Taking Flight with Saab
By Steve Shannon
General Manager, Saab USA
As some of you already know, I was recently named General Manager of Saab Automobile USA, replacing Jay Spenchian, who played that role for the last two years.
While I know that many people are excited about this change, I also know that there is some fear and skepticism among the Saab community about my appointment. That is entirely understandable, especially for a brand with a following that is widely known for its unparalleled passion. I'd like to take this opportunity to reassure Saab lovers that Saab will remain in good hands.
First, rest assured that Jay is not going far away. In fact, he'll only be three floors away in his new capacity as the head of GM's North American Marketing Strategy. In that role, he will be instrumental in making sure that all GM brands - including Saab - have clear direction in their marketing. Jay was the captain of Saab's "Born from Jets" campaign (which, by the way, I think is terrific), and he will still have his hands on it in his new role.
As for me, I have almost 25 years of experience at GM in many different positions and brands. I know what works and what doesn't, and I know how to get things done. I am going to take all of that knowledge and experience and use it to Saab's advantage.
Second, I am not afraid of a challenge. I spent the last two years launching critical new products for Buick - I know how important it is to keep auto brands fresh and moving forward with quality, innovative products. I look forward to doing my absolute best to make Saab as successful as I can.
I also spent three years in Zurich, from 1997-2000, as the Executive Director for General Motors Europe Marketing Services. So I am familiar with GM's European brands, and I have to say - while I was over there, Saab struck me as the GM European brand with the clearest vision and purpose
Finally, I am a true car enthusiast, and, more importantly, I love Saabs. I grew up in New England, where there are a lot of Saabs on the road, and I have appreciated the passion among Saab owners ever since. I also have a tremendous appreciation for Saab's heritage as a premium brand, and I am committed to ensuring that Saab retains that position.
This is really a great time to arrive at Saab. It's Saab's 60th anniversary as a car manufacturer. And even more exciting, for the first time in its 25 year history, the Saab Owners Convention is taking place right here in Detroit in August. I look forward to meeting many Saab owners and enthusiasts at the convention.
And I am very, very optimistic about the future of Saab. There are exciting new products in the pipeline, and I am thrilled to be in the cockpit as this great brand achieves even higher altitudes.
I understand that I need to prove myself, and that it may take a while. Please be patient with me as I learn the ropes around here. But I am confident that if you give me a chance, you'll like what you see.
RELATED: Celebrating 60 Years of Saab
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you should start by adding a “build your own” feature to the Family First site. i can’t even find out what my employee discount is!
Dear Steve, welcome to Trolland.
Some see this as exciting times for Saab but I don’t share the enthusiasm. One of the reasons I have owned 3 Saabs is that at the time of purchasing them, they were the only cars that combined safety, practicality, comfort, performance and good gas mileage.
Recently I consulted listing of cars ranked by fuel consumption (http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2006/07/14/014798.html) and was shocked to see the cars that rank better than the 9-3, some of which I had eliminated from my list in 2001 when I bought the 9-5, because of their bad mileage. A few striking examples are Passat, Audi A4, Lexus I 250 and even Subaru Legacy AWD. As for the 9-3 Aero, even an Audi A6 gets better mileage, not to mention the Lexus G 300 which is on par with the 9-3 4 banger.
My point is that Saab is falling back on gas mileage, at a time when people are getting more and more sensitive it, either for economic reasons or social consciousness (don’t forget Saab buyers are known to be well educated and rather ¬´liberal¬ª. Not only are Saab cars not leaders anymore in their category, but all we hear about is future gas gusling 300 hp Saabs. For sure, this will repel many Saab owners who care for the future of this planet. With the mindless horsepower race still going on in Detroit, Germany, Japan, Britain, Italy and elsewhere, I am sceptic as to waht one individual can accomplish, but it would be nice to know where you stand on this issue, and please don’t bother answering if it’s to mention the very disputable bio power program. Thanks for your attention.
Well seeing the job that you did handling Buick, I’d say there will be good things ahead for Saab. That said, I do have some observations about the Saab brand that I’d like to share.
First of all, Saabs have always been niche’ cars. The styling has always been a love it or hate it affair and frankly, the front and rear of these cars have a legacy of looking pretty ugly in my opinion, if not outright bland to put it in kinder words.Those weird tail lights that never seem to be placed right give the cars a generic look that seems so common on cheaper econo cars but isn’t befitting of a semi-luxury make.
