Court Approves Saab’s Bankruptcy, Appoints Two Receivers – But is it Really Over?

As expected, the District Court of Vanersborg accepted Saab’s request the same day, Monday December 19, and declared the Swedish carmaker bankrupt.

The company's CEO, Victor Muller, blamed General Motors for blocking every rescue attempt that involved the Chinese company Youngman Lotus Automobile, including its latest offer of a US$5 million funding to continue the restructuring process.

“That, basically, was the last nail in the coffin of this beautiful company”, said Muller only hours after requesting that Saab be declared bankrupt.

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Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: What Saab’s Demise May Mean for Buyers

"If Saab’s future seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
You can buy a heavily discounted brand new car
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just walk into your nearest Saab dealership - that's the thing.

And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life..."

First of all, we hope Monty Python won’t mind altering their song from The Life of Brian. We'd also like to note that we are in no way making fun of the fact that, unless something unexpected happens, Saab is closing shop – for good this time, leaving thousands of workers unemployed.

We’re just trying to say that, in the event the liquidation of the car company goes through, there are consequences but not all of them are bad for consumers.

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The Company Formerly Known as “Old GM” is Dead at Age 103

It was long overdue, but it was bound to happen: the company lawyers named Motors Liquidation Co. but which we came to know as "old GM" during the 2009 government bailout period, died on Thursday, December 15.

Though it had a very long lifespan of 103 years, no one really noticed its demise. After all, this was just U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Gerbert signing the death certificate. Giving birth to the “new GM” two years ago was a very painful process – and one that most of those involved would like to forget.

It meant the sacrifice of three of its brands (Pontiac, Hummer and Saturn) and getting rid of another (Saab, which ironically is now in a similar position), closing 13 plants along with 900 dealerships. GM also had to reduce its U.S. workforce from 91,000 to 68,500 employees, which either way, is a far cry from the 525,000 workers it had in the States and another 100,000 outside the country in 1955.

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Saab Files for Bankruptcy After All Rescue Plans Fail, This Could be the End

It is sad news for the automotive world to learn of the demise of a company. Unfortunately, Monday December 19, will mark the end of the road for Swedish carmaker Saab – and this time it looks like it is final.

Earlier this morning, Swedish Automotive N.V. (Swan) announced that Saab Automobile, Saab Automobile Tools and Saab Powertrain filed for bankruptcy with the District Court in Vanersborg, Sweden.

This comes after Youngman, the Chinese company which last week promised to pay for the carmaker’s restructuring, informed Saab that it cannot provide the funding necessary for the continuation of the process.

Therefore, Swan concluded that, with GM vetoing any proposed plan until now, and without the essential funding, it would be insolvent. Thus, it was better for its creditors to file for bankruptcy.

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Court Rejects Saab’s Administrator Resignation, GM Rejects Any Chinese-Related Plan…

There are so many turns and twists in Saab's road to salvation or closure on an everyday basis, that it’s very easy to lose track of what's actually going on with the Swedish automaker.

On Monday Guy Lofalk, the court-appointed administrator who proposed the termination of the carmaker’s restructuring process, quit. Two days later Saab announced the appointment of another administrator, Lars-Henrik Andersson.

On Thursday, after Andersson turned down the job, Saab said that Lofalk would eventually be replaced by Lars Soderqvist.

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Saab Changes Administrator, Awaits Monday’s Court Decision

The ongoing story that is the future of Saab looks set to have more episodes than The Young and the Restless – and the CBS TV soap opera has been running since 1973…

Guy Lofalk, the court-appointed administrator who oversaw the restructuring of Saab and last Tuesday proposed that the process be terminated, quit his post.

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Saabs Earns IIHS “Top Safety Pick” for its 9-4X and 9-5, Which could be Useful if it had Any to Sell...

Fate, it seems, is not without a sense of irony: the line spoken by Morpheus in the first (and, arguably, best) movie of The Matrix trilogy certainly fits Saab’s case tighter than spandex pants.

The U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has awarded the 9-4X crossover and the 9-5 sedan a “Top Safety Pick”, its highest rating for crashworthiness.

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Show Me the Money: Saab Receives $5 Million US from Youngman, More May Come

It’s true that this month is probably the worst in a really bad year for Saab. Its 9-5 ended last in Consumer Reports’ luxury sedan test, GM repeatedly vetoed any sale deal involving the Chinese, and the court-appointed administrator has asked for the restructuring process to be terminated.

Today, though, a ray of light shined in Trollhättan as Saab received a first payment from China's Youngman Lotus Automobile, ahead of the court meeting that will decide its future next week.

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Attention, Serious Buyers Only: 1995 Cadillac 900S Convertible

From the 1980s right through to the beginning of the 21st century, General Motors tried its best to simplify the art of badge engineering as a cheap and easy way to expand its offerings and increase its profits.

Apparently, some of GM's enthusiasm for badge-trickery managed to rub off on certain consumers like the owner of this 1995 Saab who artfully transformed the open-top model into the Cadillac 900S Convertible in a way that a 1990s GM exec would say, "why didn't I think of that?"

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Court-Appointed Administrator Wants Saab Restructuring Process Terminated

Less than 24 hours after General Motors stated once again, that it will veto any plan that includes a Chinese company acquiring a stake in Saab, the Swedish carmaker received more bad news.

