Spyker Blog
New Saab owners to commune with the faithful in... Aurora, Ohio?Filed under: Classics, Budget, Etc., Saab, Spyker, Luxury 
Saab: A History in Pictures - Click above for high-res image gallery
Sure enough, fans of the Dutch-owned Swedish manufacturer will descend on Aurora to participate in this year's 2010 Saab Owner's Convention. Why Aurora, Ohio? Because 30 years ago, that was where Saab took the checkered at the "Longest Day at Nelson Ledges" 24 hour endurance race. To mark the occasion and celebrate escaping the steely death grip of General Motors, the three-day event will feature a keynote address from none other than the company's charismatic head honcho, Victor Muller. Word has it that Saab's current chairman, Jan-Åke Jonsson will say a word or two as well. Perhaps tellingly, in past years, GM sent lower-level executives to gladhand at the Saab Owner's Convention, but this is the first time in memory that such high-ranking officials have committed to make the scene.
Meanwhile, a track day will kick off with test drives of the new 9-5 Aero Sedan open to any and all who choose to participate. Saab will also have a 9-3 Aero Convertible on hand to pore over as well. As you might have guessed, there will also be a handful of car show events on the schedule, complete with awards for people's choice, Concours d'Saab and best Saab Fleet in North America. Fortunately, the whole collection doesn't have to be in Aurora to pick up the gold on that last one. The shindig starts tomorrow, Thursday, July 22 and runs through Sunday, July 25, so if you've got a Saab-loving bone in your body, you know where to be. Hit the jump to see the full press blast.
[Source: Saab Cars North America]Continue reading New Saab owners to commune with the faithful in... Aurora, Ohio? New Saab owners to commune with the faithful in... Aurora, Ohio? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsVideo: Jay Leno welcomes Spyker C8 Laviolette into his garageFiled under: Coupe, Performance, Videos, Spyker, Celebrities, Luxury 
Spyker C8 Laviolette joins Jay Leno's Garage - Click above to watch video after the jump
It's the Spyker C8 Laviolette's turn to tour Jay Leno's Garage, and it holds its own under the lights with a Rocket, McLaren F1 and Jay's Ecojet playing character roles in the background.
Leno spends half the 11-minute video crawling all over the 400-horsepower, 2,800-pound C8 with a Spyker sales rep from Galpin Auto Sports, and we learn a unique fact in the process... how many of you knew that the C8's ignition is in the glove compartment? For the rest of the Spyker's secrets and its terrific roar, follow the jump for the video.
[Source: Jay Leno's Garage]Continue reading Video: Jay Leno welcomes Spyker C8 Laviolette into his garage Video: Jay Leno welcomes Spyker C8 Laviolette into his garage originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsReport: Spyker to launch Chinese Edition GT2Filed under: Coupe, Sedan, Performance, China, Plants/Manufacturing, Spyker, Rumormill, Luxury 
Spyker C8 Laviolette LM85 - Click above for high-res image gallery
Spyker has its sights set firmly on the blooming Chinese auto market, and according to a report from the China Car Times, the company plans to produce and market a road-legal version of its GT2 racer just for the People's Republic. Supposedly the car will be both longer and wider, and will feature a host of creature comforts to help bridge the gap between the racetrack and public streets. Now, here's the really surprising part: the car is set to be launched in October of this year. If that's the case, development of the vehicle must be almost complete.
China Car Times also mentions that Spyker is planning to build a larger four-door model just for Chinese customers as well. Both vehicles will feature design elements that have been specifically crafted just for the new market. Eventually, Spyker hopes China will become the company's second largest market after the United States. With all of the money floating around the Asian country's economy at the moment, we can't imagine that the goal is too much of a stretch.
