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HISTORY OF THE SAAB | PORTFOLIO | OUR FACILITY | RELATED SITES
SAAB
HISTORY 1937 The Beginning of SAAB Saab was originally created as a division of the Swedish Aeroplane Company (Svenska Aeroplan AB in Swedish). The company had been established in 1937 for the express purpose of building aircraft for the Swedish Air Force. With World War II nearing its end, the company began looking for new markets in which to expand. 1947-1969 Svenska Aeroplan In 1944, Project 92 began, with the goal of creating the first Saab passenger car. Five years later, the Saab 92 began production. The design highlighted the company's roots in aviation. Notably, the car's drag coefficient of 0.30 was the lowest of any production car at the time. In 1955 the SAAB 92 was reworked and became the SAAB 93. The engine was upgraded from two to three cylinders but unusually remained a two stroke. The car received a facelift, including the first Saab with the brand's trademark trapezoidal grille. A wagon variant, the 95, was added in 1959 and would remain in production for the next twenty years. The decade also saw Saab's first foray into true performance cars with the Saab 94, the first of four Saab Sonetts. 1969-1989 Saab Scania In 1969, Saab partnered with Swedish heavy vehicle manufacturer Scania. The need for a larger model saw the birth of the Saab 99 in 1969. The 99 was the final Saab designed by Sixten Sason, who had designed all their earlier models. Its design, a clean break from all earlier Saabs, would mark the brand's styling for the next twenty years. The 99 was also important in that it marked Saab's first turbocharged model. In 1970, the 500,000th Saab was built. Six years later the 1,000,000th would follow. Saab signed an agreement with Fiat in 1978 to sell a rebadged Lancia Delta as the Saab 600 and jointly develop a new car platform. The agreement yielded the Alfa Romeo 164, Fiat Croma, Lancia Thema and Saab 9000, all riding atop the Type Four chassis. 1974, saw the introduction of the Combi-Coupe, which continued to live on in the 99, 900, 9000, NG900 & 9-3 as the hatchback which was ended in 2002. 1989 General Motors Ownership In December 1989 General Motors announced it had bought 50% of Saab's automobile division for US $600 million with an option to acquire the remaining shares within a decade. Despite this, losses continued and the Malmö plant was closed in 1991. At this point, Saab Automobile AB was created. GM's involvement spurred the launch of the "new generation" Saab 900 in 1994. The new car used the same platform as the Opel Vectra and polarized Saab aficionados, but thanks to its sales, the company declared a profit in 1995 for the first time in seven years. In 2000, GM purchased the remaining shares of the automobile division, making it a wholly-owned subsidiary. 2005 GM Moves to Trollhättan In March 2005, it was announced that GM would move the production of the next-generation Saab 9-5 from Trollhättan to the Opel plant in Rüsselsheim, Germany in 2009. The Trollhättan factory now produces European Cadillacs. The next-generation Saab 9-3 is scheduled to be produced at Trollhättan. Current models are the 9-3 and 9-5, both of which are manufactured in Trollhättan, Sweden. The Saab 9-7X SUV, discontinued since 2008, was manufactured in Moraine, Ohio. The Saab 9-2X, a rebadged Subaru Impreza manufactured in Japan, was discontinued after the 2006 model year. A new crossover SUV, dubbed the 9-4X, will share a platform with the new Cadillac SRX and is expected to go on sale in 2010. It will be built in North America. In December 2008, General Motors Corporation announced that Saab was "under review", which also included the possibility of selling off the Swedish carmaker. 27 parties reportedly expressed interest in buying the company, among them BMW, Renault, the Hyundai-Kia group, Tata Motors, Geely Automotive, Fiat and Magna International. Saab held talks with three selected bidders, reportedly the Renco Group, Koenigsegg with financial backing from Norwegian investors, and Merbanco, a group of Wyoming-based private investors. On 11 February 2009, Saab Automobile announced the Saab 9-3X - a new addition to the 9-3 range with all road capabilities. On 17 February 2009, Saab's parent company GM announced that Saab would apply for administration within 10 days unless it received substantial aid from the Swedish government. GM had requested 5 billion Swedish Kronor (US$565 million, €449 million) in state aid to help keep the company going until the start of 2010, however the Swedish government has appeared reluctant to provide this aid, and the Swedish Industry Minister was quoted in the press to have stated "The Swedish state and taxpayers in Sweden will not own car factories. Sometimes you get the impression that this is a small, small company but it is the world's biggest automaker so we have a right to make demands." On 20 February 2009, Saab duly entered into administration, which is seen as the equivalent of US Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Saab's managing director Jan-Åke Jonsson said that this was "the best way to create a truly independent entity that is ready for investment". The Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said on 18 February 2009 that the U.S. company's demands amounted to a "trap" set to pressure the government into granting financial aid. The Swedish trade minister, Maud Olofsson suggested the company had a brighter future moving to production of wind power turbines than continuing to produce cars in an already oversupplied market. The Saab "wordmark" has now been launched as a replacement for the Saab-Griffin logo that has been used for the past twenty years. 2009 Koenigsegg Group On 16 June 2009, it was announced that Koenigsegg and a group of Norwegian investors planned to acquire the brand from General Motors. GM would continue to supply architecture and powertrain technology for an unspecified amount of time. It would be the latest brand/subsidiary of GM to be sold (Hummer was first, followed by Saturn, although both deals fell through). Koenigsegg, the Swedish super-car maker named after its founder Christian von Koenigsegg, a former whiz-kid financier, has signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire Saab from GM. It was announced on 18 August that GM had signed the deal, although certain financing details remained to be completed. However, there is a financial shortfall of some three billion SEK that must be sorted before the deal goes through. If that money is found, the European Investment Bank will lend the new owner $600m, guaranteed by the Swedish government, and GM is to contribute platforms, powertrains, and about $500m in cash and other assets. On 20 February 2009, the district court of Vänersborg received a request for reorganization from Saab. Parent General Motors plans to divest itself of the company by the end of 2009. On 11 June 2009, a letter of intent was signed by Koenigsegg and a group of Norwegian investors to purchase Saab.
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