General Motors chairman Bob Lutz has thrown the future of Saab’s Swedish factory into doubt following the marqué’s dismal financial results since its takeover.
General Motors chairman Bob Lutz has thrown the future of Saab’s Swedish factory into doubt following the marqué’s dismal financial results since its takeover.
Saab’s Trollhattan plant, which assembles the 9-3 and 9-5, is operating at 59 per cent capacity. GM has struggled to make Saab profitable since it bought 50 per cent of the manufacturer in 1990 and took complete ownership in 2000.
Lutz said GM Europe would radically restructure its production capacities to streamline its plant operations. This reshuffle is likely to affect Saab.
“Who knows where Saabs will be built in the future? There is nothing that says Saabs have to be made in Sweden,” Lutz said.
“We like Saab, we like its design, we like its customers,” Lutz said. “But Saab’s problem is that its product line has been too narrow. That is why we have to do things differently.”
The 9-2X hatchback, produced by Subaru in Japan will be the first Saab to be built outside Sweden. The 9-7X SUV will be based on an existing Chrevrolet model and built at GM’s Ohio plant.
One analyst said adding badged products from Subaru and Chevrolet should give Saab a good chance of reaching sales targets of 150 000 units a year. The company’s would need to reach this critical number to remain profitable, and the annual sales were just about 130 000 units.
