Spyker Saves Saab: The Final Episode

The suspense is over! Saab's safe, and Spyker's a few dollars poorer.

Insideline.com provided me the much needed relief from this ongoing soap opera suspense in their recent article/blog post. They mention John Smith, who negotiated the Spyker deal, and is retiring as GM vice president for corporate planning and alliances. Smith has been with GM for more than 40 years. The new top 3 officers are GM outsiders, making the future at GM perhaps more uncertain than that of Saab's had it remained there.

The New York Times shared some interesting information in its own automotive blog coverage of this deal. The newly remonickered Saab Spyker Automobiles now promises to breathe new life into Saab by "reposition[ing the brand] toward an independent performance-oriented niche car company with an industry-leading environmental strategy."

Sounds exciting, eh? Wait for the lineup: Spyker says it's planning the release of the Saab 9-5 flagship sedan this summer and the 9-4x crossover early next year, plus plans to develop a new 9-3 model and possibly a 9-1 to slot at the bottom of the product line. Makes sense, as everyone else in the luxury category has an entry level model--to hook young'uns who still enjoy the benefits of some discretionary income.

Jalopnik takes over from here with additional newsbytes about the production plans. Apparently they're discussing a "Mini-figther" model codenamed "92. " Victor Muller was quoted as saying:
It's going to be the coolest thing since the Mini. I carry renderings of the latest designs with me, and I talk to the Saab guys all the time. I want it to be influenced by the first Saab, in fact my codename for it is 92, like the first one.

Can't hardly wait. What about you?