Saab to Cut Workforce after Poor Sales Forecast

Sweden-based Saab Automobile plans to reduce its workforce by 200 employees or about one-eighth of its current staff, according to report from Reuters citing a union official. Hakan Skott, a union representative at Saab, told the news site that the move was expected after the company's new owner, Dutch supercar maker Spyker, cut the firm's sales target from 60,000 units in February, to 45,000 a few months later and finally to just 30,000 cars at end of October.

"I'm not exactly surprised [about the layoffs]. We reduced our sales forecast just a couple of weeks ago and there is a decline in sales every year around Christmas and at the end of the year," Skott said. "I'm sure that by February-March we will see an upward trend and people will buy cars again," he added.

Saab has said in the past that it needs to sell around 80,000 cars per year to break even.

On Friday, Swedish business daily Dagens Industri quoted Spyker's CEO Victor Muller as saying, "There is absolutely no reason to worry. Our plans for the future still stand. Next year, we will build 80,000 cars".

As for the staff being laid, Muller told the newspaper that they were temporary employees. "You take them aboard when you need them and when they are not needed, they are not on board."

Source: Reuters & Dagens Industri

Simbol Design K1 Attack is a Shed-Built Italian GT with an Alfa V6

From the creators of the Ferrari Enzo-emulating GTX-R comes the K1 Attack, a car that takes styling cues from the Spyker C8 Aileron, Lotus Europa and others. Simbol Design has fitted the Attack with an Alfa Romeo-sourced V6 turbo good for 246 horsepower. Mated to a 5-speed manual, this gives the custom built sports car an apparent 0 to 100 km/h [62 mph] time of 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 265 km/h [165 mph].

The K1 Attack also features a polyester body and a tubular steel chassis. It's not all good news, however. There are... F1 cars with more upmarket interiors and the design is more Chinese knockoff than Italian chic. Pricing of course remains unspecified.

By Tristan Hankins

Photo source: Simboldesign

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Swedish Regional Government Demands $15.9 Million in Debt from Saab

A local government authority in Sweden is seeking to recover US$15.9 million from Saab, even going so far as to enlist a government debt collector.

Vastra Gotaland, where Saab's main production plant is located, covered worker wages to the tune while the company was in administration. Now that Saab has its very own 'Daddy Warbucks' in the form of Spyker, the regional government wants its money back.

Spyker / Saab believes it should only have to pay part of the debt as it was underwritten during the administration process. Vastra Gotaland disagrees. Spyker CEO Victor Muller told Reuters news that he is unworried:

"Just a legal dispute that will [be] dealt with in the appropriate way. Nothing of concern."

We'll see how this plays out in the next few weeks and keep you updated on any new developments.

By Tristan Hankins

Source: Reuters

Spyker C8 Laviolette LM85 Available on Forza Motorsport 3 / Xbox 360

Xbox 360 gamers are offered their first opportunity to take a virtual place behind the wheel of a Spyker supercar as the Dutch firm's C8 Laviolette LM85 is now available as the gift car of the Exotic Car Pack for Forza Motorsport 3, which was released on 11 May for 400 Microsoft Points.

"We've created something very special and unique with the LM85," said Victor Muller, CEO of Spyker and recently, of Saab Automobile as well. "It's very exciting to share our creation and passion with the Xbox and Forza Motorsport community, and we can't wait to see how players put it through the paces on the track."

In real life, the limited production Spyker C8 Laviolette LM85 of which only 24 examples will be built, features an aluminium body and spaceframe chassis with power coming from a naturally aspirated 400HP 4.2-litre V8 Audi engine that propels the car from 0 to 62mph (100m/h) in 4.5 seconds and on to a top speed of 185mph or 297km/h.

Aside from the Spyker gift car, the "Exotic Car Pack" for Forza 3 features 10 more supercars that you can check out in the list below.

• SSC Ultimate Aero
• JOSS JT1
• Weismann GT MF5
• Devon GTX
• Spada Codatronca TS
• Spyker C8 Laviolette LM85
• Mosler MT900s
• Q1 Rossion
• Radical SR8 LM
• Gumpert Apollo

Spyker Renews Offer for SAAB, GM Says it Will Revaluate

In what could be a final attempt to save SAAB from closing down, tiny Dutch sports car maker Spyker submitted a new 11-point proposal to buy the Swedish brand from General Motors on Sunday. The Dutch company said that its new proposal addresses all the issues that resulted to the collapse of the talks earlier this week. However, Spyker noted that the renewed offer is valid until 5pm (Eastern Standard Time) on Monday December 21, 2009.

GM issued today an official statement saying that, following Friday's announcement on the closure of SAAB, it "received inquiries from several parties" and it will evaluate each and every one without disclosing any more details on the matter.

Spyker CEO Victor R. Muller said that he believes the company's new offer will be successful.

"We are very confident that our renewed offer will remove the impasse that was standing in the way of an agreement on Friday, and this would still allow us to conclude the deal prior to the expiry of the deadline originally set by GM of December 31st", said Muller in a statement.

