Koenigsegg backs out of plan to buy Saab
11-24-09, 09:45 AM
#1
Lexus Test Driver
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Koenigsegg backs out of plan to buy Saab
11-24-09, 10:02 AM
#2
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I've rang Saabs death bell for years now. Not good. The local dealer by me has like 9 Saabs.....can't get any new inventory and he can't sell the old stuff.
What is sad is this trend will continue. We continue to witness car brands die one by one...in 20 years we will only have a few.
All the quirky cars and having something truly different is dying.
What is sad is this trend will continue. We continue to witness car brands die one by one...in 20 years we will only have a few.
All the quirky cars and having something truly different is dying.
11-24-09, 10:56 AM
#3
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GM May Shut Saab as Koenigsegg Ends Acquisition Talks
By Jeff Green, Niklas Magnusson and Adam Ewing
Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Co. may shut its Saab unit after Koenigsegg Group AB canceled a planned acquisition of the Swedish company, a person familiar with the matter said.
GM’s board will review the future of the bankrupt unit at a Dec. 1 meeting, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the talks aren’t public. Directors could opt to keep Saab, as they did when deciding earlier this month to cancel a sale of the Opel brand in Germany, the person said.
“We will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week,” GM Chief Executive Officer Fritz Henderson said in a statement today. “We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out.”
The pullout by Koenigsegg, which said it ran out of time to complete a deal, is the third brand sale to falter since GM’s July 10 bankruptcy exit. GM backed out of the Opel sale to a group led by Magna International Inc., and Penske Automotive Group Inc. withdrew in September from a plan to buy Saturn.
GM has a contingency plan for Saab similar to a process being used to wind down Saturn, the person said. Saab owners would continue to be covered by GM warranties and be assigned to a new dealership for service, the person said.
Saab had said that the transaction with Koenigsegg, the maker of $1.2 million sports cars, would close at the end of this month. The deal was postponed after the European Investment Bank delayed a decision on granting Saab a 400 million-euro ($600 million) loan, which it approved Oct. 21.
‘Time Just Ran Out’
“We believed in the plan, we were convinced that it would work,” Koenigsegg Chairman Augie Fabela said in a telephone interview today. “We came to the decision after deliberations over the past few days that time just ran out for us to make the deal happen. It’s up to GM now.”
Saab received protection from creditors in February after GM said it was cutting ties with the unit. GM bought Saab from Sweden’s Wallenberg family in two steps starting in 1990, betting the brand would widen GM’s appeal with buyers seeking European turbocharged, aerodynamic cars.
Koenigsegg won the bidding for Saab in June in a deal that would return the Trollhaettan-based automaker to Swedish control after almost two decades.
Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co., China’s fastest- growing carmaker, agreed in September to take a minority stake in Koenigsegg Group, the investment team set up to buy Saab.
‘Risks and Uncertainties’
“Time always played a critical factor in our strategy for reviving the company,” Christian von Koenigsegg, a member of the acquisition group, said in a statement. “Unfortunately, delays in closing this acquisition have resulted in risks and uncertainties that prevent us from successfully implementing the new Saab business plan.”
Henderson said GM executives had created “a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg.”
Saab’s 10-month sales slumped 62 percent to 7,441 cars in the U.S., the world’s largest auto market. The automaker sold just 513 cars in the U.S. last month.
In Europe, Saab’s biggest market, 10-month sales plunged 59 percent to 23,590 vehicles, a steeper decline than for any other major carmaker. October sales in the region were 1,753, down 65 percent from last year, the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said Nov. 16.
As of Nov. 15, Saab planned to reduce its U.S. dealership body by 37 percent, cutting 81 of 218 dealers.
“It is surprising,” George Glassman, dealer principal of Glassman Saab in Southfield, Michigan, said of Koenigsegg’s exit. “It is not what I had hoped to hear, but I believe it’s a dead issue. In the interim, if you know of a McDonald’s, Burger King or Dunkin’ Donuts that would like to occupy my showroom, let me know.”
By Jeff Green, Niklas Magnusson and Adam Ewing
Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Co. may shut its Saab unit after Koenigsegg Group AB canceled a planned acquisition of the Swedish company, a person familiar with the matter said.
