Top gear tribute
Discussion
John D9395 said:
No smoke without fire, and if what JC was correct about Saab ignoring GM instructions on how they wanted 'their' business running, no wonder GM pulled the plug!
I think Saab were quite comfortable with the 'business' part of GM's master plan, it was just the 'Car building' part they didn't agree with - so they went off and did their own thing.Godd bless 'em - thats one of the reasons I own a Saab.
Funnily enough I'm also a great admirer of Honda - forget the silly cliche of 'an old persons car' - they are an 'engineering' company - they share similar values to Saab, and have only just, or are about to, entered the Turbo powered scene. they could have learnt a lot from Saab. I think a Saab-Honda marriage would be good for both parties.
Personally I think the Saab/GM marriage was always doomed to failure. They had totally different business ethos'.
GM are in the business of making money, whether through cars, finance, or whatever.
SAAB were in the business of making hugely well engineered cars, irrespective of financial considerations. This is why they were losing money hand over fist by the late 80s. The 900, while iconic, was long in the tooth and very expensive to produce. Again, the 9000 was hugely well engineered - compare the quality with a Lancia Thema / Alfa 164 / Fiat Croma, if you can find one!
Sadly there is no room for niche manufacturers in the mainstream saloon department; everybody wants something German, whether it is made in Germany or not. Witness the failure of the recent Citroen C6, a genuine attempt to do something a little different from the Germans.
I wish there were more companies around daring to be different, but who can afford it? At least SAAB did their best, and those of us owning 900s or 9000s or earlier cars know we have something special
(PS - I do like most of the GM era cars, but they are not as special as Saab's earlier cars IMHO)
GM are in the business of making money, whether through cars, finance, or whatever.
SAAB were in the business of making hugely well engineered cars, irrespective of financial considerations. This is why they were losing money hand over fist by the late 80s. The 900, while iconic, was long in the tooth and very expensive to produce. Again, the 9000 was hugely well engineered - compare the quality with a Lancia Thema / Alfa 164 / Fiat Croma, if you can find one!
Sadly there is no room for niche manufacturers in the mainstream saloon department; everybody wants something German, whether it is made in Germany or not. Witness the failure of the recent Citroen C6, a genuine attempt to do something a little different from the Germans.
I wish there were more companies around daring to be different, but who can afford it? At least SAAB did their best, and those of us owning 900s or 9000s or earlier cars know we have something special
(PS - I do like most of the GM era cars, but they are not as special as Saab's earlier cars IMHO)
NiceCupOfTea said:
PS - I do like most of the GM era cars, but they are not as special as Saab's earlier cars IMHO
Fully agree with that; although I have a 2006 9-3 Sportwagon, I feel good about owning a Saab and connected, in some small way, to a manufacturer which put together some nice cars extremely well. Would have loved one of the V4 96 types.The other points also all very true.
Pete
(PS - let's see how much I like the car when it goes in for the MOT on Wed......
)Edited by Petemate on Monday 26th March 15:51
I liked the TG Saab feature. They clearly both liked the brand and what more could you ask of them? Tbey spoke with enthusasm and passion IMHO.
Some parts were not accurate. The last 93 was based on the last generation Vectra and not the first one which was what TG suggested.
I have a 2005 93 and I still really like it. Very good looking car IMO. I've got the thnig up to 45mpg average now and thats good for a big saloon of that era.
Some parts were not accurate. The last 93 was based on the last generation Vectra and not the first one which was what TG suggested.
I have a 2005 93 and I still really like it. Very good looking car IMO. I've got the thnig up to 45mpg average now and thats good for a big saloon of that era.
bakerstreet said:
I liked the TG Saab feature. They clearly both liked the brand and what more could you ask of them? Tbey spoke with enthusiasm and passion IMHO.
Some parts were not accurate. The last 93 was based on the last generation Vectra and not the first one which was what TG suggested.
I have a 2005 93 and I still really like it. Very good looking car IMO. I've got the thing up to 45mpg average now and thats good for a big saloon of that era.
Agree on all that. My 9-3 estate is no lightweight, but I am more than happy with the mpg. Some parts were not accurate. The last 93 was based on the last generation Vectra and not the first one which was what TG suggested.
I have a 2005 93 and I still really like it. Very good looking car IMO. I've got the thing up to 45mpg average now and thats good for a big saloon of that era.
(BTW it flew through the MOT)
Gassing Station | Saab | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff