Our Daily Saab: Entropy Sets In, Swedish Police Bail, Halloween Looms
When you’re fighting a lost cause, no news can be good news. Which is why a media-distracting scandal involving Swedish Social Democrat Party leader Hakan Juholt has been one of the best things to happen to Saab since… the late 1980s or so. But here at TTAC, we’re always ready to remind our Swedish friends of the futility of human endeavor… a trait they apparently appreciate (see above). And what little news there is coming out of Sweden is bad.
Yes, Youngman has provided more information to the Swedish National Debt Office, which must approve the proposed Youngman and PangDa ownership stakes. But the NDO still doesn’t sound optimistic, as a spokesperson tells automotorsport.se:
“As it looks in the current situation, we have received the additional information we have requested, but we may request additional information.”
Meanwhile, the NDO is still waiting on information from PangDa. But then, Saab’s restructuring requires approval from both the NDO and China’s NRDC… and at last report, the NRDC still hadn’t received Youngman’s application. And even with Youngman’s recent cash injection, which will pay Saab’s employee salaries this month, a creditor’s meeting is scheduled for the last day of October, or Halloween. If either the NDO or NRDC are still waiting on information at that point, Saab’s restructuring will likely be deemed to have failed and the company will be placed into bankruptcy. And even if all of Saab’s ducks are in a row come the end of the month and the Youngman/PangDa money comes rolling in, it could be months before suppliers are ready to tool back up to re-start production.
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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Rumour is that it will be February at the earliest if/when production resumes. Which is odd really as its only a couple of months ago the true belivers at SaabsUnited were showing a youtube video of a few cars coming off the production line during a 'test programme'. Even more oddly though, they weren't driven off the line, they were lifted off on a fork lift. It was almost like they couldn't move under their own power.
I can buy a 'new' 2009 SaabBlazer 9-7X at one (of the two) Saab dealers in suburbab DC. Which begs the question, if I buy a 'new' 2009 vehicle in 2012, do I get the 3 year warranty extended thru 2015?
Good luck getting replacement parts for that 3 year old "new" Saab. Also, good luck dealing with 3 years of lot rot.
It would be nice if the cop cars here were VW's. Then VW drivers could pull themselves over for driving like a-holes.