This means that, going forward, Spyker has taken over the reins and has assumed full responsibility for the (not so much) Swedish automaker.

John Smith, GM Vice President For Corporate Planning and Alliances, had the following to say about the development:

This transaction represents the successful outcome of months of hard work and intense negotiations, all aimed at securing a sustainable future for this unique brand, and we are pleased with the positive outcome. This is a great day for Saab employees, dealers and suppliers, and a great day for millions of Saab customers and fans worldwide.

GM Europe President Nick Reilly also chimed in, saying:

Throughout negotiations over the past year, GM has worked with many parties, including governments and investors, to find a solution for Saab. I’m very pleased that we could come to a positive conclusion, one that presents a viable future for Saab and preserves jobs in Sweden and elsewhere.

And this will officially put an end to GM Authority’s coverage of all things Saab… starting immediately. Unless, of course, GM has a sudden change of heart and decides to buy the brand back. But we’re not holding our breath.

Check out the full press release after the break!

PRESS RELEASE

Spyker Cars Finalizes Purchase of Saab Automobile from GM

Spyker has outlasted all other negotiators in this deal, including Koenigsegg, Genii Capital (backed by Bernie Ecclestone), and Merbanco. What’s more, Spyker’s persistence in tirelessly trying to work out a deal and submitting revisions upon revisions of bids – sometimes at the last minute – have all paid off. Ironically, Spyker also outlasted GM – which began winding down Saab in late 2009.

As part of the transaction, Spyker will form a new company called Saab-Spyker Automobiles that will be in charge of the Saab brand. The sale will be subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory, governmental, and court approvals.

Complete details of the deal have not yet been fully disclosed (GM says they will be disclosed in due time), but we’re hearing that Spyker paid $74 million in cash and provided GM another $326 million in proffered stock of the new Spyker-owned firm. The agreement is contingent upon the approval of a 400-million-euro loan from the European Investment Bank to Saab-Spyker. Vladimir Antonov, chairman of the Spyker board and the biggest backer of the Dutch exotic car maker, has agreed to step down and sell/relinquish his positions (although we’re not totally clear on this yet).

At the present, the Swedish government is in the process of reviewing the transaction. If everything goes according to plan, the deal is expected to close in mid-February. GM will immediately suspend Saab wind down activities pending the closing of the transaction.

The GM Authority Take

How quickly things can change! Just yesterday, CEO Ed Whitacre wasn’t ready to announce a deal and even stated that wind down operations of the Saab brand are ongoing. This news is great for all parties involved:

• GM becomes a leaner company, gains some cash in the process, and walks away with its tail between its legs (but is still able to look Saab fans in the eye)
• Saab is saved – along with the all-new 9-5 and 9-4X, its 1000+ dealers, and 4000+ employees, while
• Spyker acquires a legendary brand with strong brand recognition and Saab’s excellent engineers.

Personally, I can’t wait to see what awesome new products a Saab under Spyker comes out with, but I’d bet that they’ll be better than those a GM-owned Saab ever dreamed of. Stay tuned to this week’s GM Authority Weekly Podcast for the team’s thoughts and analysis.

Check out GM’s full presser after the break!

PRESS RELEASE

GM Reaches Agreement to Sell Saab to Spyker

DETROIT – General Motors and Spyker Cars NV today confirmed that they have reached a binding agreement on the purchase of Saab Automobile AB.

“Today’s announcement is great news for Saab employees, dealers and suppliers, great news for millions of Saab customers and fans worldwide, and great news for GM,” said John Smith, GM vice president for corporate planning and alliances.

“General Motors, Spyker Cars, and the Swedish government worked very hard and creatively for a deal that would secure a sustainable future for this unique and iconic brand, and we’re all happy for the positive outcome,” Smith said.

As part of the agreement, Spyker intends to form a new company, Saab Spyker Automobiles, which will carry the Saab brand forward. The sale will be subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of applicable regulatory, governmental and court approvals. Other terms and conditions specific to the sale will be disclosed in due time.

The Swedish government is at present reviewing the transaction and the related request for guarantees of a Saab Automobile loan that has been requested from the European Investment Bank. Assuming quick action, the transaction is expected to close in mid-February, and previously announced wind down activities at Saab will be immediately suspended, pending the close of the transaction.

“Throughout the negotiations, GM has always had the hope to find a solution for Saab that would avoid a wind down of the brand,” added Nick Reilly, president, GM Europe. “We’ve worked with many parties over the past year, including governments and investors, and I’m very pleased that we could come to such a good conclusion, one that preserves jobs in Sweden and elsewhere. GM will continue to support Saab and Spyker on their way forward.”