[Source: China Car Times]Report: Spyker to launch Chinese Edition GT2 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsAvenged Increased Sevenfold: Spyker plans massive sales increase on C7 Aileron?Filed under: Convertible, Coupe, Performance, Plants/Manufacturing, Earnings/Financials, Spyker, Specialty, Luxury 
Spyker Aileron C8 Spyder - click above for high-res image gallery
Here's a shocker - Dutch supercar manufacturer Spyker is looking to increase sales of its C8 Aileron to 250 units by 2012. That's a sevenfold increase compared to the meager 36 vehicles the company managed to move in 2009. How will they do it? For starters, production will be moved to CAPP Manufacturing, Ltd. in England, allowing for greater production volume than in the past. So far, Spyker has sold just total of 214 cars since 2002. But the company also plans to make the C8 Aileron more attractive to American buyers by offering the car with a new automatic transmission.
The company is hoping that the new gearbox will make the car comfortable enough for buyers more interested in the vehicle's luxury aspects than its performance credentials. Spyker says that the company received a good bit of demand for an automatic C8 from buyers in the U.S., China, Russia and the Middle East in the past.
News of the expanded sales targets also dovetails nicely with word that Spyker will be selling its wares through select Saab dealerships here in the States. It looks like we can forget about there not being enough of the $240,000 C8 Ailerons to go around.
[Source: Automotive News Europe]Avenged Increased Sevenfold: Spyker plans massive sales increase on C7 Aileron? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 15 Jun 2010 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsVolvo reportedly considering poaching Saab boss for CEO postFiled under: Saab, Volvo, Spyker, Geely 
With Volvo forever separated from Ford, the Swedish automaker needs of a new leader, and a report from Automotive News shows that that search may start and end in the country's own back yard. Swedish Business daily Dagens Industri claims Jan Ake Jonsson, the current CEO of Saab, is on the short list of names who could one-day run Volvo. Volvo's current CEO, Stephen Odell, will reportedly leave the Swedish automaker for a post as head of Ford Europe.
The Swedish paper reports that Jonsson has already been contacted for the position, though the current Saab boss told the news outlet that he promised Spyker CEO Victor Mueller that he'd stay on a while longer. That doesn't sound like a long-term commitment to Saab, but it doesn't say that Jonsson has his bags packed, either. We're sure, though, that new Volvo owner Geely would calm a lot of nervous Swedes by appointing the native Jonsson to the top Volvo spot.
[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]Volvo reportedly considering poaching Saab boss for CEO post originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 04 Jun 2010 17:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsReport: Spyker to double dealerships by selling through SaabFiled under: Performance, Europe, Plants/Manufacturing, Marketing/Advertising, Saab, Spyker, Luxury 
When we first heard that Spyker was sniffing around Saab, our thoughts immediately leapt to visions of C12 Zagatos on every street corner, or at least in every Saab showroom. Believe it or not, our whimsy-laced version of reality may come true. According to Bloomberg, the Dutch supercar manufacturer has said that it plans to nearly double the number of Spyker dealerships around the world from 35 to 60. How? The company plans to use portions of the old Saab dealer network.
If you're wondering how dealerships that struggled to move $30,000 9-3 sedans are going to manage to talk buyers into the driver's seat of a $215,000 C8 Aileron, you're not alone. Odds are the Spykers will serve as halo cars for the rest of the Saab fleet, but there are other hurdles facing the company's plans for expansion - production.
Spyker is a notoriously low-volume manufacturer - we're talking somewhere in the mid-double-digits each year, or about one car per every proposed dealership. Is the company planning on borrowing some of Saab's production might to get a few more models out the door annually? Hard telling. For now, the only real sharing going on between the two automakers is in tiny parts like windshield wiper motors.
[Source: Bloomberg]Report: Spyker to double dealerships by selling through Saab originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsDespite split from GM, Saab to continue with OnStar?Filed under: Technology, GM, Saab, Spyker, Luxury 
It was never in question that Spyker and General Motors were going to remain BFFs after the Saab sale. Yet one of the things they will continue to share is a little surprising to us: OnStar. Spyker will continue to install Onstar in U.S.-market Saabs for an undisclosed amount of time.
Nothing will change from the way the assistance system is currently sold, with the first year free followed by the opportunity to sign up. Not that OnStar doesn't have its uses, but as long as Saabs hold onto that little nav screen as well, we're all for it.
