Saab 9-5 SportWagon 2012 cars wallpapers gallery and reviews http://modify-cars-wallpapers.blogspot.com/2011/09/chevrolet-camaro-zl1-2012.html
Showing posts with label Saab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Saab. Show all posts
Saab PhoeniX Concept shows off ‘aeromotional’ design
Very nice concept, glad SAAB didn't go under....
My first visit to a top international motor show was Paris 2006, which will be remembered as the debut venue of the Audi R8 and concepts like the VW Iroc, which has morphed into today’s Scirocco. All very nice, but there was one display at the Paris Expo that stopped this writer in his tracks, and it wasn’t even a world debut!
That car was the Saab Aero-X concept, a super sleek coupe with a jet style cockpit canopy that lifts upwards. It was a cool nod to Saab’s aviation roots, and guess what, they have repeated the same trick for Geneva 2011 in spectacular fashion. The automotive world would be much less interesting if not for individual brands like Saab – thank god they were saved from death at the last hour.
This PhoeniX concept showcases design features and technologies that will appear in the next generation of Saabs. Based on a new architecture which will underpin the next Saab 9-3, the PhoeniX introduces ‘aeromotional’ design, which Saab describes as “a visual evocation of the aerodynamic design principles and passion for innovation that inspired the creators of Saab’s first car, the iconic Ursaab.”
The slippery PhoeniX has a low drag Cd of just 0.25 and explores the potential for airflow management through the use of distinctive, side-mounted ‘winglets’. Butterfly opening doors give easy access to a low slung 2+2 cabin.
Source with more pics and text;
http://paultan.org/2011/03/02/saab-phoenix-concept-shows-off-aeromotional-design/#more-54273
My first visit to a top international motor show was Paris 2006, which will be remembered as the debut venue of the Audi R8 and concepts like the VW Iroc, which has morphed into today’s Scirocco. All very nice, but there was one display at the Paris Expo that stopped this writer in his tracks, and it wasn’t even a world debut!That car was the Saab Aero-X concept, a super sleek coupe with a jet style cockpit canopy that lifts upwards. It was a cool nod to Saab’s aviation roots, and guess what, they have repeated the same trick for Geneva 2011 in spectacular fashion. The automotive world would be much less interesting if not for individual brands like Saab – thank god they were saved from death at the last hour.
This PhoeniX concept showcases design features and technologies that will appear in the next generation of Saabs. Based on a new architecture which will underpin the next Saab 9-3, the PhoeniX introduces ‘aeromotional’ design, which Saab describes as “a visual evocation of the aerodynamic design principles and passion for innovation that inspired the creators of Saab’s first car, the iconic Ursaab.”
The slippery PhoeniX has a low drag Cd of just 0.25 and explores the potential for airflow management through the use of distinctive, side-mounted ‘winglets’. Butterfly opening doors give easy access to a low slung 2+2 cabin.
Source with more pics and text;
http://paultan.org/2011/03/02/saab-phoenix-concept-shows-off-aeromotional-design/#more-54273
GM lets Saab die
First Saturn, then Pontiac, now SAAB....
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors is shutting down its Swedish car brand, Saab, after attempts to close a deal with a buyer failed.
GM had announced earlier this year that it was close to reaching a deal with Swedish super-carmaker Koenigsegg. That deal fell, though.
"In the end, Koenigsegg discovered some issues they didn't think could be overcome in a timely fashion," said John Smith, GM vice president of corporate planning and alliances.
Dutch exotic carmaker Spyker then emerged as a bidder for Saab, but that deal couldn't be concluded in time, GM said.
In both cases, according to GM, issues arose during negotiations that prevented a final sale. GM executives would not say what the specific problems were, however.
"Like everybody, we would have preferred a different outcome," Smith said.
GM said it still intends to sell some Saab 9-3 and 9-5 technologies to the Chinese automaker Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co. Ltd. That deal was announced last week.
With GM's announcement that it's winding down Saab, BAIC or other companies may be able to buy more of Saab's assets, possibly even the brand name itself, Smith said. But no buyers have expressed interest, yet.
