4 years Saabblog.net

Last Tuesday the blog celebrated 4 years of existence. Nobody - apart from my friend Mark - noticed it, and unfortunately the date passed me by too. So we are already in year 5 of the blog project. Incredible ! Opportunity for a short, open talk about things that have not been on the blog before.

It's about brilliant ideas - that fail, and about things that work. A “worst case” scenario is the topic. And something big is waiting for the Saab fans.

How a blog will develop is difficult to assess, and it may be a good thing. Last year it was more ambitious than ever to stay on course. A lot has changed around Saab, unfortunately not to the advantage. The motivation and the Saab soul, it suffers then.

The crisis…

What looked hopeful for a short period at NEVS has developed into a veritable crisis. Saab has not existed as a producing manufacturer since summer 2014, and the trademark rights have been lost to the producer. Perhaps “lost” is not entirely true. Because behind the loss of rights, a production could have been hidden. But that's another story, for another article.

Back to the blogs, because the blog landscape is also changing. A traditional, large Saab blog is in trouble and has been looking for its orientation for weeks. What will become of it cannot be foreseen yet. We keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best. While a blog is weak, new projects are born, including a very nice project from Great Britain.

Blogs thrive on enthusiasm or daily madness for a cause. A blog needs enthusiasm and has to constantly reinvent itself. In the last few months the Saabblog.net project has changed more than in the previous three years. I think it's positive! Michèl from Stockholm is new to the team, his support has made a long-cherished dream of mine come true. He has made the blog more Swedish and even more Saab. The link to Scandinavia, especially to Trollhättan, has been strengthened. It's an important pillar for the blog.

The Community Saab ...

The next 12 months are a challenge. There were really good ideas that couldn't be realized. One blog project that shattered in the harsh reality was a “Community Saab”. A 9000 was planned, which should first go through a restoration in 12 months and then come back on the road. It should be driven by readers and Saab personalities; They would have described their impressions in an online diary. After a year we wanted to auction the Saab for a charitable cause and tackle a new community Saab.

A good idea? She did not work. The 9000 that was scheduled for this project is in our hangar. We work on it again and again. More about the 9000 CC coming soon on the blog. The original project itself crashed. Why? In short, there was a lack of time, manpower, money and support.

The means to carry out the project professionally, in line with the brand's claim, were only partially secured. And at some point I didn't feel like begging for something that shouldn't seem to work. So the project was buried in late autumn 2014. I still think the idea is charming, but the hope of seeing it realized somewhere is no longer there.

The community lives ...

And while a project fails because the blog is just a private blog after all, other things are going on. And they're doing really well. We want to involve the Saab community more, because Saab is what we make of it together! Readers are invited to help shape the blog. The first reader action, it's about the Ursaabis a success. More than 30 stories - and there is a lot of work behind every article - slipped into the mailbox. Not all stories have been published yet. Every single item is a statement for the brand and for the pride and joy of owning a Saab.

A sequel, under different omens, is in the planning stage. And we can be sure:

Saab lives ...

To be completely honest, we have been planning for the “worst case” for months. The day when you pull the plug at NEVS and when the future will be less clear than ever. This day can come, but it doesn't have to be. An important month for the Saab blog project will be June 2015. The Saab Festival takes place in Trollhättan, and there are two actions on our side in the area.

For one thing, Mark will call for a fundraiser for the Saab Bilmuseum. This is a sign, because the preservation of the historical collection needs a lot of money. Whoever reads here, likes the blog, likes our style, we ask for help and unlimited generosity. Mark will, on behalf of the whole team, start the campaign in the next few weeks.

On the other hand, our promotion number two will be a really hot story - and some readers will be there exclusively. The story is going to be big, really big, and I don't promise too much. We'll reveal the first details in May, the big premiere will take place in June. Saab is alive, the blog is in its fifth year and the team is still having great fun!

And finally…

... a really big thank you goes to the blog supporters who financially secure the project and who make it possible for us to have a stable, fast server with an excellent firewall. The daily, annoying fight against attacks has been a thing of the past for several months, downtimes have been reduced to zero.

Without Saab partners who advertise on the blog, there would be no project to that extent, and even upcoming things would not be possible. Thank you for adding 2015 to the blog! My call to the fans and readers: supports the blog supporters when it comes to the selection of the workshop or spare parts! Thank you!