All Entries in the "SAAB" Category
End of an Era: Last Saab 9-5 Built.
By Gunnar Heinrich | IMG via SaabsUnited
YESTERDAY marked a bittersweet moment for many at the Saab factory in Trollhattan, Sweden.
According to SaabsUnited, the 483,593th Saab 9-5 – in wagon form – rolled off the assembly line and into the welcoming care of the Saab museum. The 9-5 series of sedans and wagons (more mainstream successors to Saab’s beloved if truly quirky 9000 five-doors) stood as Saab’s only link to its true, pre-GM-buyout soul.
A decade old, the 9-5 nonetheless maintained a high degree of safety and comfort through its tenure as Saab’s defacto flagship.
The automotive community can credit the 9-5 for several pioneering innovations: including active safety headrests that tilt forward in a collision to prevent occupant whiplash; and electrically fan-cooled seats, which Mercedes-Benz later implemented in the W220 S-Class in 2000.
The 9-5’s overdue replacement is set for launch later this year, allowing us to pause and give credit to the 9-5 for maintaining Saab’s Svenska authenticity in a decade that saw the 9-3 transformed into a generic, Opel platformed sedan, the 9-2X “Saabaru”, and that rat-bastard step-child 9-7X; a GMC Jimmy with a Saab badge and center console mounted key ignition.
It’s almost a shame that the 9-5’s assembly, tools, and trade-info were sold to the Chinese in a kind of garage sale last autumn. Still, Chinese consumers stand to benefit- for anything based on the 9-5 will stand up in the marketplace as a solid car.
After Spike, Spyker Shares Drift Back To Earth
By Gunnar Heinrich | IMG LensOnLeeuwenhoek.net
INVESTORS, it seems, were looking to make a quick buck euro.
As of Friday, Jan. 22nd, one share of Spyker Cars, NV (AMS: SPYKR) could be had publicly for 2.15. Fast forward to Monday’s close, and the stock was up again to 3.80 on much higher volume due to rumors that Spyker could clinch a deal with GM to buy Saab.
On Tuesday, share price rose again and then settled at 3.91 before the exchange halted trading in advance of the announcement that Spyker had, in fact, pulled off the deal.
When trading resumed on Wednesday, the price peaked at 6.80 a share before some investors rushed to sell; for some that meant locking in a gain of more than 200%. The sell off dropped the share price to 5.21 before rallying again to 5.75.
But as financial reports from Bloomberg and others have started trickling in on the enormity of the hurdles Spyker faces in revitalizing Saab, as of this article’s posting, Spyker’s price now stands at 4.05 per share on a day when the stock’s price started at 5.14 a share.
Historically, those who invested in Spyker’s initial public offering back in ‘04 are still seeing red: that offer was 14.83 per share. But there is a positive note: if the past any indicator, there could be stronger highs in the future.
Spyker’s stock peaked to an all-time high in April, 2006 @ 22.35 a share.
[Source: Google Finance]
For Profit: Spyker Shifted Production From Zeewolde Last Year; The Same For Trollhattan In The Future?
By Gunnar Heinrich
FUNNY, I thought Britons went to Holland to buy cars and not vice versa.
Not with the current weak sterling to strong euro exchange rate which was, apparently, part of Spyker CEO Victor Muller’s decision to up manufacturing from the now-well-publicized Zeewolde, Netherlands to Coventry (home of Jaguar).
The Dutch flight to Albion had to do with business logistics and to “secure the future of our business,” Mr. Muller told the Telegraph. Spyker will be moved near its main supplier CPP Manufacturing.
The November 20th, 2009 press release echoed this rationale:
“By relocating its assembly lines from Zeewolde to Coventry, Spyker will achieve considerable improvements in efficiency and substantial cost-reductions [...] With approximately half our vehicles’ parts and components sourced from the UK, and virtually all key suppliers being located there, moving closer to our suppliers and engineering partners will result in substantial savings and tangible efficiency improvements.“
In a few years time, might we anticipate the same from Spyker management in moving more of Saab manufacturing from pricey Trollhattan? It’s reported that 45 out of 135 Dutch jobs were lost in the jump to Old Blighty.
[Source: Daily Telegraph]
Spyker: To See Profit, Saab Must Sell 100,000 of These Every Year
By Gunnar Heinrich
BUSINESSWEEK reported that Spyker is thinking that for Saab to see profits the Swedish-Dutch car maker will have to manufacture (and hopefully sell) 100,000 units per year.
Can this be done?
By virtue of Businessweek’s own reporting, Saab sold 90K cars worldwide as early as 2008 and 120K cars in 2007, respectively.
So yes, if history is any guarantor, the 100K production figure is possible; provided parts pipelines flow smooth like e85.
But according to the BBC, Saab has not seen a profit since F.Y. 2001.
So, assuming that a) the economic conditions continue to improve into 2011 and that b) Saab’s production, marketing, and sales networks will all be in synch so that new 9-5s and 9-4Xs are hitting the streets en masse, SaabSpyker would still be deep in the hole even if it met its own production projections.
It isn’t readily conceivable how Spyker’s new/old entity can can build Saabs at less cost than GM which forced Saab to share platforms and design solutions with other divisions such as Opel.
To boot, Spyker must pay the General for many of its goods and services (read: parts) to Saab which will surely raise the company’s overhead. This, despite GM’s new status as SpykerSaab’s largest minority shareholder.
Short of outsourcing production to, say, Poland (à la Fiat) which would violate the Swedish government’s terms for backing Spyker’s acquisition loan, SaabSpyker will have to do some very inventive math to squeeze the efficiency out of an enterprise that spent the last decade hemorrhaging money.
All that gloom aside, if Victor Muller, Spyker’s tenacious Dutch CEO, was able to pull off this deal with GM despite incredible odds, surely we can’t rule out a second miracle: Saab’s return to sustainable profitability.
Saab Saved. GM Sells Saab To Spyker
By Gunnar Heinrich
HALLELUJAH! Bloomberg’s reporting that GM will sell Saab to Dutch car master Spyker! Oh, that Bloomberg, I could just hug…
Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) — General Motors Co. agreed to sell its Saab unit to Dutch sports-car maker Spyker Cars NV in a deal that would save the 72-year-old Swedish brand that’s being wound down.
Spyker agreed to pay $74 million in cash and $326 million in preferred shares in the company that would emerge from the deal, according to the Dutch company. The transaction, subject to Sweden agreeing to guarantee a 400 million-euro ($563 million) European Investment Bank loan for Saab, is expected to close in February and Saab will exit an orderly wind-down process in line with the timetable.
The automotive world is a richer community with Saab selling cars. Bring on the 9-5! And, please, please, please, the 9-1. Saab needs a smart hatch!
Spyker Announcement Re: Saab. Live Video Link
By Gunnar Heinrich
GOT this one courtesy SaabsUnited.com
Spyker’s set to hold a press conference which should take place in the Netherlands directly.
Here’s the link: www.rtl.nl
Saabists remember: if the sale with GM falls through, Genii Capital is reported to be waiting in the wings with a new offer.
It looks as though our dear Saab will find a new home!