Guy Lofalk, the court-appointed administrator who oversees Saab’s restructuring, announced that he will apply for a termination of the voluntary reorganization of Saab Automobile and its two subsidiaries with the Vanersborg District Court in Sweden.

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GM Says No to Saab's Latest Ownership Plan, Swedes Reply “There is Always a Plan B”

A day without Saab news is a day wasted. On Monday, Saab's owner, Swan NV, said that after GM’s rejection of the Pang Da and Youngman deal, it was readying another plan, involving Youngman and a Chinese bank.

Unfortunately for Saab, this latest plan, which put Pang Da out of the picture, didn’t make the cut with General Motors either. On Tuesday, GM spokesman James Cain issued the following statement: “We have reviewed Saab’s proposed changes regarding the sale of the company. Nothing in the proposal changes GM’s position. We are unable to support the transaction.”

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Saab in Talks with Youngman and Chinese Bank to Secure November Wages

It’s been almost a week now since we last heard from Saab and as time goes by without a viable solution, the situation for the Swedish carmaker becomes more critical every day.

On Monday, Saab owner Swedish Automobile (SWAN.AS) announced that it is currently in discussions with Youngman Automobile and an unnamed bank in China about a potential investment in Saab.

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More Troubles for Swedish Carmaker as Saab Great Britain Files for Administration

The impasse on the sale of Saab Automobile to Pang Da and Youngman has not been resolved, due to Saab shareholder and supplier General Motors objecting to its platform and engineering technology being transferred to the Chinese.

Swedish Automobile N.V. (Swan), though, announced today that Saab Great Britain (Saab GB) filed for administration with the High Court in London.

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New Audi A6 Ties with Infiniti M37 in Consumer Reports’ Premium Sedan Test, Saab 9-5 Flunks

Up until now, Consumer Reports' [CR] number one choice in the mid-size luxury sedan segment was the Infiniti M37. Not anymore as after evaluating the redesigned 2012 Audi A6, the M37 has to share the top spot with Ingolstadt's premium saloon.

The new Audi A6 received an “Excellent” rating with an overall score of 93 points. This is a huge improvement over the previous model's 79 points.

“The redesigned Audi A6 is an impressive car and a joy to drive”, said senior director of CR’s Auto Test Center. Consumer reports says that the significant improvement is attributed to the revamped model’s combination of strong acceleration, agile handling and comfortable ride as well its high-quality and quiet interior.

Other models included in CR’s mid-size luxury test were the Mercedes-Benz E350 BlueTec, the Infiniti M35h hybrid and the new Saab 9-5.

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Report: GM and Saab Reach a Mexican Stand-Off Over Chinese Deal

When General Motors sold Saab to Spyker, company execs must have been somewhat relieved to get the brand out of their hands. However, GM didn’t cut its ties completely as it remains a shareholder and a major parts and technology supplier. Now this is proving to be a problem for both companies.

After receiving court protection from its creditors, Swedish Automobile N.V. agreed to sell 100% of Saab to Chinese partners Pang Da and Zeijiang Youngman Lotus Automobile, it had to get approval from its shareholders. General Motors, though, almost immediately raised concerns over the deal

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More Good News for Saab as Swedes Receive €25 Million Loan

Another day, another new story for Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget –or, as you might know it, Saab. The Swedish company announced on Wednesday that it has entered a €25 million convertible bridge loan from Gemini Investment Fund Limited.

The loan’s annual interest is 10% and the conversion price is €1.38 per share, while Saab can at any time repay the loan, presumably when the expected Pang Da and Youngman Lotus funding is received, without a penalty.

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Saab Secures Further Funding by Leasing its Property

Another day, another chapter in the ongoing saga that is the survival of Saab. After yesterday’s order from a (yet unnamed) Chinese company, which temporarily solved its cash-flow problem, today the automaker announced that it has reached an agreement with a consortium of Swedish real investors led by Hemfosa Fastigheter AB, for the sale of 50.1% of Saab Property for a period of 15 years.

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New Chinese Order Provides Saab with a Temporary Lifeline

Maybe the future of Saab isn’t as dark as it looks, and the voluntary bankruptcy proposed by suppliers isn’t the only solution. Well, at least for now. That’s because the Swedish automaker announced today that an unnamed Chinese company place an order to buy 582 cars, with a total value of € 13 million.

The pre-payment is to be received this week, giving Saab a much needed funding to pay its workers and suppliers. This, however, is only a short-term lifeline for the ailing company and the efforts to secure funds that will guarantee the brand’s future and restart production, which has been halted again since June 8, are ongoing.

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Saab Says it Can’t Pay Workers, Company’s Survival in Doubt

New clouds are forming over Saab as the automaker’s parent company, Swedish Automobile N.V., formerly known as Spyker Cars N.V., said on Thursday it will be unable to pay its 3,800 employees their wages because it has not yet obtained the necessary short-term funding.

Swedish Automobile said it and Saab “are in discussions with various parties” to secure short-term funding, including through a sale and lease-back of Saab’s real estate assets.

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Saab Production on Hold for at least Two More Weeks

Ailing Swedish car manufacturer Saab will not be producing new vehicles for at least two more weeks until it resolves the problems with its suppliers, the company said on Monday.

"There will be no normal production during weeks 25 and 26 (June 20th-July 3rd)," Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs told Reuters. "We are still negotiating with all suppliers and we need to get everyone on board at the same time. The weeks of 27-29 (July 4th-24th) are planned to be normal working weeks".

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