Saab's small car

By: Dave Leggett - 10 June 2010 18:21

I and a number of other journalists had lunch with new Saab owner and Spyker CEO Victor Muller earlier this week. Mark Bursa interviewed him in Geneva and he is still pretty upbeat, talking a good game and spending a lot of time on the road (well, in planes).

I asked him about his rendition of the possible future small Saab – the '92' - that he had designed and is said to be on his cell phone. He duly got his cell phone out and there it was, a small car with curves that certainly suggested Saab DNA. He was though, adamant that such a car will not be 'retro'. Rather, it would be a modern car that comes with traditional Saab values.

It is an intriguing thought. Muller talks about the Mini and Audi A1 as examples of the kind of compact premium segment he has in mind, broadly, for this new Saab. But he has said a 92 would be priced 10% higher than a Mini, reinforcing the premium positioning. The funding isn't yet in place for a 92, but if Muller can get a deal with a platform donor that gets cost down and the other business performance indicators are moving in the right direction, he could maybe raise some interest from potential investors over the next 6-12 months.

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