Brands we loved ... and lost in 2009
"Despite the best efforts of all involved, it has become very clear that the due diligence required to complete this complex transaction could not be executed in a reasonable time. In order to maintain operations, Saab needed a quick resolution," said GM Europe President Nick Reilly.
"We regret that we were not able to complete this transaction with Spyker Cars."
GM has owned the Swedish automaker since 1989; Saab has been making cars since 1949. GM will now begin winding down Saab production, but warranties will continue to be honored, and spare parts will still be available, the company said.
In the past two decades, GM has made every effort to turn Saab into a profitable car brand, Smith said. But recent global economic problems were simply too much for the still-weak automaker to survive.
"It's a business that has struggled more years than not during its existence," Smith said.
A total of 3,400 employees will be directly affected by Saab's closure, GM spokesman Chris Pruess said.
Saab has never been a big-selling car brand, but the recent global recession and news of the brand's possible demise have driven sales down to crisis levels. Saab's U.S. sales have been down by more than half so far this year.Sweden's other major automaker, Volvo, is currently owned by Ford, which is in the process of selling it to the Chinese automaker Geely.
As part of its bankruptcy restructuring, GM planned to sell of or wind down four of the eight brands it recently operated. Pontiac is being wound down; a deal to sell the Saturn brand to Penske Automotive fell through in September; and a deal to sell the Hummer SUV brand to Chinese heavy equipment maker Sichuan Tengzhong is awaiting government approvals.
GM's remaining brands are Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac.
Source;
http://money.cnn.com/2009/12/18/autos/saab_closed/
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors is shutting down its Swedish car brand, Saab, after attempts to close a deal with a buyer failed.GM had announced earlier this year that it was close to reaching a deal with Swedish super-carmaker Koenigsegg. That deal fell, though.
"In the end, Koenigsegg discovered some issues they didn't think could be overcome in a timely fashion," said John Smith, GM vice president of corporate planning and alliances.
Dutch exotic carmaker Spyker then emerged as a bidder for Saab, but that deal couldn't be concluded in time, GM said.
In both cases, according to GM, issues arose during negotiations that prevented a final sale. GM executives would not say what the specific problems were, however.
"Like everybody, we would have preferred a different outcome," Smith said.
GM said it still intends to sell some Saab 9-3 and 9-5 technologies to the Chinese automaker Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co. Ltd. That deal was announced last week.
With GM's announcement that it's winding down Saab, BAIC or other companies may be able to buy more of Saab's assets, possibly even the brand name itself, Smith said. But no buyers have expressed interest, yet.
Brands we loved ... and lost in 2009
"Despite the best efforts of all involved, it has become very clear that the due diligence required to complete this complex transaction could not be executed in a reasonable time. In order to maintain operations, Saab needed a quick resolution," said GM Europe President Nick Reilly.
"We regret that we were not able to complete this transaction with Spyker Cars."
GM has owned the Swedish automaker since 1989; Saab has been making cars since 1949. GM will now begin winding down Saab production, but warranties will continue to be honored, and spare parts will still be available, the company said.
In the past two decades, GM has made every effort to turn Saab into a profitable car brand, Smith said. But recent global economic problems were simply too much for the still-weak automaker to survive.
"It's a business that has struggled more years than not during its existence," Smith said.
A total of 3,400 employees will be directly affected by Saab's closure, GM spokesman Chris Pruess said.
Saab has never been a big-selling car brand, but the recent global recession and news of the brand's possible demise have driven sales down to crisis levels. Saab's U.S. sales have been down by more than half so far this year.Sweden's other major automaker, Volvo, is currently owned by Ford, which is in the process of selling it to the Chinese automaker Geely.
As part of its bankruptcy restructuring, GM planned to sell of or wind down four of the eight brands it recently operated. Pontiac is being wound down; a deal to sell the Saturn brand to Penske Automotive fell through in September; and a deal to sell the Hummer SUV brand to Chinese heavy equipment maker Sichuan Tengzhong is awaiting government approvals.
