Saab Automobile |
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| Coordenadas | 58°17′00″N 12°17′00″E / |
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| Ingresos |  693 millones de
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| Beneficio neto | -331 millones de
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| Empleados | 3.200 (en 2011)[3] | |
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National Electric Vehicle Sweden[4] | |
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www.saabcars.com | |
| [ editar datos en Wikidata] | ||
Saab Automobile AB es un consorcio
En diciembre de 2014 se escucharon rumores de que la marca india Mahindra quería adquirir la marca sueca pero aún no hay nada fijo. El futuro de Saab sigue en el aire.
En 1989, la división automotriz de Saab-Scania se reestructuró en una compañía independiente, Saab Automobile AB. El fabricante norteamericano
After struggling to avoid insolvency throughout 2011, the company petitioned for bankruptcy following the failure of a Chinese consortium to complete a purchase of the company; the purchase had been blocked by the former owner GM, which opposed the transfer of technology and production rights to a Chinese company.[11]
Saab is the exclusive automobile
The Saab 92 went into production in December 1949,[16] selling 20,000 cars through the mid-1950s. The 92 was thoroughly redesigned and re-engineered in 1955, and accordingly was renamed the Saab 93. The car's engine gained a cylinder, going from two to three and its front fascia became the first to sport the first incarnation of Saab's trademark trapezoidal radiator grill. A wagon variant, the Saab 95, was added in 1959. The decade also saw Saab's first performance car, the Saab 94, the first of the Saab Sonetts.
1960 saw the third major revision to the 92's platform in the Saab 96. The 96 was an important model for Saab: it was the first Saab to be widely exported out of Sweden. It proved very popular, selling nearly 550,000 examples. Even more important to the company's fortunes was 1968's Saab 99. The 99 was the first all-new Saab in 19 years, and unlike its predecessors, severed all ties with the 92. The 99 had many innovations and features that would come to define Saabs for decades: wraparound windscreen, self-repairing bumpers, headlamp washers and side-impact door beams. The design by Sixten Sason was no less revolutionary than the underlying technology, and elements like the Saab "hockey stick" profile graphic continue to influence Saab design.
In 1969, Saab AB merged with the Swedish commercial vehicle manufacturer Scania-Vabis AB to form Saab-Scania AB, under the Wallenberg family umbrella.
The 99 range was expanded in 1973 with the addition of a combi coupe model, a body style which became synonymous with Saab. The millionth Saab was produced in 1976.
Saab entered into an agreement with
1978 also was the first year for the 99's replacement: the
Saab 900. Nearly one million 900s would be produced, making it Saab's best-selling and most iconic model.[17] A popular convertible version followed in 1986, all of which were made at the
Saab-Valmet factory in
In 1989, the Saab car division of Saab-Scania was restructured into an independent company, Saab Automobile AB, headquartered in Sweden;
1997 marked Saab's 50th anniversary as an automaker. The company used its jubilee owners' convention to launch a replacement for the aging 9000: the
GM exercised its option to acquire the remaining Saab shares in 2000, spending US$125 million to turn the company into a wholly owned subsidiary.
The new close relationship yielded its first product in 2003's all-new 9-3. The new model, marketed as a sport sedan, dropped Saab's iconic hatchback in favour of a more conventional four-door approach. The model shared a co-developed platform (GM's "global Epsilon 1 platform") and some other components with the Opel Vectra again, but the relationship was much more of a joint engineering effort than before.
Under GM's direction, the
Owing to fading fortunes across its entire business, GM announced that the Saab brand was "under review" in December 2008, a process which included the possibility of selling or shuttering the car maker. Reportedly, 27 potential buyers emerged, including
As the talks progressed, GM's support receded, and Saab went into administration, the Swedish equivalent of America's 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".[19]
On 16 June 2009, Koenigsegg, announced its intention to purchase the brand from GM.[20] much because of the constant delays and the difficulties coordinating the involved parties; GM, the European Investment Bank, the Swedish National Debt Office and BAIC.
It was announced on 14 December 2009 that the Chinese automaker would acquire the intellectual property rights and production equipment for the previous generation Saab 9-3 and Saab 9-5 in a deal worth about US$197 million, which was enough for the company to run for three months.[23]
Following the collapse of talks with Koenigsegg, GM announced that the brand would be eliminated in 2010 if it failed to secure a buyer before the close of 2009.[25]
Undeterred, a new offer round materialized. Earlier bidders Spyker and Merbanco revised their offers and were joined by a submission from Luxembourg-based
Plantilla:Details
On 26 January, General Motors (GM) confirmed that Spyker N.V. and GM had come to an agreement allowing Spyker to purchase Saab,[30] General Motors would continue to supply Saab with engines and transmissions, and also completed vehicles in the shape of the new Saab 9-4x from GM's Mexican factory. The deal included a loan from the European Investment Bank, guaranteed by the Swedish government. It comprised US$74m in cash up front, payable to GM by July 2010, and shares in Spyker to the tune of US$320m.
On February 25, Spyker Cars N.V. announced that it had agreed to sell the sports car arm to focus on Saab. Spyker intended to change its name, in May, to include the Saab name.[31]
On 28 October, media reports stated that the Chinese carmaker Youngman and the Chinese automotive retailer Pang Da had agreed to a joint US$140 million takeover of Saab Automobile and its UK dealer network unit from Swedish Automobile, with Youngman and Pang Da taking 60 and 40 percent stakes respectively.[34]
On 6 December, GM announced that it would not continue its licenses to GM patents and technology to Saab if the company was sold to Pang Da and Zhejiang Youngman, stating that the new owner's use of the technology is not in the best interest of GM investors. This was somewhat ironic since most of the patents in question were Saab's in origin but surrendered to GM's ownership back in 2000.[35] Because of this, Saab started working on a new proposal which would not change the original ownership structure and would not include a Chinese partner as an owner of the company, but instead as a 50% owner of a new daughter company.
