'Half Price' Saab Dealer Shutting Down, Publishes Letter Putting Part of the Blame on GM

You may remember our Saab post from earlier this week where we asked you if you'd buy 9-3 or 9-5 sedan at half price. Among the deals we listed were several low mileage loaners with a 50 percent discount from the Shaw Saab dealership in Norwell, Massachusetts.

As we learned today from the Saabsunited enthusiast site, the aforementioned dealership is closing shop on February 3 after 44 years as an exclusive Saab seller.

Fred Shaw, the owner, posted a letter on the company's Facebook page where he announces the shut down and outlines his future plans, which include the selling of the real estate to Herb Chambers (the car shop equivalent of Dunkin Donuts in Massachusetts), who will turn it into a Lexus shop.

Nothing unexpected there, but in his letter, Shaw also refers to General Motors and the role it played in the outcome of Saab's failed reorganization efforts. Being an official dealer, Shaw's view on the matter makes for an interesting read. You can check out the letter right after the break.

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2011 Saab 9-3 and 9-5 Sedans for Half Price, but Would You Buy Them?

Ever since we learned about Saab's bankruptcy, many pondered whether it would be a good idea to buy a brand new or a very low mileage example from dealers that wanted to get rid of the cars they had in stock at marked down prices.

The problem is that these cars are offered without a manufactures warranty while we're still not certain what's going on with parts, because sure you can get an awesome deal, but what happens if something breaks or needs replacement on your car; will you find a part in a timely manner and equally important, at what cost?

It's good to keep in mind that being an older model, it's much easier to find replacement parts for the 9-3 series than it is for the newer 9-5.

Lots of questions not too many answers, and this is something that will likely make most mainstream buyers wary.

What we can say is that over the past few weeks that we have been following the subject, prices of the remaining Saab cars in the U.S. have dropped significantly.

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Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: What Saab’s Demise May Mean for Buyers

"If Saab’s future seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
You can buy a heavily discounted brand new car
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just walk into your nearest Saab dealership - that's the thing.

And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life..."

First of all, we hope Monty Python won’t mind altering their song from The Life of Brian. We'd also like to note that we are in no way making fun of the fact that, unless something unexpected happens, Saab is closing shop – for good this time, leaving thousands of workers unemployed.
We’re just trying to say that, in the event the liquidation of the car company goes through, there are consequences but not all of them are bad for consumers.

Saab Files for Bankruptcy After All Rescue Plans Fail, This Could be the End

It is sad news for the automotive world to learn of the demise of a company. Unfortunately, Monday December 19, will mark the end of the road for Swedish carmaker Saab – and this time it looks like it is final.

Earlier this morning, Swedish Automotive N.V. (Swan) announced that Saab Automobile, Saab Automobile Tools and Saab Powertrain filed for bankruptcy with the District Court in Vanersborg, Sweden.

This comes after Youngman, the Chinese company which last week promised to pay for the carmaker’s restructuring, informed Saab that it cannot provide the funding necessary for the continuation of the process.

Therefore, Swan concluded that, with GM vetoing any proposed plan until now, and without the essential funding, it would be insolvent. Thus, it was better for its creditors to file for bankruptcy.

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Saabs Earns IIHS “Top Safety Pick” for its 9-4X and 9-5, Which could be Useful if it had Any to Sell...

Fate, it seems, is not without a sense of irony: the line spoken by Morpheus in the first (and, arguably, best) movie of The Matrix trilogy certainly fits Saab’s case tighter than spandex pants.

The U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has awarded the 9-4X crossover and the 9-5 sedan a “Top Safety Pick”, its highest rating for crashworthiness.

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New Audi A6 Ties with Infiniti M37 in Consumer Reports’ Premium Sedan Test, Saab 9-5 Flunks

Up until now, Consumer Reports' [CR] number one choice in the mid-size luxury sedan segment was the Infiniti M37. Not anymore as after evaluating the redesigned 2012 Audi A6, the M37 has to share the top spot with Ingolstadt's premium saloon.

The new Audi A6 received an “Excellent” rating with an overall score of 93 points. This is a huge improvement over the previous model's 79 points.