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req.]Despite split from GM, Saab to continue with OnStar? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 19 Apr 2010 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsSpyker gears up to launch line of wristwatches at Le MansFiled under: Etc., Spyker 
If you're going to produce world-class sports cars, you're going to need the timepieces to go with them. It's a time-honored rule that's been followed by Ferrari, Aston Martin, Porsche and Bugatti, to name just a few. And now that the Saab takeover is out of the way, Spyker is preparing to join their ranks.
The collection will be crafted by Expressions d'Artistes International, based in Geneva. Limited details have been revealed at this point, but the range will include pieces crafted in steel, white gold and rose gold, and feature such complications as date indicators and power reserve meters. They'll all bear Spyker's trademark steampunk-style decor, from the machine-turned metal found on Spyker dashboards to the Hulshof leather from their bucket seats, which will be used for the wrist-straps.
Special editions exclusively for Spyker owners will feature their cars' VIN digits. Prices will range from €8,000 for the steel model to €20,000 for the rose gold (that's $10,700-$27,000 USD), with the official unveiling to take place at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June. Details in the press release after the jump.
[Source: Spyker]Continue reading Spyker gears up to launch line of wristwatches at Le Mans Spyker gears up to launch line of wristwatches at Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 19 Apr 2010 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsSpy Shots: Are you the Spyker D12 SSUV?Filed under: Spy Photos, Performance, SUV, Europe, Crossover, Spyker, Luxury 
This could possibly be our first glimpse at the forthcoming super D12 SUV from Spyker. The team from Auto Informatief somehow managed to get their sticky mitts on what is said to be a clandestine shot of a clay model featured during some kind of corporate presentation. As shown, the body looks decidedly more Spyker than the Land Rover Defender-skinned test mules we've seen spy shots of thus far, but it also looks a good bit different from the Peking-to-Paris showcars we've seen for the last couple of years. As this photo is not explained in any context (including temporal), it could also be that this is an early development clay that predates the P-to-P, and not representative of the forthcoming production model.
Either way, the really interesting rumors center on the Spyker's engine bay. First, the bad news: there will no longer be a 12-cylinder behemoth under the hood. Depressed? Cheer up. In its place, the company is said to be plopping in a supercharged V8 of some unknown origin. The web is already crawling with theories of a blown Ferrari or AMG beating heart - both of which are decent guesses as far as we're concerned.
Assuming the clay model is representative of the production car, it looks like the new beast from Spyker will feature suicide rear doors - always a winner in our book - and a somewhat tall ride height. Ugly? Beautiful? It's too early to tell for us, but anything's bound to be better than the cobbled-together skin of the mules we've seen. No word yet on what designation the car will carry when it reaches production (SSUV? Peking-to-Paris?), but hopefully we'll get a better look at the real-live thing sometime soon.
[Source: Auto Informatief]Spy Shots: Are you the Spyker D12 SSUV? originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 08 Apr 2010 16:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsReport: Chinese automaker BAIC looking to invest in SaabFiled under: GM, Rolls-Royce, Saab, Spyker 
2011 Saab 9-5 - Click above for high-res image gallery
Back in the fall, General Motors was desperate to sell Saab to just about anyone with a few hundred million dollars and (hopefully) some car-making knowledge. Chinese automaker BAIC repeatedly came up as a potential bidder for the company, but in the end it appeared China's fifth largest automaker was only interested in buying up some aging pieces (see: outgoing Saab 9-3 and 9-5) of the Swedish automaker. Dutch specialty car maker Spyker eventually picked up Saab for a song, but it appears the ultra luxury car maker could have a very interested donor from the home of the Great Wall.
The Associated Press reports that BAIC CEO Wang Dazong told Swedish business daily Dagens Industri that his company has "a durable interest in deepening our partnership with Saab and we are ready to invest in the company." BAIC had even already reportedly signed a contract to begin selling Saab models through its dealer network in China.
We're not sure why BAIC wasn't able to reach a deal with GM to purchase Saab, but it appears the Chinese automaker is still very interested in deepening its ties with the Swedish automaker now that The General is out of the picture. And if Saab wants to increase sales by 120,000 and make a profit by 2012, we're thinking added exposure to the quickly expanding China market could be a very good thing.