This same styling is what also keeps them in the niche market. While it is obvious that Saab has a loyal following, I don’t think it out of the question to consider a number of alternative styling directions for the brand that might make it more appealing to a larger cross section of buyers versus the current ivy league semi-luxury crowd.
Other than that, Saabs have come a long way from the days when the cars were afflicted with electrical problems.
Just provide a choice to consumers that doesn’t follow the 1970’s derivative squashed nose treatment.
good luck!
Welcome. I wish you a long successful tenure with Saab. Other than that, I think what these two fellows below have to say says everything that I could say and more. It is certainly worth reading.
Steven Wade:
“An Open Letter to Steve Shannon”
http://www.trollhattansaab.net/ … (paste following line here)
archives/2007/04/an_open_letter_to_steve_shannon.html
Michael Karesh:
“Saab needs to find its future in the past”
http://www.truedelta.com/blog/?p=92
Steven,
Welcome to the Saab brand and the Saab community. It is a pleasure meet you.
I would like to invite you to visit my website that I established in 2005 in an effort to promote the Saab brand. One of the main objective’s of this website is to provide a comprehensive historical account of content in order to educate people about Saab.
Would you mind if I post your writeup on my website, http://www.saabhistory.com?
I look forward to meeting you at the Saab Owners Convention this August.
Best Regards,
Ryan Emge
Washington, D.C.
Best,
Ryan
Congrats on the new position, Steve nice to see more people posting here. I am one of the people who was sad to see the 9-2X go, so I hope their will be similar offerings down the road from Saab. Good Luck!
Welcome to the Saab community, Mr. Shannon. I hope that you enjoy your stay.
In the meantime, could you get the Swedes to hasten the arrival of a larger, faster 9-5? That would help us all quite a bit.
Thanks for your help.
Oh, and by the way, if you want to know what we really think, jog on over to http://www.trollhattansaab.net. Or, better yet, talk to Swade in person while he’s in Sweden this summer.
Thanks again,
Mike
Congratulations,
I am sure you will do well. When a company like Saab is given a vision and they have a clear direction they usually handle transition well and it should be seemless.
My suggestion is simply that you spend a lot of time in Sweden to get to know the brand.
I am sure you are going to miss my long winded rants on Buick and the need for GM to retake the sedan market with height, heritage and chutzpah. Saab is easy they just need some crossovers.
Your legacy at Buick will be the Enclave and that should be a good and worthy legacy and I hope from there we can shift Buick’s orbit to China. That Park Avenue is spectacular and the Riviera is a breathe of fresh air.
I look forward to the day when GM Buick of China grows like Daewoo and is poised to reintroduce the iconic American brand back to America as Opel is doing for Saturn.
But this time, the names the same.
When GM Buick of China takes over the America market and reinvigorates the dealer network, rejiggers the product line and finds some American heritage, that is when GM North America can grow like the rest of the world.
And congatulations on those first quarter sales. Up 3% worldwide to a new record.
That’s spectacular.
Steve – Congratulations to both you and Jay in your new appointments. I just hope you two can stay true to your new roles for the good of GM. For you, that means keeping the quirkiness that Saab owners have come to love and expect, and resisting the corporate “parts bin” mentality forcing plain vanillaism (read cheap parts) on the brand. And for Jay, it means taking back some control from the beancounters to downplay all the cost cutting. For once, it’s refreshing to read a blog where the dreaded “cost cutting” isn’t mentioned as a priority. For one who knows what works and what doesn’t work, surely you can see that the present direction hasn’t gained any market share for GM.
It’s time for the new leaders to take control, and focus on design, engineering and technology improvements. Hasn’t the focus on cost cutting gone on for too d*mn long?
Godspeed to both of you in your new roles.
I am very excited about this fresh face at Saab! Please, be sure to consider what Saab owners and enthusiasts have to say… they know Saab better than anybody else!
Steve,
What is the current tally of how much GM has lost per every Saab sold? Last I heard a year ago it was around $3000-4000 per car. Great investment.