“The redesigned Audi A6 is an impressive car and a joy to drive”, said senior director of CR’s Auto Test Center. Consumer reports says that the significant improvement is attributed to the revamped model’s combination of strong acceleration, agile handling and comfortable ride as well its high-quality and quiet interior.

Other models included in CR’s mid-size luxury test were the Mercedes-Benz E350 BlueTec, the Infiniti M35h hybrid and the new Saab 9-5.

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Say Again? Saab 9-5 Sedan 2.8V6 Turbo Named Car of the Year in Singapore

Unless you're one of those chaps that wear their Saab shades no matter what happens, the news that the 9-5 Sedan 2.8V6 Turbo has been named Car of the Year by a Consumer Guide, published by Wheels Asia in Singapore, can only provoke giggles.

And we say this not because the 9-5 is a bad car, but how can you possibly give a top recommendation (remember, this isn't a comparo but a Consumers Guide) to any vehicle from an automaker that has barely produced a car in the past six months and which recently went under bankruptcy protection and its future is clearly on the line?

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Saab Says it Can’t Pay Workers, Company’s Survival in Doubt

New clouds are forming over Saab as the automaker’s parent company, Swedish Automobile N.V., formerly known as Spyker Cars N.V., said on Thursday it will be unable to pay its 3,800 employees their wages because it has not yet obtained the necessary short-term funding.

Swedish Automobile said it and Saab “are in discussions with various parties” to secure short-term funding, including through a sale and lease-back of Saab’s real estate assets.

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Saab Production on Hold for at least Two More Weeks

Ailing Swedish car manufacturer Saab will not be producing new vehicles for at least two more weeks until it resolves the problems with its suppliers, the company said on Monday.

"There will be no normal production during weeks 25 and 26 (June 20th-July 3rd)," Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs told Reuters. "We are still negotiating with all suppliers and we need to get everyone on board at the same time. The weeks of 27-29 (July 4th-24th) are planned to be normal working weeks".

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Saab UK Announces 2012 9-5 Sedan and SportWagon Amidst Production Halt

If there was ever an award for bad timing, Saab’s UK division would probably be a front-runner this month. You see, there is something fundamentally wrong with announcing pricing and details on a new product when its production has been suspended (even if, as Saab claims, proves to be temporary, in which case, why not wait?).

In any case and with Saab’s future depending on deals that still need to be approved from Swedish, European and Chinese officials, the company gave out UK pricing information on the 2012 model year 9-5 range, which benefits from the introduction of the SportWagon and a series of enhancements, including additional features and further reduced CO2 emissions for all engines.

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Saab Temporarily Suspends Production Again while it Seeks Parts

The on-off production drama over at Saab’s Trollhättan facility in Sweden continues as the troubled automaker said Wednesday that it temporarily halted production due to a lack of components from its suppliers only two weeks after resuming making cars following a seven-week shutdown.

Saab said that it anticipated production hiccups in the start-up phase, as the supply chain still is not fully operational with some suppliers holding back until they get paid and others trying to re-stock.

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China’s Pang Da Places a New €15 Million Order for Saab Vehicles

Chinese distributor Pang Da Automobile is pumping more cash into Spyker NV's ailing Swedish unit Saab by placing a new order for 630 vehicles valued at €15 million or US$21.5 million. This latest order comes after an earlier one last week for 1,300 cars worth €30 million (US$43.2 million) and is part of a broader deal in which Pang Da agreed to buy a 24 percent stake in Saab’s parent company Spyker for €65 million (US$93.5 million).

The Swedish automaker said that as with the first order, Pang Da will pay the additional €15 million order up front with the funds expected to be received by the end of this week. Delivery of the vehicles ordered by Pang Da will start in the fall of this year.

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Saab Returns from the Dead…Again, Restarts Production at its Trollhättan Factory

Saab is back in the business of making cars again -at least for now- almost two months after production came to a halt on April 6 when the company’s suppliers stopped deliveries of parts in protest over unpaid bills. The Swedish company was able to restart production after receiving €30 million (US$42.8 million) in advance on a deal it has signed with Chinese car distributor Pang Da Automobile.