[Source: Associated Press]Report: Chinese automaker BAIC looking to invest in Saab originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Apr 2010 07:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsSaab's hiring! 500 workers reportedly needed to boost productionFiled under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Plants/Manufacturing, Saab, Spyker 
Saab resumes production - Click above for high-res image gallery
Interested in a job in the automotive world? Saab has the news that you've been waiting for. According to AFP news service, production of Saab vehicles will be boosted to six times the current amount in just two short years. In order to meet that ambitious target, the automaker has announced that it will need the help of 500 more workers.
Spyker Cars, the new owners of Saab, announced the need for more workers in Paris last Wednesday. Spyker chief executive Victor Muller also laid out some future financial plans for the Saab brand. Muller said that Saab would receive $1 billion in support and plans for expanding the sales volume will result in overall profit by 2012.
Last year, Saab produced just 20,000 vehicles, though it produced over 90,000 in 2008 before it looked like (then) parent General Motors was fixin' to close up its Swedish shop.. By 2012, the company aims to produce 120,000 vehicles. Spyker anticipates that Saab will sell around 50,000 vehicles this year and slowly increase production until the 2012 target is met. Meeting the goals apparently requires a workforce of 4,000 people, which in turn requires 500 new workers, a sizable hiring uncommon in recent automotive history.
[Source: AFP via Google News]Saab's hiring! 500 workers reportedly needed to boost production originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 30 Mar 2010 17:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsIs Saab considering a Russian plant?Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Saab, Spyker, Russia 
Spyker's association with ex-company chairman Vladimir Antonov is what almost kept the Saab deal from happening. But after a high-profile bid to clear his name (still waiting on the report, Mr. A) and the scent of euros on the table, you didn't really think Antonov was just going to walk away, did you?
The Russian said in an interview last week that Saab was looking to build a production plant in Russia and will sign a memorandum of understanding to that effect "within a month." Another report has put potential production of such a facility at 10,000 cars per year.
Spyker CEO Victor Muller has had nothing to say on the statement. Naturally, we have no idea if Saab is looking for a Russian plant, but we'd be shocked (not for the first time, we admit) to find it were doing so "within a month." We'd have a much easier time believing that Spyker wants to get the new 9-5 and 9-5 SportCombi selling briskly and a better 9-3 on the way before it makes huge increases in production capacity in Russia. But that's just us...
[Source: Moscow Times]Is Saab considering a Russian plant? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 30 Mar 2010 08:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsSpyker CEO Victor Muller reduces voting interest in company below 30 percentFiled under: Government/Legal, Saab, Earnings/Financials, Spyker 
After the Saab sale transaction went through, Spyker Cars CEO Victor Muller held a 34.3-percent stake in the Dutch sportscar maker. And according to local law, having more than 30 percent in equity meant that Muller would be obliged to make a public bid for the rest of the company's shares, so he transferred slightly more than one million shares to a Cyprus-registered company for what looks like safe keeping.
Under the terms of the move, Muller can buy the shares back any time from Dorwing Solution Limited, the company that purchased them, for the same price at which he sold them. Full press release is after the jump.
[Source: Spyker]Continue reading Spyker CEO Victor Muller reduces voting interest in company below 30 percent Spyker CEO Victor Muller reduces voting interest in company below 30 percent originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsSaab officially resumes production, new 9-5 built first, next-gen SportCombi confirmed?Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Saab, Spyker
Saab resumes production - Click above for high-res image gallery
It's a good day in Trollhättan. After the many ups and downs of the Spyker/Saab sale, production has finally resumed at the automaker's plant in Sweden. To commemorate the occasion, a number of high-ranking officials took positions along the assembly line, including Saab Automobile CEO Jan Åke Jonsson, Spyker Cars CEO Victor Muller and Trollhättan Plant Director Gunnar Brunius. The all-new Saab 9-5 was the first vehicle down the line - a good thing, since that hot new sedan is set to go on sale in the very near future and will make its way to the U.S. in the second quarter of this year.
What's more, a key phrase buried in Saab's press release gives us another glimmer of hope - plans seem to be in order for the automaker to produce a SportCombi version of the new 9-5, which we've already seen testing.
