GM review poses threat of closure to Saab

[kysrsoze]

DETROIT - A General Motors review of its Saab subsidiary could lead to the upmarket car brand being axed, if the heavy investment required to revive it is deemed unjustified.

GM executives and people familiar with the study said there was only an outside chance that the Swedish brand would be killed off by the review, due to be completed within three months.

But even a remote threat of the company being closed is likely to prompt a political storm in Sweden, where the automotive industry is one of the most important employers.

(snip)

GM added two new models to the Saab line-up last year in what executives said was a "quick and dirty fix" to improve sales. But Rick Wagoner, GM chairman and chief executive, admitted on Sunday that the new 9-2X small Saab, based on a car from Subaru, GM's Japanese affiliate, had not met sales targets after a botched US launch.




http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6811980/

[UpInArms]

1. now that's a

Saab story

okay - enough with the Saab-ing jokes

I hate what they have done to the world with the acquisitions and mergers.

Soon the only thing left will look just like a freakin' bathtub, designed by insurance execs with no regard to anything.

[Stockholm]

2. They really managed to screw up a perfectly good car brand

It will be bought back by Swedish SAAB.

[Huckebein the Raven]

3. I hope so. I love Saabs

[madrchsod]

6. do you know a good

saab 93-96 will sell for over 5 thousand here in the usa? i paid 750 for a 68 saab v-4 monte carlo in 1970. they now sell for 6000+ if you can find one.

[Nite Owl]

4. I'm car shopping and

Saab is high on the list. Had one, a 9-5, in '00 and it was a great car. I looked at the 9-2x and it's a cute little thing but not a Saab so I decided on the 9-3. I hope that it is bought back but now I don't know what to do.

[K8-EEE]

9. I Have A Saab 2004 9-5 Wagon And I Love It!!

It's really a sporty feeling wagon -- fun to drive and not bad on the gas.

[madrchsod]

5. that sucks

i have owned 20 Saabs from the early 60`s to mid 70`s. great car line that was completely screwed up by general motors marketing.

[Name removed]

7. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Redstone]

8. Shows how dumb GM management is

Ford has owned Volvo (cars only) for some time, and has managed not only to leave Volvo alone to design its cars (which are still very much Volvos, unlike some SAABs), but has also benefitted tremendously from Volvo design and technology.

More than a few of the new Ford sedans are built on variants of Volvo platforms.

But GM management has shown itself to be enormously stupid more times than I can count. For example, they killed off Oldsmobile, a profitable division that was selling hudreds of thousands cars a year, and now are pumping a billion or two into Saturn, which has NEVER made a profit.

The last car GM made that I liked was the 1958 Impala (convertible, 348 with trips, four-speed manual, continental spare-tire kit, fender skirts, and dual antennas). Sure wish they didn't cost $80 grand these days.

Redstone

[FranzFerdinand]

10. just a general reply regarding GM and Saab

to those that say they've owned many Saabs over the years and then claim that GM ruined it all, you're wrong. Saab would not exist (at least here in the US) if it weren't for GM. believe it, know your facts. i'm on my 6th Saab.

[Divernan]

11. What "facts" are you referring to?

I've owned Saabs for 20 years. When GM first bought in to Saab, the GM engineers/designers just HAD to make changes - a pure power trip - and they screwed up the models -till the Swedish engineers told them to keep their hands off. That lasted for a few years, but the body shop manager was explaining to me last fall how GM was incorporating Japanese parts into the Saab, now. I would loved to see GM back off and let the car be a totally Swedish product again.

I took a lot of ridicule when I got my first Saab ($13,000 - 1985), because the typical macho American guys didn't think the cars "looked" right. Now we see the aerodynamic design has been integrated into many models. GM has to sabotage the Saab because you can drive a Saab for 200,000 miles. Another problem with Saab owners, as far as American marketing efforts are concerned, is that we are content to have the body design remain unchanged indefinitely - what we love is that every year the Swedish engineers come up with improvements on the performance and comfort of the car. And we CARE about miles per gallon and the environmental impact of SUVs. I believe GM is planning on or has already put out a Saab SUV - which to me is an oxymoron.

GM is probably floating these threats to intimidate the Swedes into accepting yet more watering down of the brand.