The ‘Born from Jets’ campaign is a laugh, aimed at the “knows nothing much about cars crowd.” And that transverse engine going into the Saab in the commercials? A priceless advertisement of GM’s lack of attention to details. Saab never has had a transverse engine in modern history. Apparently GM is in the “knows nothing about Saab crowd.”
The best thing GM could have done with Saab, is leave it a Saab, not make it into a trim level of a Trailblazer or Malibu. Now Saturn is competing against Saab, in the “Euro-like” market.
I hear GM Marketing people have photo clips of “typical Saab customers and their activities” taped to their cube walls. Such ‘elementary school antics’ does not make a successful marketing plan nor person. The typical Saab enthusiast is probably driving a Volvo now.
I want to see some new models of Saab. I can’t recall any new models this decade. I has been left to wither just like Saturn was for fifteen years. I loved the Aero X and hoped that design language would find its way into a whole family of cars to match BMW range.
Hi Steve,
May I take this opportunity to welcome you to the world of Saab. I can only agree that you have come onboard at a crucial point where if the rumours are to be true, the dawn of a new era is upon us with some very exciting products on the horizon. If you haven’t yet seen the next generation 9-5, I’d advise you to fly over to the design centre in R√ºsselshiem. From what I’ve heard people go weak at the knees when they see the concept they have there. My experience is more European based, more specifically the UK which is the market segment I sell Saabs and I must stress that selling this product today is a real challenge. I ask you to not follow the perceived success Saab GB is having with over 26,000 units sold in 2006. The truth is that they have ‘over-cooked’ it slightly. We are faced with registering stock to meet quarterly targets which as you know only affects residual values. Currently we have ¬£25,000 cars losing 53% of their value in just 12months. So although on the surface the yearly registrations look good, the reality only underlines that Saab is not the brand that can be sold in any great quantity with an outdated flagship, a car that’s just about to be face lifted, and only two products, without having a major impact on its brand image. So I beg of you not to follow Saab GB for your market area, but let’s look forward to those new vehicles which I know is going cause big problems for Audi in the not to distant future.
What about Buick? Can your replacement address the future of Buick?
Ryan-
You may repost as long as you include a link back to the original post. Thanks!
-Alicia, blog editor
Just wanted to say congratulations and hope that you do well. Please keep a few things in mind :
The SAAB community is one of the brighter groups around
The SAAB community is one of the most computer literate around
The SAAB community has had to deal with GM swapping out GM’s every 2 years (or so) so we don’t want to get too attached to you just yet, hang around for 4 years or so ok?
At the SCNA Owner’s Convention remember, these are almost all car guys who like SAABs a lot. We like to talk about our cars and yours, even if it’s not a SAAB. Please hang around a bit and BS with us. That will turn an ambivalent group into a very supportive crowd.
And lastly, spend some time with some of the SAAB GREATS, Eric C., Peter B., Bob S., John M. and get a feel for the history and direction. Remeber, there isn’t always a need to reinvent the wheel, sometimes some new bearings will do just fine.
Lester
Steve-
Welcome to the Saab world and I hope you will help the brand keep some of its unique identity. It goes way beyond the key on the console and some quirky styling.
Pay no attention to those in this blog who are panning Saabs. Some clearly don’t know what they are talking about, like the gentleman who says no modern Saab has a transverse engine. I have three Saabs with transverse engines in my driveway, aged from 1995 to 2003.
I encourage you to visit the website http://www.saabnet.com to read what thousands of Saab enthusiasts are saying and thinking about GM and their favorite flavor of automobile.
Again, welcome!
Steve,
You lost me at “…played the role…”
It sounds like you see this as just something to do to fill your time until a real job comes along.
It will be hard enough to win over new converts to the marque; there is no sense in making your job harder than it needs to be to keep the support of the faithful.
Taking your job seriously would be a nice start.
Good luck.
Hi Steve- welcome to what once was a distinct product and brand. I am a Saab customer.
One quick though for you: how about a huge reality check and get Tiger Woods into a Saab convertible with his Swedish wife…. and out of this Buick nonsense.
Every time I see Tiger in a Buick I just laugh as does every other 30-something that is my peer group.
Also, please keep Saab as a distinct product rather then a re-badged brand. If Saab stops being Saab and just becomes marketing spin instead, I might as well surrender and drive a cheap Ford.
Good luck.