"With the introduction of the new 9-5 SportCombi next year, a total of five model lines will be produced at the plant."
Sounds promising, and we'll be sure to update you with more details once we get the official word. In the meantime, click through the gallery below to see shots of the first 9-5 rolling off the line, and hit the jump to read Saab's press release.
[Source: Saab]Continue reading Saab officially resumes production, new 9-5 built first, next-gen SportCombi confirmed? Saab officially resumes production, new 9-5 built first, next-gen SportCombi confirmed? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 22 Mar 2010 18:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsSaab/Spyker badges hit eBayFiled under: Auctions, Saab, Spyker 
A designer in Portugal has created a decal to celebrate Europe's most recent celebrity wedding. The 2.5-inch, self-adhesive decal is waterproof and UV resistant, and fits Saabs from 2003 to the present day. You can own this instant classic for just $10, and the creator can probably expect a ping from the gents at Spyker in three, two...
[Source: eBay]Saab/Spyker badges hit eBay originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsReport: Saab deal helps put Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris back on trackFiled under: Performance, SUV, GM, Saab, Spyker, Luxury 
Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris concept - Click above for high-res image gallery
We're all well aware that the recently sealed deal between Spyker and General Motors means good things for the ailing Saab brand - in fact, without Spyker's eleventh-hour intervention, the Swedish automaker would have been lost to the annals of history. Apparently, though, the Saab tie-up means good things for Spyker, too.
Believe it or not, it was four years ago that Spyker first showed off its Peking-to-Paris luxury SUV at the Geneva Motor Show, and now company head Victor Muller has reportedly announced that the monster 'ute is back on track. Not surprisingly, the finalized handshake with The General is partly to thank for the reinvigorated D12 program.
Consider the years of technical expertise that Spyker gained when it brought Saab on board, not to mention the additional production capability and manpower. It remains to be seen what powertrain Spyker will choose for its hulking SUV, but previous rumors had a supercharged mill from Cadillac underhood. We shall see.
[Source: Autocar]Report: Saab deal helps put Spyker D12 Peking-to-Paris back on track originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 06 Mar 2010 12:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsGeneva 2010: Subaru Impreza XV looks buffer, not any betterFiled under: Budget, Geneva Motor Show, Japan, Crossover, Hatchback, Spyker, Diesel 
Subaru Impreza XV - click above for high-res image gallery
Like the recently redesigned Forester and Outback, the Impreza XV unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show this week gives us yet another Subaru that looks more SUV-like than its predecessor. Subaru pulled this trick off by giving the XV a heftier-looking grille, beefier wheel arches, thicker, more purposeful-looking roof rails and a new, boomerang-look rear spoiler. You'll also notice the little bumperettes up front flanking the new grille.
Don't like the way it looks? Don't worry, as the Impreza XV will not be headed our (U.S.) way. However, you're going to have to learn to live with it should you live in Europe. That won't be too hard to do as the XV ships with your choice of either a peppy 2.0-liter boxer gas engine or torquey turbo-diesle boxer mill, the latter motivator being the power plant that best compliments the new XV's so-so trucky looks.
Geneva 2010: Subaru Impreza XV looks buffer, not any better originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsFinally Final: Saab sale transfer completed between GM and SpykerFiled under: GM, Saab, Earnings/Financials, Spyker 
2011 Saab 9-5 - Click above for high-res image gallery
After a Mullholland's worth of twists and turns, the sale of Saab Automobile AB to Spyker Cars is complete. The official transfer of ownership from General Motors to the Dutch supercar concern occurred earlier today, and now Saab will get down to the difficult business of becoming profitable.
According to Victor Muller, CEO of Spyker Cars, a man who is fast becoming something of a folk hero in Sweden:
"Through this acquisition we add approximately 15 euros per share in equity and 60 euros of assets. With a well funded business plan in place we are looking forward to working with Saab's management on the realization of that plan and bringing exciting new products to our customers. Real Saabs, Saab Saabs."
