Saab History Interviewed By Swedish Radio Today

Posted on 03. Jan, 2010 by Ryan in 2010-2019

Saab History was recently interviewed by Swedish Radio this morning. We spoke about the Saab Enthusiast gathering to save Saab near the GM Headquarters in Detroit that will take place this Tuesday, January 5th.

I need to clarify that this is a gathering, not a demonstration as indicated by Swedish Radio. The intent is to be present and show our Saab spirit in support of Saab being sold.

Click here on Swedish Radio’s website to listen to the interview or click the image above.

How is the response for the gathering in Detroit?

I continue to hear from individuals around the United States and Canada that are willing to take a day off of work, and in some cases, two days off depending on their travel distance to make the drive to Detroit to stand up for a company they believe should be given the chance to be sold. I don’t have exact numbers just yet, but we see a decent interest so far and we think that when the new week starts, that will continue to grow.

Why are you doing the gathering

As you know the international Saab community is quite strong and devoted towards Saab. That being said, many Saab groups in Europe have planned gatherings in Sweden, Netherlands and the U.K. to send their message that Saab needs to be saved. It seemed logical to follow this idea here in the United States.

Therefore, I thought it was very important on this final week where Saab’s fate will be determined, to gather near the GM headquarters where the decision will be made. At the gathering we intend to show our Saab spirit, and send a message to the media & press that will also be attending, that we want Saab to be saved by being sold to one of the interested buyers.

We know that GM has been unable to complete a sale of any of their divisions, and we’ve now seen Ford sell the other Swedish car company, Volvo, so we challenge them to sell Saab. We believe they are capable of doing it, we just need for them to show us that they can complete the sale.

What do you think if Saab is not sold / What will you do if GM finally decides to shut down SAAB?

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, I cannot see a future without Saab. I know Saab employees, dealers and owners worldwide feel the same way.

There is no good reason why Saab cannot be sold. It must be sold.

Why do you think this has taken a long time?

It has been a full-year since GM indicated that they were interested in letting go of Saab and we knew that it was going to be done by December 31st, of 2009. However, that date has now been extended until January 7th now into the new year.

Since that time, Saab has undergone 6-months of construction, talks with the previous buyer Koenigsegg, throughout 2009.

Do you think this will have any effect on GM?

I think that with the press and media exposure we have already received, it has put the spotlight on GM to realize that they need to sell Saab.

If there are enough Saab owners and enthusiasts parked outside of the GM Renaissance center in Detroit, combined with a robust press perhaps we could really show them how serious we are in wanting Saab Automobile to sold, so that it can have a bright future.

Tags: car, media exposure, New Year's Day, saab, Saab spirit, Sweden, The Netherlands, travel distance, United Kingdom, United States