The key to Saab’s future success is to make it a more desirable car. Sure, its always been different and attracted niche buyers but you need to make it desirable. “I got to have one” In order to do this it has to have major styling appeal outside and IN. The current 9 seris cars have attractive interiors and excellent control layout but the perceived quality is lacking. Too much dull plastic. You need to spruce it up with real metal, laquer and bold industrial styling cues. The current cars drive well but lack a certain polish. Too much road and wind noise. They need to be rock solid like a BMW, even at the limits. FWD will not cut it any more in this sector. Either RWD or FWD/AWD option is required. If its AWD then ensure its rear drive biased with no understeer. Lets see more diesals including in NA. And lets get back to Saab’s reputation of having the best seats in the industry. As far as marketing, you need to tap into racing. Lets see a 9-3 in NA SCCA type racing and in Europe, ralley is king. The next AWD Saabs need a factory ralley team. Good luck. Remember, if you build it they will come. No penny pinchers please.
Welcome Steven. Cool name! 4 things… AWD, less weight, better MPG, and KEEP the WAGONS COMING!!!!
Answers to Crayon
Crayon:
“The ‘Born from Jets’ campaign is a laugh, aimed at the ‘knows nothing much about cars crowd.’”
My reply:
I think that a person who lives or has lived in the United States for many years may know more than me about whether it is a great idea to use the Saab jet fighters in Saab advertising.
I think that the Falk & Pihl campaign for Saab in Sweden the 1980s in which they used Saab fighter jets stood out as somewhat strained although the car maker and the jet fighter company then still belonged to the same group. Saab was the 2nd most popular brand in Sweden in the 1980s. It was an ordinary means of transportation although a new 900 Turbo or 9000 was considered as an up-market car driven by people with upper-middle class incomes. At that time, it would might have been a better idea to say that some aircraft engineers did some of the calculations on the 900 or 9000. I think that Saab¬¥s passenger car division sometimes used a super computer owned by the aircraft division, but I am not sure. If that was true, they could have said “Saab Aircraft owns a Cray-2. We also use it for the cars.” (I don¬¥t know whether Saab Aircraft in Link√∂ping had a Cray-2, but I know they bought a Cray-1 in 1983 and if they had owned a Cray-2 that would have been great since the Cray-2 name really sounds like a super computer name). Purely image-orientated aircraft inspired advertising probably did not work on all receivers of the message in Sweden. Some people probably thought it was pathetic to compare aircraft made in Link√∂ping to the cars made in Trollh√§ttan.
But I have heard that the British campaign “Imagine the feeling driving a car built by a plane maker” increased sales and strengthened the brand image.
These examples indicate that similar campaigns may give quite different results in different places at different points of time.
I also think that those who hire an advertising agency should be aware of the fact that it is easier for an agency to produce pure life-style image advertising than advertising that depends more on a sound knowledge of the customers, potential customers, competitors, products, technology, the company and so on. It takes time to learn enough about such things. Furthermore, the agency can not charge the client for too many hours of work. If you make advertisements or commercials which do not take too much studies of what I mentioned above or prior knowledge you can avoid that problem. Moreover, agencies that can charge high prices usually have a great reputation for creativity. A reputation for creativity is usually built by spectacular image orientated campaigns. Therefore, agencies sometimes have a vested interest in creating campaigns which may not always be the best solution for the client. Of course, recognition of the advertisements is very important. But sometimes it is better for the client to get 5 % less recognition but 500 % more of the right information, visual impressions etc on the receiver´s agenda.
The more badge-engineered a car is, the harder it is to create advertising which is not solely based on creativity if we are not talking about dealership advertising or financially orientated auto advertising for leasing companies. Therefore, it should be harder to make good advertising for a Cadillac BLS than for a Saab 9-3. The same should also be true for the Jaguar X-type and the Ford Mondeo. In theory, it seems to be a great idea to put a more prestigious badge on a car and then charge 20 % more for that car. If the theory would work, that would be one of the easiest ways to make money in the auto industry. Unfortunately, the theory does not always work although the first Cadillac Seville became quite successful despite a Chevrolet Nova platform, an Oldsmobile engine and a substantially higher price than for the DeVille model. Today, it is generally hard to charge the same price as for a BMW equivalent if you if you offer the customer an Opel, Chevrolet or Ford platform and an Opel, Chevrolet or Ford engine if you put a more prestigious badge on the vehicle. I think that the Volvo brand probably is less sensitive to badge-engineering than Jaguar since Volvo customers in general are not enthusiasts. But it may be hard to claim that the car is safer than other cars if the architecture is exactly the same as for Ford and Mazda.