On 19 December 2011, with no alternatives left after GM continued to block any form of involvement with a Chinese partner, Saab officially filed for bankruptcy after a three-year fight for survival. Under Sweden's bankruptcy laws, a party that files for bankruptcy can be bought out of bankruptcy.
On 16 April 2012, a meeting on Saab’s bankruptcy was held at the District Court of Vänersborg.[37]
On 6 August 2012, Spyker, represented by the law firm Patton Boggs, filed a lawsuit against General Motors in the United States District Court of the Eastern District of Michigan claiming US$3 billion in damages for the actions GM took in the fall of 2011 to stop the various proposed deals between Spyker and Youngman concerning Saab Automobile where Youngman claimed to be ready to invest several billion dollars in Saab Automobile to guarantee its future. More precisely, under the Automotive Technology License Agreement (ATLA) between GM Global Technology Operations Inc (GTO) and Saab, GM refused licensing of the platforms and technology in Saab cars if any Chinese party were to be involved in Saab's ownership structure.
To solve this issue, Spyker and Youngman came up with a deal where Youngman would provide Saab with a loan of €200 million which would be converted into an equity interest in Saab only after Saab ceased using GM technology in its vehicles. Despite this, GM maintained that it would still refuse licensing of platforms and technology needed for production of Saab cars in Trollhättan and also threatened to cease 9-4X production at GM's plant in Mexico, should the deal go through.
Consequently, the deal finally collapsed and Saab was forced to file for bankruptcy. According to Spyker, the actions taken by GM were not legal. Since Saab had been in receivership since the bankruptcy, and would be until the deal with Nevs was closed, Spyker and the receivers of Saab Automobile had entered into an agreement where Spyker would bear the costs of the litigation in exchange for 90% of the claim if the case is successful.[41]
In June 2013, the district court dismissed the lawsuit, ruling that General Motors was within its rights to block the sale.[42]
El 13 de junio de 2012, en una rueda de prensa, se anunció que la mayoría de los activos en uso de la antigua Saab Automobile AB, así como sus filiales Saab Automobile Powertrain AB y Saab Automobile Tools AB y la planta de producción de la Saab habían sido adquiridas por una firma inversora china llamada National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS).[46]
On 26 August 2012,
On 3 September 2012, Nevs announced that it had finalized the acquisition of Saab Automobiles assets. Nevs would be able to use the name Saab on future cars but not the griffin logo. Production of the 9-3 would initially focus on a turbo-charged petrol variant, but an electric version - initially aimed at the Chinese market - would start production in 2014.[48]
On 8 January 2013, Nevs announced a deal with Qingdao Qingbo Investment Co, Ltd, for a 22% stake in the company. In return, Nevs/Saab would receive SEK 2bn, along with a production facility for models sold in China. Cars sold in North America and most of Europe would continue to be made in Trollhättan, Sweden. The possibility of using Fiat/Chrysler sourced drive train components for non- electric models was also being examined.[50]
On 12 August 2013, the Saab plant at
On 19 September 2013, the first Saab-branded vehicle produced by Nevs rolled off of the assembly line. The first pre-production model was mostly aesthetically identical to the previous Saab 9-3 and mainly used to test new components and assembly line equipment. Nevs announced a facelift of the exterior to be shown on a finalised production model. On 29 November 2013 Nevs announced that full-scale production would commence on 2 December 2013, having replaced the 20 percent of parts originally sourced from former Saab owner General Motors.[51]
Production of the gasoline version of the Saab 9-3 has resumed as of December 2013.[53]
On 20 May 2014, NEVS announced that production had been stopped, 100 consultants had to be let go and 53 blue-collar and 19 white-collar workers had been given notice that their contracts would not be prolonged after the summer. According to NEVS, this was due to Qingdao Qingbo Investment Co Ltd not fulfilling their commitment to finance NEVS operations and as a result had forced NEVS main owner Kai Johan Jiang to fund operations for several months through private funds as well as through assets in NEVS parent company National Modern Energy Holdings Ltd.[57]
On 27 May 2014, NEVS communication officer Mikael Östlund confirmed through a video interview that NEVS was in talks with two large automobile companies regarding funding of operations and co-development of the Phoenix platform.[58]
On 9 June 2014, Swedish media reported that a number of companies had filed debts from NEVS at the National enforcement agency in Sweden for a total sum of 10.4 million SEK.[59]
On 28 August 2014, NEVS itself filed for bankruptcy protection.[60]
On 29 August 2014, Saab AB announced it was cancelling the licensing agreement that allows NEVS to use the Saab name. NEVS' financial problems was cited as the reason.[61] A spokesman for NEVS said that the company expects to renegotiate the agreement after a solution to the company's financial problems is reached.
By June 2015, NEVS had acquired two new Chinese partners, an IT company and a development authority for the city of Tianjin. Both are state-owned. In late June, NEVS began construction of a factory in Tianjin, with the goal of manufacturing electric cars for the Chinese market. As of this point, NEVS has not re-acquired the rights to the Saab name, and it is developing a new brand for the Chinese market. There was no indication that restarting production at the plant in Trollhättan, Sweden was planned.
On June 21, 2016, NEVS announced they will no longer use the Saab trademark, instead using their company name on its car, which will still be based on the Saab 9-3 platform. The first NEVS car will go into production in 2017.
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