The Saab brand of cars will be discontinued. GM, which owns Saab, had planned to sell the Swedish brand of luxury cars as part of its post-bankruptcy reorganization. When a deal with a group led by Swedish supercar company Koenigsegg fell through, GM looked for another buyer but was unable to find one. With no buyer found, GM has decided to close Saab, according to Autoweek.
“Despite the best efforts of all involved, it has become very clear that the due diligence required to complete this complex transaction could not be executed in a reasonable time. In order to maintain operations, Saab needed a quick resolution. We regret that we were not able to complete this transaction with Spyker Cars. We will work closely with the Saab organization to wind down the business in an orderly and responsible manner,” GM Europe President Nick Reilly said.
Earlier this week it was announced that GM had sold the technology behind the current Saab 9-3 and 9-5 to a Chinese carmaker. At that time, GM said there were still several parties interested in buying the Saab brand but it would appear now that only Spyker Cars was a serious contender to buy.
Saab will be the latest casualty of GM’s bankruptcy, which has already claimed Saturn and Pontiac. Saab’s closing will mean that as dealerships are forced to wind down their operations, any Saab vehicles still for sale will be available with deep discounts. Just like Pontiac and Saturn, GM will honor the factory warranty on any Saab even after the company is closed.