————————————–
Crayon:
“Saab never has had a transverse engine in modern history.”
My reply:
Do you really mean “transverse engine layout”? Saab ended production of cars with longitudinally mounted engines back in 1993. The new 900/9-3 got a transverse engine layout like the 9000. I also think you know that.
I wouldn’t put Buick in my resume, as the brand is the most stale in GM’s lineup. The LaCrosse is a letdown, as is the recent facelift highlighted in New York. The truth is, Buick and Saab need a lot to save their place in the American market. Saab tries to place itself in the same company as BMW, but I don’t know of anyone else who would. Saab must revamp its styling, improve performance, and maintain a reputation for reliability. The Aero-X was an astonishing piece of work, but I see nothing else from Saab to have me come in as a customer.
Steve Shannon said:
How do you know that? Perhaps there is excitement at 100 Renaissance Center, but out here in the heartland, we have many other things to be excited about. I can honestly say, “Gee, I wonder who GM will appoint to handle the SAAB account?” never even appeared on my radar screen.
Steve said:
Must be a marketing guy. Why do you call them “brands” instead of cars?
Steve said:
Steve, Congratulations on your new challenge.
SAAB is in desperate need of new product and I am not talking about 9-3 and 9-5 replacements but some new and fresh models that take SAAB back to the 1980’s when SAAB Turbo models brought the unique combination of hatch utility with FWD performance.
SAAB does have an excellent wagon (Sport Combi) but I have never seen an advertisement for one. Wagons will sell and now is a perfect time to start telling people about it; the Sport Combi will fulfill most buyers need for space and utility with the bonus of great styling and performance.
SAAB has a great safety record also, so why doesn’t GM tell the public?
I think a new 9-2X based on the excellent Astra Estate OPC would be a great addition to the SAAB line even if it were only in FWD.
SAAB should also be GM’s Turbo-Diesel car division, these engines are offered in the same SAAB models sold here so what is the hold up?
Forget about the emission laws, if 5 states want to deny their citizens a responsible solution to the oil problem while GM gets the Diesels in line with smog laws so be it.
SAAB also needs to make much more of the BioPower in their car line and offer a two-mode hybrid edition of it, this is recognized as being environmentally friendly by many “Green” supporters and would do wonders for GM’s image in the U.S.
SAAB can have a very bright future in the U.S. hopefully we will see some signs of it soon.
I had a 2000 9-5; loved it. My first SAAB (and my first “GM” product, for that matter).
I was so happy, my wife ended up in a 2002 9-5.
When my lease was up, I went into a 2003 9-3.
The most disappointing car I’ve had in 30+ years of driving – squeeks, rattles, electrical issues and an embarrassingly bad stereo (e.g., clock radio sized speakers in the rear deck).
In other words, this first SAAB designed since the full GM-takeover was an embodiment of the cost-cutting and mediocre quality for which GM is notorious.
When the 9-3 lease was (finally) up, I moved on to another manufacturer. My wife bought out the lease on her 9-5, but when that car must be replaced I have no intention of replacing it with a SAAB (or anything else from GM).
Still, never say never, and if GM undergoes a dramatic culture shift and starts producing class-leading, high quality products (it hasn’t since the 1960’s), I might be persuaded to return.
You are career GM, so you’ve grown up in that culture; therefore I’m not optimistic that you’ll produce anything other than cost-accounted, badge engineered Opels, and try to peddle them as upscale “SAABs.”
Surprise me.
Buick finally has a half-way decent vehicle in the Enclave. Please Steve, before you leave your post, make sure your replacement doesn’t cave in to the beancounters. Tiger needs some bada*s cars to drive too. Besides the Enclave, everything else is just B-O-R-I-N-G. The China Park Ave would be a good first start.
