The news we did not want to hear has arrived: historic Swedish carmaker Saab has filed for bankruptcy this morning at the court of Vänersborg, Sweden.

Swedish Automobile CEO Victor Muller filed for bankruptcy of Saab along with its Saab Powertrain subsidiary today, following GM’s refusal to support a new plan of investment and loan that prompted Chinese firm Youngman to announce that the funds to continue and complete the ongoing reorganization of the historic Swedish carmaker could not be carried out. Apparently, GM (which owns part of Saab) did not want did not want Saab’s Chinese partners to access its technology licenses, obstructing the final desperate efforts to save the brand.

Swedish Automobile, the Dutch company that controls Saab, decided that without further funding the company is bound to become insolvent and therefore filing bankruptcy would be the right thing to do in the best interests of its creditors. It is expected that the Swedish court overseeing the reorganization process will approve of the filing and appoint receivers for Saab pretty quickly. Last week the Dutch financial market regulator halted trading in Saab shares, while Swedish Automobile said it does not expect to realize any value from its shares in Saab and will write off its interest completely.

Historic Swedish carmaker Saab has been bought by Chinese companies Pang Da and Youngman for 100 million Euros. Swedish Automobile main man Victor Muller finally agreed to sell Saab Automobile and Saab Great Britain outright to his former Chinese partners, a move that basically saves the brand from immediate bankruptcy. In fact, as previously reported, Saab were due in court today to put their case in front of a Swedish Court after the administrator of their court protection applied for its end.

Pang Da and Youngman, two of China’s biggest name in the business, had first offered to purchase Saab a few weeks ago, claiming that their original partnership agreement signed in July to buy a share of Saab was no longer valid because of changed circumstances, but Swedish Automobile CEO Victor Muller refused the offer, deeming it as ‘unacceptable’. In hindsight, that might have been just a strategic skirmish.

However, the deal still needs the go-ahead from the Chinese government - which is expected to provide a definitive answer by the 15th of November - and Swedish Automobile’s own shareholders.

Dutch company Swedish Automobile, owner of Saab, has abruptly ended the partnership agreement with China’s Pang Da and Youngman groups adducing a breach of contract from the Chinese side as the reason for the break-up. The decision is a big blow to Saab’s struggle for existence, which was strictly dependent on the success of this partnership, signed last July. Initially Youngman and Pang Da were supposed to acquire a combined 53.9 % stake in Swedish Automobile for 245 million Euros, the money required to keep Saab in the business, but then the Chinese companies said circumstances have changed and now they want to purchase shares in Saab itself, in the view of a possible a takeover of the historic Swedish automaker.

Swedish Automobile CEO Victor Muller described the offer as “unacceptable” as it would activate a change of control clause that would possibly mean the end of Saab. Swedish Automobile has struggled for months seeking investors and selling off various assets in a bid to keep their Saab plant in Sweden alive, but the failure of this agreement has really put the future of the brand in jeopardy: the attorney in charge of Saab’s reorganization has just asked a Swedish court to end bankruptcy protection for the automaker, saying Saab does not have enough money to continue the process. A decision on this application will be taken on Oct. 28. However, in spite of all that, talks between Swedish Automobile and the aforementioned Chinese groups are still ongoing.

via | AutoMotiveNews

If you could buy a Dodge Viper SRT-10, what would you do with it? Probably not turn it into a Saab, but that’s what some guys in Sweden did - or sort of. The wrecked Dodge was originally bought with the intention of rebuilding it, but as parts became scarce and the investment required got out of hand, the mechanical bits were then used on a Saab 9-3 SportCombi. And so what we get is a Saab 9-3 SRT10 MegaPower. It wasn’t quite as simple as what we’ve described but this could prove to be the most powerful Saab station wagon currently cruising the streets of Sweden.

Dodge Viper becomes Saab 9-3 SportCombi

Source | CarScoop

Saab has sold a 30-percent stake to the Hawtai Motor Group Company Limited in a deal worth €150 million. Struggling to stay afloat, Saab has been looking for other investment sources and the Chinese group also provided an option for overseas interest outside the EU. The deal includes 120 million euros subscription for 24.6 million Saab shares and a 30-million euro convertible loan.

Approval from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Swedish Debt Office is pending, and approval from the Chinese end could take six to 12 months. The company plans that this financing will furnish some mid-term operational needs and will obviously give it access to the Chinese car market - where every car manufacturer wants to be right now.