"Despite our collective eleventh hour set-back, we are returning to the table with a renewed offer, that addresses every known issue brought to light during the initial negotiations and that has the full backing of the Saab Management. The new offer eliminates the need for an EIB loan approval prior to year end, for example, which will allow the deal to be concluded within GM's deadline."

"Our efforts are based on our passion for saving an iconic brand that we would be honoured to shepherd, and the jobs and livelihoods of thousands of loyal Saab employees, suppliers and dealers around the world. Some 1,500,000 Saabs are on the road today and their proud owners would no doubt welcome the survival of this phenomenal brand", he added.

Spyker, which sold somewhere around 40 cars last year and recently decided to lay off a third of its 135-strong workforce in The Netherlands and move production to the UK, is said to be backed by Russian banker Vladimir Antonov and his Convers Group, which has a 30 percent stake in the Dutch company.

The sports car maker said that the deal would "add a lot of value to both parties", with Spyker benefiting from SAAB's global distribution network of 1100 dealers, its facilities and R&D capabilities, and the Swedes from financial backing and what the Dutch company describes as "an entrepreneurial leadership team sensitive to the uniqueness, heritage and individuality of the Saab brand."

"Our company motto is nulla tenaci invia est via - for the tenacious no road is impassable," said Spyker's boss. "And we intend to remain true to that throughout these negotiations as we bid to secure Saab's future and revive the company," Muller concluded.

R.I.P.: General Motors Announces the Death of SAAB

Just moments ago, General Motors announced that it will be closing down its money-losing SAAB unit after concluding that the sale of the Swedish brand to tiny Dutch supercar maker, Spyker Cars, could not be completed in the time frame that had been set.

"Despite the best efforts of all involved, it has become very clear that the due diligence required to complete this complex transaction could not be executed in a reasonable time. In order to maintain operations, Saab needed a quick resolution. We regret that we were not able to complete this transaction with Spyker Cars," said GM Europe President Nick Reilly.

General Motors had turned to Spyker Cars after a failed effort to sell the Swedish brand to a consortium led by the Koenigsegg Group AB.

The Detroit automaker said that Saab will continue to honor warranties, while providing service and spare parts to current owners around the world.

"We will work closely with the Saab organization to wind down the business in an orderly and responsible manner," Reilly said. "This is not a bankruptcy or forced liquidation process. Consequently, we expect Saab to satisfy debts including supplier payments, and to wind down production and the distribution channel in an orderly manner while looking after our customers."

What GM did not say, is what's going to happen with the Swedish firm's upcoming models such as the all-new 9-5 sedan and the Cadillac SRX-based, 9-4x.

Earlier this week, the Detroit automaker revealed that it had come to an agreement with China's BAIC for the sale of the intellectual rights of the current-generation Saab 9-5 (not the 2010 model shown in Frankfurt) and certain 9-3 models.

Saab follows the same fate as several other GM-owned brands such as Pontiac and Saturn which were also axed.

GM to Entertain New Offers for SAAB until the End of December

General Motors is still on the lookout for a new owner for its Saab unit, the company confirmed on Tuesday. The Detroit automaker said that the firm's Board of Directors have received "expressions of interest" from a suite of buyers for its Saab unit after the termination of negotiations with the Koenigsegg Group AB.

"The Board will evaluate potential bids between now and the end of December. At that time, we will determine whether a suitable arrangement for Saab exists. If not, we will begin an orderly wind down of the global Saab business at that time," General Motors said in a prepared statement to the press.

While GM did not disclose or confirm any names, media reports claim that potential suitors for Saab include China's Beijing Automotive, which had previously agreed to buy a stake in Koenigsegg, and Holland's Spyker Cars - yes, that's the same unprofitable company that decided to move production from The Netherlands to the UK and fire a third of its staff...

Spyker Moves Production from The Netherlands to The UK, Cuts a Third of Jobs

Dutch supercar maker Cars N.V. announced today that it is planning to move its manufacturing base from Zeewolde in Holland to its main supplier, CPP, located in Coventry, UK, before the end of the year. The company said that the decision to relocate its vehicle assembly was made to reduce production costs since more than half of the vehicle parts and components are sourced from the UK.

Victor R. Muller, CEO of Spyker Cars stated: "In these challenging times, a small manufacturer like Spyker has to find ways to reduce costs as well as improve its efficiency. By relocating vehicle assembly to CPP (Manufacturing), which was Spyker's very first contracting partner at the inception of our company in 2000 and has been one of our most trusted partners ever since, we secure the future of our business".

"With approximately half of our vehicles' parts and components sourced in the UK, and virtually all key suppliers being located there, moving closer to our suppliers and engineering partners will result in substantial savings and tangible efficiency improvements."

Spyker said that of the 135 people it employs in the Netherlands, around 45 jobs or more than a third of its staff will be directly affected by the move. Engineering, Corporate staff functions, Sales, After-Sales, Marketing and "Spyker Squadron", the company's Works' GT race team, will continue to operate in Zeewolde.

However, the Dutch firm warned that "further headcount reduction may not be excluded" in the near future.