Well, I believe the people at SAAB already know the proper direction for SAAB. They were headed that way until GM bought them. Quite honestly, under GM SAAB can operate more efficiently, as they now have access to engineering resources and the GM “parts bin.” SAAB needs to do what SAAB does. Let them concentrate on product, let them determine the nature or even the necessity of an SUV or crossover for their “Brand” or company, then let them create it using the nearly infinite resources available to them through GM. I think you, and the buying public will be in for quite a pleasant surprise when you see what SAAB comes up with.
Welcome and good luck.
If you make two changes to the 9-5 wagon (or SportCombi or whatever you call them now), I will buy another one when my lease is up in 2008.
CHANGE #1
Make the tailgate unlock/lock with the rest of the door locks. After 3+ years I still forget to hit the button to unlatch the tailgate and I hate that enough to not buy another one.
CHANGE #2
Get the IIHS Saftey ratings up to five stars in all categories.
And finally, when does the new 9-5 come to market? While I really enjoy the current car I think its time for a fresh new look.
I have been a Saab fan, myself, for a long time. I own an ‘89 900, and I love it. The car is solid, distinctive, and practical.
I don’t mind that Saabs run on GM global platforms these days. That’s to be expected. However, I do mind that the 9-2X and 9-7X were concieved and released. I mind that Saab has moved away from hatchbacks, even though I respect the addition of the SportCombi models. Offering sedans and wagons is fine, but if 3- and 5-door models work for any company, they work for Saab. We need them back…alongside the sedans, convertibles, and SportCombis.
I mind that the 9-5 has been largely ignored with advertizing, as well as product development. 2007 is the car’s 9th season. And while Saabs don’t tend to change for change’s sake, the 9-5 could be a more competitive player in the market, especially since it’s still riding the old Vectra platform, and still has Saab 9000 componenets as well.
A smaller Saab would be a great idea, and I hear that a Delta II version will be coming…which makes sense since the next Delta will be built in Sweden.
The problem isn’t just a lack of hatchbacks or models in burgeoning market segments. Saabs used to be built with unique and special features that went beyond “styling cues”…sturdy, practical features that had a purpose to them (wraparound windshield, recoverable bumpers, clamshell hood, easily serviceable engine bay).
Today, as GM pursues bigger mainstream sales numbers, many of these distunguishing features seem to have been lost…to the point that, today, only the floor-mounted ignition and cockpit-like dash make a Saab a Saab, as opposed to a G6 or BLS. And while the 9-3 being the safest car on the market is great, it’s also one of the least reliable. That is not a Saab characteristic.
A midsize Saab crossover would be great, as would a new Sonett and a smaller car as a replacement for the 95/96/90. Maybe a small MPV, too. But they need to be Saabs first. And the advantages integral in the design and makeup of Saabs need to be understood, applied, and most importantly, marketed competently to the public.
The 9-2X and 9-7X do (did) not carry those advantages, other than what could be hastily tacked on as an afterthought to make them fill a marketing gap in the range.
In an increasingly image-conscious country, people are going to continue to buy Mercs, Lexuses, and BMWs unless you offer customers legitimate reasons, borne out of the traditional values that have sustained true Saab automobiles and made them as successful as they were through the mid’80s, to purchase from the brand.
Please strive to do better by Saab, us devoted Saab enthusiasts, and, truly, the automotive market as a whole, by offering better, truer Saabs than your predecessors at GM have to this point.
all of us former saab owners are going over to AUDI!!!!
I am now on my third SAAB and I can honestly say it will be my last. My first, a 9000, went over 250,000 miles, performed superbly, was reliable comfortable. My last is a 9-5, the successor to the 9000 and sadly the product of GM.
It has been extremely unreliable, now seeking its second catalytic converter replacement in 6 months, after having also replaced the exhaust system, digitable dashboard, O2 sensors, etc. etc. The car fails to perform with the effortlessness of the 9000. The automatic AC system fails to defog like the 9000. And, I believe, the dealers know that the cars coming from SAAB are not the quality they would like to sell, as they get more and more disgusted with repairing them. Perhaps SAAB should encourage the Buick dealers to repair SAAB’s, they might be more used to constant repair of vehicles.
Yes for the money that one spends for a SAAB, one expects the same quality and service that one gets from, say, AUDI. Too bad that seems to be more than SAAB is willing to provide their loyal customers.
Earlier in this blog I asked Steve Shannon the following:
Bzzzzz. Time’s up Steve.