It’s unclear what kind of operational or production procedures will be shared, but according to reports, Hawtai is keen to expand its production, up to about one million vehicles by 2015. There is no further news about the courting of Saab investment from Vladimir Antonov, but a few days ago offers from him were said to be under consideration, pending approval as well.

If it all pans out, Saab is planning a global tour to introduce everybody and while we’re tempted to say it sounds like an international picnic, the new investment will mark another new chapter in Saab’s recent turbulent history, and quite an ecletic company at that.

Source | Automotive News and Autoblog.com

General Motors has given initial tentative approval for Russian investor Vladimir Antonov to become a shareholder in Saab, a move which has also been mirrored by approval from the Swedish debt office. According to reports, Saab can expect up to €30 million in financing from Antonov, who is looking like the one option at this stage to save the autocar maker.

GM still has some interest in Saab with redeemable preference shares, and is quoted as saying that the agreement: “requires certain specific actions to be taken by Saab which have not yet been completed, as well as certain formal consents, approvals and waivers which Saab has not yet obtained.”

The process could prove a long one, with agreements still requiring approval from the European Investment Bank (EIB), which leant huge amounts of money to Saab, secured by the Swedish government, not to mention past accusations of Antonov’s involvement in organised crime and money laundering, for which he had to withdraw as a Spyker investor in the past.

Antonov says: “Finally we have managed to obtain a clean bill of health and we need to move fast forward to secure the cash flow of Saab Automobile. I hope all involved parties now further take on their responsibility so we can close all processes fast to secure the future of Saab.”

And so the cavalry has arrived? Saab will be desperate for the cash and so will the Swedish government, most likely. It seems that our news yesterday of Saab in talks with Chinese companies has been confirmed, although those companies are still unnamed. It would be a way for Saab to raise money without requiring EIB approval. Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs says: “In parallel, we are working on the longer term financing solution, including talking with some Chinese companies.”

Source | Automotive News

That Saab is in serious financial difficulty even under its new ownership of Spyker isn’t news to anyone, and neither are we surprised by reports that a Chinese car company could consider a Saab purchase. Despite news that Volvo was denying any negotiations over a Saab acquisition, we wouldn’t be surprised if Geely was interested in expanding its European car portfolio.

At the moment though there has been no company named as such, with Auto, Motor und Sport simply stating that the Chinese could be part of various interested parties. After the Geely purchase of Volvo it would be another example of how the Chinese seem to know how to value European brands that have been neglected and facing bankruptcy under their European or North American owners.

Recently, Saab was looking for funds from the Swedish government while also seeking financing elsewhere but red tape issues with the EIB (European Investment Bank), winding up the General Motors ownership and getting the right approvals have taken time. The details of the “several interested parties” (Eric Geers) in investment are scarce at the moment so we can’t be sure if this would be an outright sale of Saab, or a joint-venture with new owner Spyker.

Whatever the case, if Saab is to survive, it needs funds and soon. With suppliers unpaid and production delays it’s clear that the company is seriously losing money and that new Saab sales are not anywhere near to generating the kind of break-even situation that’s required at the moment.

The arrival of a new Saab 9-3 has been confirmed, and it should prove to be a return to a five-door hatchback model. A three-door hatch is apparently not planned for the moment, and we could get a Saab 9-3 sedan in the future to appeal to the US car market. According to reports the 9-3 will be radically different from the past General Motors-era model with designer Jason Castriota apparently working on a design that would make the new 9-3 more individually Saab.

A debut is planned for the near future (possibly in about a year) and in addition to the hatchback we will see a 9-3 convertible, most likely a SportCombi wagon variant and the sedan model that could appear. The new Saab 9-3 design though, while taking inspiration from the PhoeniX concept, will also provide a streamlined hatchback that should appeal to sedan buyers as well (meaning we won’t be seeing anything boxy).

The news all comes from Autoblog.com and its quizzing of Saab’s Vehicle Validation Engineer, Magnus Hillerborn. The latter leaves a parting barb for GM executives who, he says, will be “very surprised” by the new model. With Saab sales needing a boost, developing a new 9-3 for the company’s new era is not only a good thing, it’s also necessary.

