Wild-Ass Rumors Of The Day: Ecclestone Bidding For Saab, Volt Pricing Under $40k?

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

We’ve got a two-for-one deal on today’s wild-ass rumors, as neither seems likely to amount to much. First off, GM’s Jon Lauckner caught a headline at the WSJ by conjecturing that the Volt’s price “could be notably lower” than the anticipated $40,000. “We have until this summer to figure that out,” Lauckner said. Meanwhile, The Atlantic‘s Daniel Inviglio ran a few numbers, and came up with some rough estimates about possible amortization compared to a Toyota Prius at different price points ($40k, $30k, $25k). Even at $30k, according to Inviglio’s analysis, you’d have to drive 3,350 miles per month to see an economic benefit over the Prius. Yikes!

In other wild-ass news, GM’s board meeting today was delayed as a rumored four different bids for what’s left of the Swedish brand came in. One, from Genii Capital of Luxembourg, is supposedly backed by the Formula 1 millions of one Bernie Ecclestone. Saabsunited thinks Genii is working with a Swedish consortium “Sason” which was originally going to bid with Merbanco. That firm is also reportedly still in the running for Saab’s remnants, as is Spyker. Given that Ed Whitacre said just yesterday that “It’s real easy. Just show up with the money and you can have it, and nobody’s showing up with the money,” none of this sounds promising. Especially since the only hint of a dollar amount this week was a last-minute bid from a firm called AWMS, which reportedly offered $400m cash. Since then, SaabsUnited (which ran the original AWMS bid story) reported that “sources in various places indicate… that this bid is not one that will be looked at favourably.” Not. Good. But at least all the bids are now in and we will finally have some closure on this Saab mess shortly.

Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Steven02 Steven02 on Jan 08, 2010

    The Prius doesn't make economic sense when you compare it to other cars like the Corolla, Focus, or Civic. While its shape does give it a midsize car segment rating, it isn't the size of a traditional midsize car. When you compare the 7k premium of a Corolla to a Prius, you will quickly see that it doesn't make economic sense. People who say it does make economic sense can't do math. If you compare it to some nice luxury SUV when gas was $4 dollars, sure, it costs less than the gas would for that SUV. But, so would a Corolla, Civic, Cobalt, Focus, Sentra, Yaris, Fit etc etc etc.

    • KixStart KixStart on Jan 08, 2010

      Steven02: "While its shape does give it a midsize car segment rating, it isn’t the size of a traditional midsize car. " Since I ride inside the car, not strapped to the hood or trunk, measuring the inside of the car to determine its category works pretty well for me. I mean, a "large" car that doesn't have enough headroom to be comfortable... what good is that? A "large" car without any legroom... what good is that? Any "extra" car that you add on to what I need in a car... that just makes it harder to park.

  • Charly Charly on Jan 09, 2010

    A Prius is cheaper than a BMW and that is the car people are cross shopping with, not a Corolla

  • 3-On-The-Tree 4cyl as well.
  • Luke42 I want more information about Ford’s Project T3.The Silverado EV needs some competition beyond just the Rivian truck. The Cybertruck has missed the mark.The Cybertruck is special in that it’s the first time Tesla has introduced an uncompetitive EV. I hope the company learns from their mistakes. While Tesla is learning what they did wrong, I’ll be shopping to replace my GMC Sierra Hybrid with a Chevy, a Ford, or a Rivian — all while happily driving my Model Y.
  • 3-On-The-Tree I wished they wouldn’t go to the twin turbo V6. That’s why I bought a 2021 Tundra V8.
  • Oberkanone My grid hurts!Good luck with installing charger locations at leased locations with aging infrastructure. Perhaps USPS would have better start modernizing it's Post offices to meet future needs. Of course, USPS has no money for anything.
  • Dukeisduke If it's going to be a turbo 4-cylinder like the new Tacoma, I'll pass.BTW, I see lots of Tacomas on the road (mine is a 2013), but I haven't seen any 4th-gen trucks yet.
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