SAAB is the acronym for: “Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget” which in English is Swedish Aeroplane Limited.
HOPEFULLY YOU CAN SET SAAB APART FROM THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL THAT IS GM.
SAAB NEED TO GO BACK AND FIND ITS ROOTS:SAFETY,FUNCTION,INNOVATIVE&
EURO-STYLE.
SAAB WOULD BE KICKING BUTT NOW IF THEY HAD GAS SLIPPING HATCHBACKS.
WHAT DID THE SUV DO FOR YOU?
WHY IS SAAB THE ONLY EURO COMPANY W/O AWD & DIESELS?
Anychance of building a convertable AeroX off of the Cadillac XLR platform?
A Turbo V-6 & Clothtop could cut the cost enought to bring it in the 60’s?
I think a big part of the problem between SAAB and GM is that SAAB isn’t a “Brand” SAAB is a company whose owners (GM) keep treating as merely a brand. SAAB needs to be treated as a separate company within GM. SAAB is not a marketing exercise, it is a company with a rich heritage that literally needs to continue or the company will not survive. If GM is not able to allow SAAB to continue in it’s own way, then perhaps a sale of SAAB is in order to a company that will to them justice.
Listen, this is not so much a complaint as it is a wake up call. The reason as to why Saab may not be doing as well as it could is because it is no longer a niche car. What happened to the hatchbacks, turbo 4’s? What happened to all the Saabs built in Sweden? If Saab wants to succeed with its current customers, or rather, it’s traditional customers, it should do what it used to do, make cars that get great economy and that never die, hatchbacks, and a lot of turbo fours. AND ALL SHOULD BE MADE IN SWEDEN, AND NO REBADGING!!! If you can do this, sure Saab will be a great success, however, if you don’t, Saab will either crash or have a big change in the people who buy them. They wont even be real Saabs anymore. Please, since you are the new Saab guy, make Saabs quirky and Niche again, maybe i will buy one.
When GM bought SAAB in the 90-ties sales of SAAB’s should have rocketed up because of access to all those GM resellers. It dident rise at all. That tells me that either SAAB are threated like someting the cat dragged in by the resellers, or, that GM made a hostile takeover.
I’m guessing the latter i’m afraid.
Too bad for us swedes, we like our saab’s.
Good luck I am Happy for you and for SAAB.
Justin
I hope Saab will gain a clearer image. What I have seen of Saab at auto shows is confusing and worrisome. A mix of mostly old-school vehicles with wierd, hard to use interiors (in the 9-3’s, please that world’s worst topdash cupholder ??), gutless engines (the fortunately gone 9-2x a prime example), sparse yet snooty dealers, and poor reliability makes the brand unappealing.
Let’s hope Saab can once again live up to its “Jet” heritage and take off in the marketplace!
Welcome Steve, I am an owner of a 2006 SAAB, 9-7x. I am concerned about the number of items that needed to be repaired/replaced so far. Of greater concern is the fact that I have written to SAAB customer service 3 times and not even gotten an acknowledgment back that they have received my letter- much less any indication as to what SAAB is prepared to do to resolve the ongoing issues that I am facing. Want people to be loyal SAAB buyers?– first step is to have the customer care folks call back upset customers.
I had a Saab back in the 80’s i loved that thing had great styling, hatchback,gas milagage,very econmonic to run.
now i look acroos the line up and there’s nothing the fits that mark.
all i want is something with euro sytling,hatch,safety.mileage…is that to much to ask from you?
I have wanted a SAAB since.. since I was in 3rd grade and started reading car magazines.
30 years later – I don’t have one, even though I could buy one.
Why? 3 reasons.
One – reliability.
Two – the new ones feel cheap inside.
Three – no longer a standout in terms of engineering or features or quality.
Build me a 9-3 which feels solid, matches the reliability of a Honda, and offers something – I don’t mind the turbo 4 cyl. offerings, I think that’s a good direction. AWD? Sure, maybe to compete with Volvo, I can see that.
Throw that new 2.9 (?) turbo diesel in there and give me 40 mpg!
No problems with the styling or performance though. Just fix the feel and quality and offer some standout features.
I know GM can do it – I just rented and Impala and came away impressed.
Welcome Steve Shannon.
