The Saab-Scania Story - a book about planes and cars

The Saab-Scania Story is a book about planes and cars. But also via trucks, computers, satellites and much more. The Saab-Scania group that published the volume presents itself as a Nordic high-tech company. The occasion was Saab's 50th birthday in 1987 and Scania's 100th in 1991. The book is a must for every fan, but unfortunately it's only available second-hand.

We have a new copy in stock that we will put up for auction next Saturday. Here we present the content.

The book traces the complete Saab and Scania history. Starting with the origins of Scania-Vabis, which are deeply rooted in the early days of Swedish industrialisation. Airplanes are a big topic, and so are cars. The book introduces the individual aircraft types and their history and tells about automobile construction in Trollhättan right from the start.

There, where it began in a hangar that still exists today, and where the planes had to give way to the cars.

The book is interesting. On the one hand, because it shows images that are not particularly widespread. But also because it tells the Saab story in a chronological sequence parallel to the aircraft construction. In addition, it highlights activities of Saab-Scania in the individual chapters that have long been forgotten.

Few people know that the group was once a leader in the construction of mainframe computers. Boilers and oil burners are also likely to have fallen into oblivion. But the (Saab) Enertech AB is still present on the market and today supplies heat pumps.

The many pictures from the Swedish production are attractive from a historical point of view. How were airplanes, trucks and cars once made in Sweden? Saab-Scania shows it with pride.

What you should not normally expect from this book is a critical review and openness. The book was commissioned by a company that had something to celebrate at the time. The fact that it was German engineers who made a significant contribution to Saab being able to successfully start aircraft construction in the early years is at least mentioned.

It is not sufficiently emphasized that the plans of the manufacturer Messerschmitt provided the basis for Saab being able to deliver the first Swedish jet aircraft, the Saab 29, surprisingly quickly after the war.

Apart from that, the book is a recommendation, not only for Saab fans. It deals with 167 pages of Saab history and shows the interaction of car and aircraft construction at a time when there was usually only a narrow corridor between the offices of the individual departments.

Integrated technology groups like Saab-Scania once existed in Europe. They were broken up years ago because it promised a higher share price and rewards for managers. In China they are (again and still) the order of the day. There, corporations like Geely build cars, satellites, mobile phones, operate mines and more. Maybe because it's just smart to stand on more than one leg.

The book is available antiquarian, well-read and less well-preserved copies are available for little money. Current offers can be found at ZVAB.

We're giving up an unread copy in mint condition in its original packaging for auction on Saturday.