the best news and analysis is available at Saabs United.
This isn't quite the end for Saab; according to Bloomberg, the GM board will review Saab's future on Dec. 1, and there are a few scenarios that could save the brand. A new buyer could concievably step forward, for example. GM could also rethink its strategy and decide to keep Saab alive as a subsidiary, as it did with Opel when that sale fell through. I could also win the lottery, compound my winnings at the craps table, and then purchase Saab myself. The first two scenarios are only moderately more likely than the last.
So, absent some extraordinary good fortune, this news signals Saab's death knell--a truly grievous turn of circumstance for those of us who are devoted to the brand and were hoping for a renaissance under Swedish ownership. Saab is a brand with a proud history that includes some truly extraordinary cars and a devoted fanbase; a world without Saab would be drab, dull place.
I'll hold off on the full-blown eulogy for now, but make no mistake--the situation is dire. Saab is not yet dead, but its death looms on the horizon.
--Chris H.
That Car Guy on November 24, 2009 at 12:01 PM
I'd love to see Saab survive, but away from GM's meddling. If we are going to be exposed to more pathetic products like the 9-X7, then let the brand go now. Better to die one brave death than a thousand cowardly ones.
Dave on November 24, 2009 at 04:13 PM
"some truly extraordinary cars"
All in the eye of the beholder I suppose. There must be some pretty nifty engineering things going on behind the scenes because they sure haven't survived on looks alone.
mochi mochi on November 24, 2009 at 04:56 PM
the horror of GM ownership knows no bounds. while I would be unlikely to ever want to buy a new Saab the loss of Saab would bring tears to my eyes. They had some really remarkable cars, the 96, the 94, and the 99 were all really sweet cars. The newer stuff is in keeping with the times and still quirky and innovative. Fingers crossed they survive.
Skip on November 24, 2009 at 05:18 PM
Can we really pin this one on GM? They weren't exactly a stellar or relevant brand before GM took control.
...m... on November 24, 2009 at 08:10 PM
...aren't we long past due for a piece on the sonett?..
CG tutorials on November 25, 2009 at 04:26 AM
I was looking for the cool car and found your post. But it was fun reading it. So thank you for sharing this information...
hdavehh on November 25, 2009 at 05:57 AM
The best thing that could ever happen to Saab is that someone take a long stake, more if you're feeling giddy, and put it straight through its heart until it stops writhing.
My wife and I had bought a 2000 9-3 that cost more to repair it than we ever paid for the car. It's great if you're a mechanic; otherwise, get a Nissan.
Julian Santa-Rita on November 25, 2009 at 07:26 AM
I'll miss saab so much. Those sweden developed cars were technical masterpieces. Perfect all-arounder cars. Innovative and economical. Fast and Utilitarian.
The 9000 i owned was a phenomenal car, as are the two 9-3's in my family. I've outpaced Porsche 911's, Rx-7's , Inifinti G37's and the odd M3 in my 9000Aero yet the rest of the time it's so far under the radar...
and then one day you have to move a couch...and it somehow FITS IN THE HATCH!!!!
I agree that the 1999+ cars are crap in comparison to the sweden developed cars. Perhaps something about developing in the harshness of cold sweden forced heartier development...but the 100% GM parts bin cars based on the Impala and opel and powered by ecotec instead of the saab "h" engine aren't nearly at the same level of engineering.
Julian Santa-Rita on November 25, 2009 at 07:34 AM
almost forgot...
it's the most hackable factory ECU I've ever seen. The engine management ECU's are open sourced on motorola chips. So with a 15$ adapter (you can build one for free)you can totally reprogram your car's boost, timing, fueling, etc....This is same engine management (trionic-t5, t7, & now t8)that won environmental accolades for it's technological advanced-ness and is also used in the Koenigsegg CCR.
And to modify it is free as in beer and open source linux.
Saab did us weekend wrencher kids a solid there.
Carol Herman on November 25, 2009 at 08:18 AM
China's in the market! You can't fool me. Of course, the difference between Japan and China is quality control. Japan engineered itself by making the best products possible. China cuts corners; so you can expect cheap flooding our market, too. But first their own. Without caps on carbon emisions. Perhaps? Even built without safety belts.
But GM ahead will be a Chinese trophy. Maybe, Walmart stores will become dealerships, too?
Some Guy on November 25, 2009 at 09:30 AM
Only jerks drive Saabs. No exceptions.
Pretentious wannabes who can't afford a BMW or Benz buy Saabs.
Kevin R.C. O'Brien on November 25, 2009 at 10:30 AM
Saab was once an enthusiast car; the dealer in New England was Gaston Andrey, one of the original euro-american sports car racers, and he saw nothing odd about selling Saabs alongside other sporting makes including Ferrari.
Sometime in the 1980s the ownership became more associated with narcissism: Saab owners would bore you, if you let them, with tales of just how deep green they were, about how their cars were the best-engineered ever, and about how they were so fast, but of course the Saab drivers didn't drive them fast because that would be bad for the environment, and did I mention that they were much greener than you?