SAAB has suffered gravely from a lack of consistent direction for the duration of GM’s time at the helm. Perhaps you can help fix that. The Fiero did not fail from poor engineering or design or style but from lack of direction.
I have the perfect project for you. A new SAAB full-size luxury car. An alternative in the 7-series, A8, S-Class market. This could bring prestige and better placement to the brand if done well. It has to be bold and alternative, but, this is what the good people in Trollhattan do best. You just have to let them.
Many will disagree but here is where your expertise comes in. Take the Cadillace DTS/Buick Lucerne platform (SAAB has always only been FWD), equip it with the BioPower Hybrid system amped up with a bigger 4-cylinder motor (SAABisiti and Swedes have always rejected the unreliable inefficient V6’s). This gives you AWD safety and stability with a FWD SAAB bias. An E100 capable 2.3T gas engine and a french fry grease capable four cylinder turbodiesel should be the only engine choices in the hybrid system.
SAAB engineers should work the suspension like they did on the Chevy Tralblazer The interior and exterior should appear to be all new, high quality, bold, Scandinavian simplicity and elegance. (I think of Bang and Olufsen or Georg Jensen) You could even build it on the Cadillac/Buick assembly line.
This car adds prestige to the line and allows expensive new systems to be produced in small volumes where there is still some profit margin. The car should attract a lot of attention for its uniqueness not for beating the 760Li on the Nordschliefe.
So who would buy this when they can have a 760iL or S600? The idea is to present something that is very different. Spacious, elegant and socially conscious. The German cars are all pretty small inside and huge, heavy gas guzzlers. They are also superb at what they do best. Let Cadillac go after that. This car has an alternative lightweight power system, great room in the back and an interior that is as far from German as Orrefors is from Biedemeyer. The car magazines should be confused and the future thinkers and liberal magazine writer should be wowed.
The buyers are people who want to make a social statement without giving up anything that matters to them. How about Bill Maher and Daryl Hannah. They must be getting tired of the Prius by now. How about CEO’s of socially responsible companies that don’t want to give up comfort, luxury and driving feel in their company cars. Be sure to make a version suitable for chauferring diplomats and government officials.
I have owned several Saabs both in the UK and US the classic 900 hatchback, 99 9-3 convertible and currently own a 2002 5 door 9-3 hatchback.
I hope GM starts investing in the brand properly and brings out unique cars. GM can Learn a LOT from Ford on how it handles the Volvo brand. Take note!
1. Starting bringing out some UNIQUE NEW MODELS (NOT rebadged Chevys or Subaru) You desperately need a replacement for the 9-5 and the 5 door 9-3 hatchback similar to the 2002 model
2. R&D must be done by Saab Sweden NOT in the US by GM as they have a better understanding of the product
3. GM needs to provide Saab the money and backing for new models without interfearing with the design. As a Brit trust me the Swede’s know best. Ford allow Volvo complete independence in their design team
If you follow those steps you will succeed otherwise I would prefer GM sells the brand to someone who can provide this
If you were hired away from a German manufacturer it might inspire more confidence – this comment because GM can’t seem to get any part of car manufacture right (looks, quality, brand identity). GM has been in decline since the 80’s due to inability to compete with Japanese and Euro rivals. How hard is it to copy a Japanese sedan’s quality??? How has GM survived? would it be better if GM simply retired the Saab brand instead of bastardizing it by sticking the Saab grill on Chevy SUVs and Subarus? The fact that you are a GM veteran tells us you have had a hand in the worst automaker strategy and execution since Yugo (at least Nissan sold quality products as it imploded). The born from jets slogan could have been the idea of a fifth grade class for all we know, and trying to make the new 93 and 95 look like a jet is comical. Please hire Mauer back, whatever he is asking pay him! The jokers at Saab Europe are taking one of the best Saab designs to date (the 2004 93) and making it look like an airplane because of some stupid marketing jerk who came up with a lame slogan. I live in the midwest and we were just starting to see more 93s on the road due to the understated world class exterior – similar to the success story of the ‘98 VW Passat (the design alone made the car a top seller), now the GM Europe designers are reworking the grill (lame) and making the tail lights look like an aftermarket Honda civic. Big surprise when the upswing in sales turns south due to the “reborn 93″.