No good news from Trollhättan
The old Saab factory is always on my radar - even if it has been very quiet for weeks. Unfortunately there is no good news from Trollhättan. Circumstances did not change for the better in 2018 either. On the contrary, because there is a halt again on the site of the former Saab factory.
Around 2018 new jobs were actually announced for 70. Parts for the NEVS 9-3 EV were to be produced in Trollhättan. Its start of production in China, planned for summer 2018, does not seem to be sustainable. The reason given is the delay in the completion of the new factory in Tianjin. No surprise, as the financing is unclear and the budget for the construction of a body shop and paint shop does not appear to be in place.
The 10.000 electric cars, which NEVS plans to build later this year, are moving further away. Likewise the new jobs in the old Saab factory. The union representation at NEVS is facing each other SVT in Swedish serenity. It has already lived with delays of 3, 4 and 5 years. Since a few months more are not crucial.
The end of the paint shop. And the end of automobile construction.
Much more concern for the Trollhättan location and the plant prepares a different footnote. NEVS has announced that it will close assembly and the paint shop. The 42 affected employees are now to be given other tasks. The paint shop, once the most modern in Sweden and in the GM network, has been kept on “stand by” since December 2011. First from the bankruptcy attorneys, then later from the Chinese. A measure that was associated with a lot of effort and considerable costs. This fact alone gave reason to hope that at least the plan existed to build cars again in the Stallbacka at some point.
With their shutdown, this little hope finally disappears. It can be assumed that the Chinese investors have long-term farewell both from the production for contracted contractors, as well as from an own production in Sweden. It is speculative whether the rig will be disassembled and how other inventory will be shipped to China, as some Saab veterans have repeatedly feared. The fact is: NEVS once again brings the end of a chapter and shrinks (again) own, ambitious plans.
Not good news for the traditional location and a work that has been giving many characterful cars to the world since 1947.
Hello Mr. Rudolf,
what brand has successfully risen from the dead? I do not know any. All others were taken on in good time and successfully continued. Who should be so crazy and take over a bled factory to build new and newest cars? Where does a potential investor get the manpower to (successfully) build cars again? All of this is understandably desirable but not, but also not at all realistic. Unfortunately. Not only did Nevs fail to see the European market, Nevs is a complete mistake.
Hi Linus,
unfortunately Saab has long been dead. Especially after the factory is slowly and constantly being bled to death. Nobody will resurrect this again. We only have memories of the “good old days”. No more and no less.
Take care of all your Saabs and rejoice every day that you can drive your Saab.
Other brands are also “resurrected” after the preliminary one - this always depends on the people involved.
If investors can come up with a brand and especially the customer base, it could easily become a pure success story.
NEVS has probably neglected to pay more attention to the European market - in addition, the one-sided focus on exclusive electric mobility is not right. Unfortunately, investors who could have brought about a change here have so far not shown up among the Swedes or elsewhere - NEVS will probably remain a difficult patient.
The bankruptcy for Nevs get it all alone, I'm sure.
Strangely enough, I'm still confident that anyone will revive the brand in Trollhättan.
Whether it is a Mr. Wallenberg, or otherwise a wealthy person, I do not care, but the current Dilletanten are so unbearable.
The bankruptcy trustees made the biggest mistake. But if you look at the whole thing without economic responsibility, they have at least ensured full coffers - for themselves.
The long-suffering of the Swedes and the union representatives is not to be admired, but one of the biggest evils in this matter. In France this would be different.
How much I long for the now most unloved Victor Muller. He had standing and also internalized the spirit.
But today, only accountants are needed and not people with empathy and emotional intelligence.
Otherwise Volvo would not be Chinese today.
Even a Mr. Muller has made mistakes, but the direction was right and with a little more commitment from the state it could have worked.
SAAB is not dead, only the sick current owners must finally disappear.
We should send Hartmut Mehldorn over, as a consultant!
Then NEVS is bankrupt within a year and the eternal tragedy has finally come to an end.
Dear Chinese, lock away those money-drunks and let someone who knows how to do it!
NEVS will manage the bankruptcy without Hartmut. They are on the right track and are not stupid ...
Very sad, my dad has been driving since 1982 Saab and I grew up with this brand and loved! Too bad they missed
Also to build small cars. Then she had survived the crisis. Hopefully a Saab lover will become a billionaire and rebuild the brand.
I find it once again very strange that the former leading company and actually also the founder of the SAAB automotive division, SAAB AB, is completely out of the action. Swedish sense of tradition can unfortunately no longer be recognized here - the behavior is more reminiscent of the lack of interest that was recently recognizable at GM as the second large SAAB parent company after SAAB AB.
Even now, years after SAAB AB gave up the automotive division, I would have expected a little more solidarity or even devoted rescue attempts from the Swedes (including the government agencies) in the matter of SAAB. Even the insolvency administrators did not show themselves to be great experts in their field - even at times when it was much more promising than now, the lawyers could hardly score with anything.
Now only the hope remains on Dongfeng or similar knitted corporations with decent guts.
Too bad that there must always be negative reports. But most importantly, an interested party is waiting
NEVS is completely on its knees to take over this location.
I'm afraid there will not be much left to take over. NEVS creates what goes to China.
Tom, if this is right; Will the supply of spare parts not be in danger, as they are still produced here?
I believe that the China strategy NEVS` and a commitment of SAAB AB or the Swedish state are mutually exclusive. The state is small and the AB has long been primarily a Swedish armaments company. Only a few Swedish jobs still hang on the remnants of SAAB Automobile. There is no good reason for neither the state nor the AB to help NEVS on Chinese soil, Chinese investors, Chinese (local) politicians and workers to succeed.
I can not recognize anything strange about it. The train has gone a long way.
I would find it “very strange” if the little SAAB AB and the little Swedes got the idea that they had to support the big China and enrich it with another car brand ...
It would be like removing a bit of Swedish cliff so that China can pile up more artificial islands and expand its controversial territorial waters. Maybe SAAB will give some jets to the Chinese military?
The state then lays one million Hilleberg tents each in olive, sand and white. For every gift tent, there is a Trangia cooker, a large Fjäll Räven backpack, 10 days blueberry soup for each 3 man in bags and 10 liters of spirit free.
But since you are a small country, the backpack is only available in olive. Since Swedes are clever and resourceful, there are backpack covers in white and sand with every backpack. Of course, also free and gladly paid for by Swedish taxpayers. Gifts among friends. Good for any terrain and any weather between Beijing and Malmö ...
But seriously, everything has an end and there are limits to everything. It is more than obvious to me that AB and the state see this exceeded. And yet, what a shame, a shame, a shame that you didn't use your influence and room for maneuver in good time ...
Was to be expected. In China, the factory is not finished and wants to produce. In Sweden they have a finished work and do not want to produce. What a madness. Maybe they sell it to Dongfeng. They may know more about it. Otherwise nothing is left in 2 years. Bye bye NEVS
Yes, this madness comes up immediately.
I think I remember reading here that the factory in China was a condition for deals and / or Chinese licenses. Thus, then probably a prerequisite for money and investors. This China bill NEVS does not seem to work.
Sorry for Trollhattan!
But for us SAAB drivers this strategy was probably never thought anyway. Maybe NEVS would have done better with a Europe-America strategy? And maybe SAAB AB would have behaved differently to the naming rights?
The main thing is that the press shop can still produce replacement sheets for our cars ………
Hopefully this will soon come to an end with NEVS, that cannot be good for the (remaining) employees or for the plant or the Trollhättan location ...
You could even ask other manufacturers if they did not need to at least get the jobs
Fuck NEVS. it's the cancer that Saab killed