With a compelling new 9-5 waiting in the wings and a raft of vehicles (9-3X, 9-4) just around the bend, the Swedish automaker's short-term future looks bright, but even before those new products have run their course, the real battle for sustained profitability will begin, with Saab likely needing to partner with a larger automaker to share development costs for new models.
As it is, the rumormill has been rife with return-to-form scuttlebutt, including the return of a five-door hatchback bodystyle for the next-gen 9-3 and the possibility of a '50s-era teardrop-inspired 9-2 model that would seem to jibe with Muller's "Real Saab, Saab Saabs" comment. Will the promise of such models be enough to see the Griffin rise triumphantly from the ashes? If the build-up to the handover of the brand is any indication, Saab's revival effort is at least going to be one hell of a spectacle. Official statements from both Spyker and GM available after the jump.
[Sources: Spyker Cars, General Motors]Continue reading Finally Final: Saab sale transfer completed between GM and Spyker Finally Final: Saab sale transfer completed between GM and Spyker originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 12:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | CommentsReport: Ousted Russian investor wants in on Spyker-Saab dealFiled under: Government/Legal, GM, Saab, Spyker, Russia 
Vladimir Antonov will soon give up the position of chairman at Spyker because he stood between the Dutch company and its successful acquisition of Saab. Recent reports indicate that a Swedish government investigation tied Antonov and his family to the Russian mafia and money laundering. Those findings helped kill the initial deal between Spyker and General Motors and led to Antonov's subsequent departure.
Antonov has a different take on the story. In a New York Times op-ed called "A Misplaced Fear of Russian Money," he writes that the results of the Swedish investigation were "surreal allegations," and that he'll prove them untrue. He's hired a firm of private investigators to clear his name, and he plans to give his report to all parties involved, including the press, to show that he's just another businessman.
His goal is to get back in on the Spyker-Saab deal; apparently, Antonov sees enough potential there to go through these public motions. Although he's no longer a shareholder, he does remain a lender to Spyker, having tendered the company $100 million to help it buy Saab. That makes it simpler for Antonov to return to the Spyker party, say, if Spyker converts debt to shares, but first he'll have to get past the bouncers in Sweden and the U.S. government.
[Source: Auto News - sub req'd, Saabs United]Report: Ousted Russian investor wants in on Spyker-Saab deal originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 21 Feb 2010 09:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsSaab-Spyker is Go: EIB reportedly approves 400M euro loan, Spyker shareholders agree to Saab purchaseFiled under: Europe, Saab, Earnings/Financials, Spyker 
Spyker-Saab is reportedly passing "Go" and collecting $547 million while they're at. According to Automotive News, the €400 million loan courtesy of the European Investment Bank (EIB) has received final approval. There's even more good Saab-related news (that almost feels weird to type) - Spyker shareholders have approved the "we're buying Saab" deal. The large loan is especially big news to Holland-based Spyker and Saab's worldwide legion of rabid fans, for it was essentially the last piece of the puzzle standing in the way of - as Reuters of all publications points out - "[combining] two money-losing enterprises."
Now that they have the loan and the shareholders' blessings, Spyker-Saab is looking to get their fledgling company list on both the London and Stockholm stock exchanges. Spyker CEO Victor Muller was asked if listing the company on the two new exchanges would make it easier to raise cash (duh), Muller replied that the end goal was to be "closer to investors." If we were flip, we might modify that to read "closer to investors' wallets," but we'll just leave it alone and hope that all this money goes into making the next 9-3 the very best Swedish hatchback it can be!
One last thing - perhaps we're getting ahead of ourselves by referring to the new company as Spyker-Saab. According to the Dutch supercar company's press release today, they have postponed changing their name from Spyker Cars N.V. to Saab Spyker Automobiles pending a trademark discussion with aircraft manufacturer Saab AB. That issue is expected to be resolved at the company's next annual meeting on April 22. Official press release after the jump.
[Sources: Reuters, Spyker, Automotive News - sub. req.]
Continue reading Saab-Spyker is Go: EIB reportedly approves 400M euro loan, Spyker shareholders agree to Saab purchase Saab-Spyker is Go: EIB reportedly approves 400M euro loan, Spyker shareholders agree to Saab purchase originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | Email this | Comments |
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