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About General Motors: General Motors, one of the world’s largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 204,000 people in every major region of the world and does business in some 140 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 34 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Italy. GM’s OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. General Motors acquired operations from General Motors Corporation on July 10, 2009, and references to prior periods in this and other press materials refer to operations of the old General Motors Corporation. More information on the new General Motors can be found at www.gm.com.

Saab background: Saab entered the auto business in 1949 with the first model 92. Its aerodynamic shape and advanced technology drew from the company’s roots as an aircraft maker, and helped create what was to become a loyal and passionate customer base. GM acquired a 50 percent stake in Saab in 1990, and acquired the balance of Saab in 2000. As part of its strategy to focus on its four strongest brands in the U.S., GM began seeking a buyer for Saab in January 2009, a concerted effort that led to today’s announcement.

Over the last few months,

Although the addition of any new models to the Saab lineup is shocking (the only truly new model for the brand since GM took over is the 9-3), the fact that production is continuing and growing point to a successful sale in the near future.

It was slightly surprising that CEO Whitacre did not announce a sale last morning at his press conference, maintaining the ambiguity surrounding the Saab sales saga. Barring another 11th hour pull-out, Saab will most likely go to Spyker, and will hopefully close in the next week.

Whitacre was very optimistic about The General’s future, citing a stabilized market share even after cutting its brand portfolio in half last summer. He also told reporters that GM is “well ahead of metrics outlined in our viability plan,” something that “makes all of us happy.”

After announcing his permanent appointment to the position of CEO, Whitacre gave a very succinct update on Saab, saying that talks with Spyker Cars are ongoing, but the two companies have no deal to announce as of this morning. Whitacre added that “as of today, we have not changed the direction on the wind-down of the operation.”

According to Bloomberg, GM and Spyker officials met in Stockholm over the weekend to finalize details of a plan to sell the Swedish automaker to Spyker, and it looks like it’s the real deal this time.

For what it’s worth, Bloomberg is citing two sources close to negotiations that peg the net worth of Spyker’s offer for Saab at $500 million, made up of cash and stock. As part of the deal, Spyker would allegedly pay $75 million in cash and $325 million in preferred stock in exchange for Saab. It’s unclear where the remaining $100 million will come from.

But the purchase comes with strings attached, which – in this case – are made up of the following two contingencies. First up is Vladimir Antonov – a Russian businessman who serves as Spyker chairman and is also the largest investor in Zeewolde. Reportedly, he must leave Spyker for the deal to go through. Second is a loan from the European Investment Bank to Spyker-Saab that will be necessary for Spyker to integrate Saab appropriately.

Moreover, Genii Capital, backed by F1 tycoon Bernie Ecclestone, has formally conceded from the bidding, with Lars Carlstroem telling Bloomberg the following:

We have worked hard, unfortunately time was not on our side. We are pleased to hear about Victor [Muller, Spyker CEO] and his attempt to buy Saab. He’ll be a perfect owner for Saab going into the future.

Genii joins the growing list of bidders that have dropped out of the bidding process for Saab, including Wyoming-based Merbanco and Swedish exotic supercar maker Koenigsegg. China’s BAIC was the backer of the Koenigsegg deal, but when that fell through, decided to purchase $200 million worth of Saab technology and tooling for older Saab models such as the last-gen 9-5 and pre-2006 9-3. Meanwhile, production of the all-new 9-5 sedan has begun in Sweden.

Hit up the break for our legendary GM Authority take!

The GM Authority Take

This looks to be really good news for all parties involved and finally puts the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel (the end of the Saab Sales Saga) in focus.

The entire GM Authority team remains hopeful that Saab is sold rather than sent to the automotive graveyard. In fact, this particular blogger believes that – thanks to GM – the brand was never given the opportunity to fully realize its potential. Keep those Save Saab events going, guys & gal’s!

Stay tuned to our Saab Sales Saga series for the latest and most complete developments with the Saab sales process.

In an interview, GM’s interim CEO and Chairman Ed Whitacre revealed that The General would in fact give a second chance to roughly one hundred dealerships that were told to pack up and go home. He stated that the methods used by GM to determine which dealerships would be resurrected (and which ones would not) were “pretty arbitrary,” and that they were “not perfect in every way.”

The arbitration rules put forth by law call for interested dealers to provide notice by Janurary 25, 2010. A judgment by way of arbitration would then be made sometime in June of 2010, ultimately sealing the fate of many dealership owners. On a positive note, Big Ed mentioned that – regardless of the number of dealerships that receive the OK to re-open – GM bean counters predict profitability in 2010. Now that gives us reason to breathe a big sigh of relief!

Whitacre also reminded reporters that Saab is still for sale and that anyone who wanted to buy the Swedish brand should just “show up with the money.”

Sounds tempting…anyone want to go half-zies?

For continuing coverage of GM’s Saab Sales Saga, dealer relations, and all things General Motors be sure to check in to GM Authority as often as humanly possible!