GM's remaining brands are Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac.
Source;
http://money.cnn.com/2009/12/18/autos/saab_closed/
Official: General Motors has reached an agreement to sell Saab
An agreement has been reached between GM and a group led by Swedish supercar maker Koenigsegg for the sale of Saab. The agreement included a $600 million of assistance from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to be guaranteed by the government of Sweden.
There is a great possibility that no funds will proceed from Koenigsegg Group in the purchase of Saab and its assets. The sale of Saab is expected to be finalized at the end of the third quarter of the year. Saab, which filed for bankruptcy last February 20, has been in a restructuring process to enhance its attractiveness to potential buyers. With the innovative, entrepreneurial traits and financial stability of Koenigsegg Group together with Koenigsegg’s time tested and proven capability to come up with world-class Swedish performance vehicles in a totally competent way, the deal is considered to be Saab’s best opportunity to come out a better company.
Source;
http://www.4wheelsnews.com/official-general-motors-has-reached-an-agreement-to-sell-saab/
Ward's: Smaller Players at Risk, Too
By Jerry FlintWardsAuto.com,
Feb 9, 2009 9:20 AM
We all know General Motors and Chrysler are at risk of going bankrupt in the U.S. But are they the only auto makers on the edge?
Toyota, Honda (phew) and Nissan may be losing money here, but they certainly will survive. Likewise, BMW Mercedes and Porsche are in no danger. But what about Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Subaru, Saab, Volvo and even Volkswagen?
Frankly, some of these companies may fold their tents in North America. They’ve been struggling for years in the U.S. and this is not likely to change soon.
I don’t dislike any of these auto makers, but look at their circumstances: Mitsubishi has a UAW-represented factory in Illinois capable of building more than 200,000 vehicles annually. This year production fell to 58,000 units from 79,000 last year. Sales in 2008 totaled just 97,000 vehicles, compared with 260,000 a decade ago.
Suzuki is a significant global player, the No.1 car maker in India. It sells cross/utility vehicles and pickups in the U.S, but it is best known here for small cars and motorcycles. Suzuki has an assembly plant in Canada, a joint venture with GM. But the plant turned out fewer than 13,000 Suzuki cars last year, against prior year’s 32,000.
Suzuki sales were 85,000 last year in the U.S. against 102,000 in 2007. Again, I like Suzuki, but its marketing budget can’t compete with the big boys.
Subaru cars generally are very good. The auto maker pioneered all-wheel-drive cars in the U.S., and you could say it invented the CUV with its Outback model. Yet, Subaru built just 92,000 vehicles in 2008 in its Indiana (again UAW) plant, against 109,000 in 2007.
Now Toyota has a piece of Subaru and is producing cars in the plant, too, which pushed total production to 183,000 units, more than the 147,000 produced in 2007. Subaru’s 2008 sales of 188,000 in the U.S. actually were up a notch from 2007, and up in January, too, while almost every other auto maker saw sales fall off a cliff.
Still, Subaru never has been able to become a volume player. If Toyota were not using the production capacity, the Indiana plant would be a huge financial drain.
Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Subaru all suffer from the same problem: They don’t have enough money and marketing muscle to compete with the likes of Toyota, Honda and Nissan.
Then there is Volkswagen. Talk about dreaming big. VW is building a new plant in Tennessee, and its executives are talking about tripling U.S. sales in 10 years to 1 million (including 200,000 Audis). I’ll give VW credit; last year was not a bad year, with sales down only 4% in 2008, while the market as a whole dropped a horrific 18%. And everybody seems to like the new Jetta diesel.
But VW has lost billions in the U.S. in recent years and may have lost money last year, too. Tripling sales to a million? In the dismal economic environment of the next few years, this sounds like a fantasy.
Here’s the problem. Most car buyers think of Volkswagen as a low-priced car. But VW can’t keep prices low when it imports cars and components from Europe, not with the strong euro. And it has trouble selling higher-priced models with the VW logo on the hood.