The China company’s CEO, Mr. Pang Qinghua, visited the Trollhättan factory today together with CEO and Chairman of Saab Automobile, Victor Muller, and witnessed the first vehicle to roll off the assembly line. Saab said around 100 cars were built today but plans to “increase the daily production rate in the coming weeks in parallel with the full re-establishment of the supply chain”.

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What Lies Ahead in Saab’s Future?

Saab is in trouble. With mounting debts and limited capital investment, the Swedish company is a prime candidate to go the way of the dinosaurs. The troubled automaker has not built a single vehicle since the 1st of April, and a much touted deal with China’s Hawtai Motor Group has fallen through. They did however sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with another Chinese company called Pang Da Automobile Trade Co. Ltd, earlier this week, but we will have to wait and see if the deal goes through.

In light of this, I’ve thought up four plausible (though unlikely) scenarios for Saab. These range from the hugely cynical all the way to the brazenly optimistic. After all, isn’t it better than Saab has some future rather than no future at all? Without further ado, here are your options:

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VIDEO: New Saab 9-5 Police Interceptor in the Making

When they are not trying to save Saab or put down anyone who dares express a different opinion or even report the news about the Swedish automaker and its people (I’m referring to this article where the author forgot to mention Muller’s quote on the safety of Chinese cars, and which we wrote about here), the guys over Saabsunited get to spend some time at their favorite brand’s Trollhattan factory.

In this video, the Saab-loving crew were given the chance to get a first view of the new 9-5 saloon police interceptor as it was being prepared, and which is said to receive its initial public outing this weekend. Follow the jump to watch the clip.

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Saved by Antonov: Saab Sells Production Facilities to Russian Banker to Get Cash

The Swedish government offered Saab conditional backing for a deal to free up cash for the company (see previous story here), whose production lines have been stopped for two weeks as Saab didn't pay suppliers. "We have decided to allow the Debt Office to conclude an agreement with Saab," said enterprise minister Maud Olofsson during a news conference on Friday.

The government has approved a proposal from the Debt Office to allow Saab to sell real estate, including the production plant, to Russian financier Vladimir Antonov and then lease it back from him. The minister said this deal would bring €30 million to Saab in the first phase, although the real estate was worth much more than that.

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Saab Roller Coaster Continues as Cash Gets Tight

Saab just can't seem to catch a break. After moving from the General's formerly overcrowded pocket into the hands of Spyker, the once-quirky brand is now doing all it can to bring production back online after failing to pay suppliers.

The gist is this: Saab received 400 million Euros (~$580 million) from the European Investment Bank so it could keep on ticking. Sweden guaranteed the loan, meaning whatever Spyker's resolution calls for must get the go-ahead from the Man.

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Video of the New Saab 9-5 SportCombi from the 2011 Geneva Motor Show

The new PhoeniX sports coupe concept pretty much grabbed most of the attention at Saab's Geneva Motor Show stand, but the Swedes also brought along their all-new 2012 9-5 SportCombi. The station wagon model will arrive in the market this fall with the same engine lineup as the four-door 9-5 offering buyers improved practicality and a boot that measures 527 liters with the seats up and 1600 liters when the 60/40 split rear seatbacks are folded down. Hop over the jump for some live shots and walk-around video from the Geneva Show floors.

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Saab Releases First Video of New 9-5 SportCombi

If you're tired of looking at the same batch of pictures of the Geneva motor show-bound 2012 9-5 SportCombi, you'll be happy to know that Saab has published the first video of its flagship station wagon model, and furthermore, the car seen here is finished in a shiny black hue.

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Saab Shows More of the 9-5 SportCombi, Officially Confirms Concept Study for Geneva Salon

The rapidly approaching Geneva Motor Show is turning out to be a birthing room for Saab as the Swedish company is planning to launch two world premieres including the 9-5 SportCombi along with the unveiling of the modestly updated 9-3 Griffin range and the limited production 9-3 Convertible Independence Edition.

First teased on the Swedish firm's website last week, Saab today confirmed that one of the world premieres will be a never-before seen concept model conceived by a team under new design director, Jason Castriota, who is best known for his work at Pininfarina and for a short stint at Bertone where he penned the Corvette-based Mantide.

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