1. The Buick Line-Up

If it were to wear to become a Buick, the all-new Saab 9-5 simply would not fit into the Buick line-up. The 9-5 is based on GM’s Epsilon 2 architecture – the same as the Buick LaCrosse and Regal. In fact, the 9-5 is only one inch shorter than the LaCrosse, which is most likely achieved by shorter bumpers rather than diminished interior space.

So what does that mean? Well, with the addition of the 9-5, Buick would have two sedans that are the exact same size inside and out! In that regard, there simply is not enough room for the 9-5 in the Buick line-up. Moreover, the last thing GM wants to do is confuse Buick buyers with two very similar products.

2. Rebadging A Thing Of The Past?

GM seems to be finished with the practice of badge-engineering altogether. This can be seen in The General’s decision against reintroducing the acclaimed Pontiac G8 under the Chevrolet brand, even though the enthusiast community supported the move to rebadge (and still does to this day). However, to say that GM is completely finished with rebadging wouldn’t be totally accurate. Afterall, the Buick Regal is a rebadged Opel Insignia while the Chinese-market Buick Excelle XT is an Opel Astra adorned with Buick light treatment and logos.

In the end, we can’t be completely certain that GM won’t end up selling the all-new Saab 9-5 as a Buick. But having two strong arguments against doing so definitely helps. At the very least, we’re certain that the GM enthusiast community is against such a move by a wide margin. What do you think?

Then there is Svenska Dagbladet, a Swedish-language newspaper, reporting that Genii and Spyker may team up to submit an even stronger bid for Saab – although this hasn’t been confirmed by either company. For its part, Spyker Cars has requested a $574 million loan from The European Investment Bank to go it alone at Saab. Unfortunately, the bank has not yet issued a decision on whether or not it will approve the request. Continued after the jump!Meanwhile, General Motors is said to have reservations about Spyker’s Russian connections. The Dutch exotic car maker is backed by Alexander Antonov, a Russian banker. GM is reportedly concerned that, in the scenario Spyker and/or GM lose Saab technology, it would be transferred to Russian automakers, who may combine the country’s cheap labor and growing car market to gain an advantage. Antonov runs the Kovers Group, a Russian bank, so it would be possible that he could bring more money to the table.

Late in 2009, media reports have named Dutch billionaire Marcel Boekhoorn as a potential investor in Spyker’s attempt to go it alone at Saab. Boekhoorn, however, has issued public denials of involvement while Spyker CEO Victor Muller declined to comment.

What’s more, Dagens Industri is speculating that Genii and Spyker might try to involve Renault into a three-way deal, something that would make sense – given that Genii recently purchased 75% of Renault’s F1 team. That said, the dedicated fans at SaabsUnited don’t think there’s any credence to this rumor.

Moreover, effective immediately, GM has replaced Saab CEO and board with Steven Taylor and Peter Torngren in a move to oversee the liquidation of Saab. There are also rumors of GM moving tooling of the all-new Saab 9-5 to China where it may be sold as a Buick, a move that is sure to ignite the fury of many a Saab fan, but one that we think is improbable.

On Tuesday, workers at Saab’s Trollhätten plant came together to rally against recently-appointed AllixPartners liquidation firm, telling representatives of the company to “go home.” This happened as the very first all-new Saab 9-5 and 9-3 Convertible were completed at the plant. Previous 9-3 ‘verts were assembled by Valmet in Finland and Magna Steyr in Austria.

In the end, what’s clear is that nothing is clear. GM North America President Mark Reuss saying that the already drawn-out bidding campaign may continue well into February, all while GM continues the process of shutting down the brand (and the Save Saab gatherings gain more traction).

Check out the following TV ad for a Save Saab event in Yekaterinburg, Russia.

Here is the message from Merbanco CEO Chris Johnston’s regarding the development:

All: Despite our best efforts and meeting the Sellers requirements, we were just notified we were not selected to buy Saab. We are disappointed and quite tired and simply want to tell everyone here how grateful we have been for the support. We will now turn our efforts to other opportunities and support of whomever is selected, if anyone is selected.

After 9 long months and a ton of money, this is our last effort on Saab. Many thanks to all who shared the dream with us. Sometimes the best deal is the one you don’t do.

We did our best and are proud of the effort.

BMW is a car brand.
Cadillac is a car brand.
There are many car brands…

WE are Saab!

Chris Johnston
Merbanco

This news comes to us as Saab production restarted in Sweden earlier in the week, even though GM is continuing with the official wind-down of the brand. Most recently, GM Chairman and CEO Ed Whitacre told reporters that it will cost $450 million to buy the legendary Swedish brand.

It seems, however, that the Saab liquidations process is being delayed due to the amount of bids and the perseverance of the bidders. Those who are close to negotiations have let us know that GM will make a decision within “days,” not “weeks.” More as it happens…