A new Tennessee plant will give VW great growth potential, but the dealership network is weak after decades of poor sales, and executives in Germany don’t seem to understand the U.S. market.
Meanwhile, GM’s Saab and Ford’s Volvo continue to struggle. Both build fine cars but are terribly squeezed for marketing money.
The point is there are other auto makers in bad shape in the U.S. besides Detroit nameplates. If all the companies mentioned here quit the U.S., we’re talking 800,000 cars and trucks. Imagine how the U.S. market would change if that volume were split up among the survivors,
Source;
http://wardsauto.com/commentary/smaller_players_risk_090209/
Feb 9, 2009 9:20 AM
We all know General Motors and Chrysler are at risk of going bankrupt in the U.S. But are they the only auto makers on the edge?
Toyota, Honda (phew) and Nissan may be losing money here, but they certainly will survive. Likewise, BMW Mercedes and Porsche are in no danger. But what about Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Subaru, Saab, Volvo and even Volkswagen?
Frankly, some of these companies may fold their tents in North America. They’ve been struggling for years in the U.S. and this is not likely to change soon.
I don’t dislike any of these auto makers, but look at their circumstances: Mitsubishi has a UAW-represented factory in Illinois capable of building more than 200,000 vehicles annually. This year production fell to 58,000 units from 79,000 last year. Sales in 2008 totaled just 97,000 vehicles, compared with 260,000 a decade ago.
Suzuki is a significant global player, the No.1 car maker in India. It sells cross/utility vehicles and pickups in the U.S, but it is best known here for small cars and motorcycles. Suzuki has an assembly plant in Canada, a joint venture with GM. But the plant turned out fewer than 13,000 Suzuki cars last year, against prior year’s 32,000.
Suzuki sales were 85,000 last year in the U.S. against 102,000 in 2007. Again, I like Suzuki, but its marketing budget can’t compete with the big boys.
Subaru cars generally are very good. The auto maker pioneered all-wheel-drive cars in the U.S., and you could say it invented the CUV with its Outback model. Yet, Subaru built just 92,000 vehicles in 2008 in its Indiana (again UAW) plant, against 109,000 in 2007.
Now Toyota has a piece of Subaru and is producing cars in the plant, too, which pushed total production to 183,000 units, more than the 147,000 produced in 2007. Subaru’s 2008 sales of 188,000 in the U.S. actually were up a notch from 2007, and up in January, too, while almost every other auto maker saw sales fall off a cliff.
Still, Subaru never has been able to become a volume player. If Toyota were not using the production capacity, the Indiana plant would be a huge financial drain.
Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Subaru all suffer from the same problem: They don’t have enough money and marketing muscle to compete with the likes of Toyota, Honda and Nissan.
Then there is Volkswagen. Talk about dreaming big. VW is building a new plant in Tennessee, and its executives are talking about tripling U.S. sales in 10 years to 1 million (including 200,000 Audis). I’ll give VW credit; last year was not a bad year, with sales down only 4% in 2008, while the market as a whole dropped a horrific 18%. And everybody seems to like the new Jetta diesel.
But VW has lost billions in the U.S. in recent years and may have lost money last year, too. Tripling sales to a million? In the dismal economic environment of the next few years, this sounds like a fantasy.
Here’s the problem. Most car buyers think of Volkswagen as a low-priced car. But VW can’t keep prices low when it imports cars and components from Europe, not with the strong euro. And it has trouble selling higher-priced models with the VW logo on the hood.
A new Tennessee plant will give VW great growth potential, but the dealership network is weak after decades of poor sales, and executives in Germany don’t seem to understand the U.S. market.
Meanwhile, GM’s Saab and Ford’s Volvo continue to struggle. Both build fine cars but are terribly squeezed for marketing money.
The point is there are other auto makers in bad shape in the U.S. besides Detroit nameplates. If all the companies mentioned here quit the U.S., we’re talking 800,000 cars and trucks. Imagine how the U.S. market would change if that volume were split up among the survivors,
Source;
http://wardsauto.com/commentary/smaller_players_risk_090209/
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