Russian banker Vladimir Antonov has said that Saab will likely miss its 2011 sales target of 80,000 units this year. Antonov helped fund Spyker’s purchase of the GM Saab brand, and will purchase the niche sports car production unit from Spyker this year through its British holding company, CPP Global Holdings. Antonov predicts that instead of the 80,000 target, Saab will sell between 60 and 65,000 units this year.

That’s still up from last year’s 31,696 units sold, but it might not make Saab profitable enough for parent company Spyker. On selling its luxury car business, Spyker has said it will concentrate on Saab operations instead. Antonov has ruffled a few feathers at Saab, as the company looks to stay positive and follow its new business plan.

Obviously new beginnings are not always rosy, but Saab has been maintaining an optimistic outlook for its future operations. Commenting on Antonov’s statements, Saab head of communication Eric Geers says: “I know that at Saab we are moving ahead, we are following the business plan. The sales target is not our prime target. Our prime target is to follow our business plan and deliver, within the financial parameters.”

In the meantime, Spyker CEO Victor Muller has dismissed the claims as nonense, but has declined comment on whether Saab will need added capital in the future. Other analysts have suggested that Saab needs new investors that will provide technical expertise and not just finance. More to come from this story in the future.

Source | Reuters and AutomotiveNews

Here are new pics and a video of the Saab 9-5 SportCombi and the Saab Phoenix Concept which were both presented at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. We won’t hide our bias and just say that we’re very taken with the 9-5 SportCombi. We like its mix of sports style and elegance and it should contribute to widening the appeal of the Saab range. They have made sensible choices with their engine range, keeping the 1.6 Turbo, 2.0 Turbo and 2.0 TTiD from the sedan and offering XWD and manual or automatic transmission, too.

The Saab 9-5 Combi is obviously a practical vehicle but with a sporty feel (see the 9-5 SportCombi video after the jump). The boot length can get up to 1.9 m and its capacity ranges from 527 litres to 1,600 litres with the rear seats down. A baggage fixture system called U-Rail is available and the boot opens electronically with remote control or a button over the rear number plate.

The Geneva show for Saab also featured the new IQon multimedia system which will soon be adopted by all models in the Saab range. It looks in the style to some Apple products and uses Googles Android system. You can see how the IQon system works in the video after the jump.

Finally there are also new Saab Phoneix Concept pics and a video avaialble. The concept reflects “aeromotional design” according to Saab and while purely an exercise in style at the moment, the model previews some future aspects of Saab design language. It uses a hybrid drivetrain with a 1.6-litre, four-cylinder turbo engine (from Mini) with 200 hp, and an electric motor with 34 hp that powers the rear wheels. This all-wheel drive hybrid set-up takes the name eXWD and will form the basis for future Saab hybrid models.

The Saab 9-5 SportCombi has been unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show and seeing these kinds of models, we’re hoping the company will be able to keep its head above water and keep producing some lovely cars. The model appeared alongside the Saab PhoeniX Concept which looks more like a sculpture than a vehicle. It’s purely a design concept at the moment, and could herald some of the features we’ll be seeing on Saab models in the future.

Another model on show is the Saab 9-3 Griffin. The 9-3 restyling applies to all models in the line-up: the Sport Sedan, Sporthatch, Cabriolet and 9-3X. It comes with an updated two-litre Biopower petrol engine with direct injection. It comes in two options of 163 hp and 320 Nm, or 220 hp and 350 Nm of torque. The Biopower label refers to the Bio-ethanol E85 option available. The diesel range comes in the 1.9 TTid models with 130, 160 or 180 hp. Saab XWD all-wheel drive is available for the petrol options.

We love what they’ve done with the design for the Saab 9-5 SportCombi, though. It’s elegant, well-proportioned and is definitely a worthy competitor to the German models around. The same engine range of the sedan model is carried across, but we don’t have any boot capacity details, which is a shame. The Saab models on show also came with the new IQon entertainment system and its various applications. It’s too early to say that Saab is looking healthy again, but we like what we see.

Saab live at 2011 Geneva motor Show

Saab has presented its PhoeniX Concept at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. The intriguing creation from Jason Castriota is a study in design for the Saab models of the future. The splendid coupé borders on a muscle car look, with sinuous lines and the roof has been made of glass above the seats. The PhoeniX Concept is equipped with a 1.6-litre turbo engine with 200 hp (from BMW) and has another 34 hp provided by an electric motor. We’ll be bringing you the live pics from Geneva of the Saab concept shortly.

Saab Phoenix Concept first pics