GM’s board will review the future of the bankrupt unit at a Dec. 1 meeting, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the talks aren’t public. Directors could opt to keep Saab, as they did when deciding earlier this month to cancel a sale of the Opel brand in Germany, the person said.
“We will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week,” GM Chief Executive Officer Fritz Henderson said in a statement today. “We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out.”
The pullout by Koenigsegg, which said it ran out of time to complete a deal, is the third brand sale to falter since GM’s July 10 bankruptcy exit. GM backed out of the Opel sale to a group led by Magna International Inc., and Penske Automotive Group Inc. withdrew in September from a plan to buy Saturn.
GM has a contingency plan for Saab similar to a process being used to wind down Saturn, the person said. Saab owners would continue to be covered by GM warranties and be assigned to a new dealership for service, the person said.
Saab had said that the transaction with Koenigsegg, the maker of $1.2 million sports cars, would close at the end of this month. The deal was postponed after the European Investment Bank delayed a decision on granting Saab a 400 million-euro ($600 million) loan, which it approved Oct. 21.
‘Time Just Ran Out’
“We believed in the plan, we were convinced that it would work,” Koenigsegg Chairman Augie Fabela said in a telephone interview today. “We came to the decision after deliberations over the past few days that time just ran out for us to make the deal happen. It’s up to GM now.”
Saab received protection from creditors in February after GM said it was cutting ties with the unit. GM bought Saab from Sweden’s Wallenberg family in two steps starting in 1990, betting the brand would widen GM’s appeal with buyers seeking European turbocharged, aerodynamic cars.
Koenigsegg won the bidding for Saab in June in a deal that would return the Trollhaettan-based automaker to Swedish control after almost two decades.
Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co., China’s fastest- growing carmaker, agreed in September to take a minority stake in Koenigsegg Group, the investment team set up to buy Saab.
‘Risks and Uncertainties’
“Time always played a critical factor in our strategy for reviving the company,” Christian von Koenigsegg, a member of the acquisition group, said in a statement. “Unfortunately, delays in closing this acquisition have resulted in risks and uncertainties that prevent us from successfully implementing the new Saab business plan.”
Henderson said GM executives had created “a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg.”
Saab’s 10-month sales slumped 62 percent to 7,441 cars in the U.S., the world’s largest auto market. The automaker sold just 513 cars in the U.S. last month.
In Europe, Saab’s biggest market, 10-month sales plunged 59 percent to 23,590 vehicles, a steeper decline than for any other major carmaker. October sales in the region were 1,753, down 65 percent from last year, the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said Nov. 16.
As of Nov. 15, Saab planned to reduce its U.S. dealership body by 37 percent, cutting 81 of 218 dealers.
“It is surprising,” George Glassman, dealer principal of Glassman Saab in Southfield, Michigan, said of Koenigsegg’s exit. “It is not what I had hoped to hear, but I believe it’s a dead issue. In the interim, if you know of a McDonald’s, Burger King or Dunkin’ Donuts that would like to occupy my showroom, let me know.”
11-24-09, 10:56 AM
#4
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The irony.....
Anyway... this really sucks. it was a collaboration I was really looking forward too. Hope SAAB come up with something soon.
Wonder in anyone in china is still interested?
Anyway... this really sucks. it was a collaboration I was really looking forward too. Hope SAAB come up with something soon.
Wonder in anyone in china is still interested?
12-01-09, 12:45 PM
#6
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
Here is a bit of info I did not know about:
"Before Koenigsegg emerged as a buyer in June, GM had plans to let the storied brand go out of business, "
http://bostonherald.com/business/aut...&position=also
"Before Koenigsegg emerged as a buyer in June, GM had plans to let the storied brand go out of business, "
http://bostonherald.com/business/aut...&position=also
12-02-09, 09:31 AM
#7
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
A Chinese Saab anyone?
"GM would not identify the potential bidders. Last week, the Chinese company Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings said it would re-evaluate Saab, but stopped short of saying it would make an independent bid."
"GM would not identify the potential bidders. Last week, the Chinese company Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings said it would re-evaluate Saab, but stopped short of saying it would make an independent bid."
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