GM comes along into this environment where oddball cars sell into a fanatically loyal oddball market. And GM has its usual answer: the parts bin and badge engineering. GM takes a successful niche player and makes another vendor of unloved Oldsmobiles out of it.
No doubt, the former Saab owners will find some other oddity to cleave to. It's what they do. But Saab the company was dead already, the moment it felt GM's vampire breath on its neck.
tim on November 25, 2009 at 10:39 AM
I had an'88 9000 turbo. I drove it for 10 years with nothing major breaking. That car would cruise all day at 125 mph if you could get away it (Montana had no daytime limit except "reasonable and prudent"). Then we got the $5 "wasting resources" ticket. If the road was clear, etc. you could do it. I had three different 900's before that one.
David Drucker on November 25, 2009 at 11:31 AM
Look on the bright side: Jeremy Clarkson will run one off the track, make a few suggestions, and Koenigsegg will come back with a Top Gear special edition.
I'll miss the real SAABs, though. Here's what I wrote about the 9000, a couple of decades back:
SAAB 9000
A friend of mine recently replaced his older Saab 900 Turbo with a new one. Wanting to keep his options open, he also looked at several other cars, including the new 9000. Of the latter he said "nice car, but it's no Saab." He's right, of course. The new model is arguably better in every significant area, but it's still a car. The 900 is a Saab. Me, I've never been a big Saab fan. Not that I'm not against the notion of an idiosyncratic car — heaven knows, I've owned enough of them. I just don't find Saab's unique goofiness particularly appealing. Maybe that's why I like the 9000 so much. It's fast, smooth, comfortable, and doesn't knock you over the head with constant reminders that the front wheels are doing the work. Not that the 9000 is perfect. I'm convinced that Europeans are temperamentally unsuited for designing complex climate control systems. If they can't master Air Conditioning 101 (and believe me, they haven't) what makes them think they're ready for Graduate work. The system in the 9000 is complicated beyond belief, and — naturally — stopped working entirely on one of Autumn's "gotcha" 90-degree days.
Another weak point in the 9000 is its sound system. Actually, the sound system is pretty good, but the song and dance you have to go through to get it to do its stuff is not to be believed. The control scheme is even more complex than that of the climate control, making intuitive operation out of the question. This is a system that must be studied and learned; eventually a willing student should be able to control its basic functions without stopping at the side of the road. Adding to the chaos is the equalizer, whose saving grace is the incorporation of computer memory that saves several EQ curves for instant recall. Instant, that is, if you remember the right sequence of buttons to push. All of this complexity cannot have come cheap, and I can't help feeling that more money should have been spent on speakers, and less on the complex front end. Still, the sound is better than average, and maybe you can entice a friend into coming along to work the controls.
Peter T on November 25, 2009 at 11:50 AM
"I've outpaced Porsche 911's, Rx-7's , Inifinti G37's and the odd M3 in my 9000Aero yet the rest of the time it's so far under the radar..."
I've owned SAABs, 911s and M3s. This above statement would only be true if the driver(s) of the 911 and/or M3 were either incompetent or did not care to engage.
Shawn on November 25, 2009 at 12:53 PM
Thank you Peter, my BS Detector was going off as well.
Anthony Cagle on November 25, 2009 at 01:22 PM
Weeping over Saab, eh? Well, we used to call them Saab Stories. . . .
(just kidding [well, we really *did* used to call them that]; you may remain lachrymose if you wish)
Mike on November 25, 2009 at 08:11 PM
RX-7's? Again, the BS Detector is alarmed, unless you're talking about some tired, 200K mile 1985 beater, driven by some college girl. You sure didn't go up against any 3rd generation, 1993-1998 models, that's for damn sure.
Julian Santa-Rita on November 30, 2009 at 08:19 AM
Peter, my 9000 Aero was far from stock.
David Colborne on November 30, 2009 at 12:16 PM
Kevin - The Yuppie-Greens have already moved on. Why do you think Subarus are so popular all of the sudden?
Saab, unfortunately, was the victim of its low volume. Yes, they made some innovative cars. Yes, they were different in, I think, a good way. Unfortunately, they just didn't have enough sales volume to keep sufficient R&D going on their own to remain viable. The problem with being completely different from everyone else is you have to invent everything for yourself from scratch. Nowadays, you just can't keep doing that anymore unless you have a rather hefty sales-driven war chest behind you (GM, Toyota, Volkswagen, etc.) or unless you're really intelligent with your partnerships. Since Saab never really partnered with anyone, that pretty much finished them off.
Even if Koenigsegg comes back to the table, or even if some obscure Asian automaker comes in out of nowhere to save the day, it won't change the fact that Saab will never be the same. The economics barely supported an independent Saab flying its own way 20 years ago. That moment has long since passed.