2003 Saab 9-5 Aero Sedan 4-door 2.3l on 2040-cars

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National Electric Vehicle stops Saab 9-3 production amidst financing woes

It seems that quirky, Swedish automaker Saab might be on life support yet again. Its owner, National Electric Vehicle Sweden, has announced that it's reducing its workforce and temporarily halting production of the 9-3 due to financial problems. NEVS was only building six cars a day, anyway.
The company put out a press release admitting its economic woes, but it still appeared hopeful. NEVS claims it's developing "a new platform on the Phoenix architecture," and it has a frame agreement with an international automotive OEM. It didn't give any specific details about either one of these assertions though. According to The Wall Street Journal, NEVS needs the partnership to lower development costs in order to stay afloat. Saab spokesperson Mikael Ostlund told Autoblog in an email that the stop in production of the 9-3 in Trollhättan would last four weeks.
NEVS says it's in negotiation to sell a portion of the company to an automotive company. Its current monetary woes are caused by shareholder Qingbo Investment Company not financing the company as agreed. "We plan to have the results of the discussions at latest during June," said Ostlund.

Saab has ruined all Swedish cars for me

It's easy to dismiss my hatred of all Swedish automotive manufacturers as a simple result of bad experiences. I mean, we're all products of our own experiences, some we learn from, others we don't, and some we need to be hit over the head with time and time again. I've been hit over the head too many times with Saabs (and one lonely Volvo), and as a result, I can't bring myself to buy a Koenigsegg. It started with a 900 Turbo sedan. You know, the ugly duckling sister of the beautiful two-door coupe that spawned the Aero, which managed to look stunning from the front, and like a child with a full nappy (diaper) at the rear. I bought it at an auction (mistake number one) for $6,500 (AUD) because as a bloke in his early twenties, I wanted to be noticed – and a greasy-haired bespectacled musician driving a turbocharged Swedish luxury car was my way of standing out. On the drive home I noticed two things: one, it handled like it was on rails – it just gripped! And two, the turbo wasn't working. I took my new wheels to the mechanic, who promptly told me a custom exhaust system would solve the problem – mistake number two. During the fitting, Mr. Shonky's Repair Shop managed to fry some computer thingy. I won't try to remember or understand what it was, but he did tell me that it should have been replaced and that I would have to pay for it. I agreed. Mistake number three. Twelve months later I had spent more than double the original purchase price on repairs, and the turbo still wouldn't work. I sold it for about $4,000, and moved on to something more sensible. But the beautiful handling and quirky design had left an itch that I just couldn't scratch. Many cars and motorbikes later, I sold my Mazda RX-8 because it was too perfect. You know those cars that have spotless paint, an unmarked interior, low kilometers, and you're just too damn scared to park it anywhere? Yep, it was one of those. I would spend 30 to 40 minutes trying to find a vacant spot with vacant spots on either side, and even after leaving the car I would walk back to check if anyone had parked next to me. If they did, I moved. Not a low-anxiety vehicle. So I bought my second Saab – this time a 9-5 turbo wagon – from an auction. Wasn't that mistake number one? This one had reasonably low kilometers, and was even on LPG (a fairly common conversion is Australia – just not on Saabs) and only set me back $2,200. I drove it home, and low and behold, the turbo worked!

This virtually new, very last Saab 9-3 could be yours

The date is October 7, 2019, and it is currently possible to buy a virtually new 2014 Saab 9-3 Aero Turbo4. Spiking the car's rarity is the fact that this specific vehicle is said to be the last Saab to roll off the production line in Trollhattan, Sweden. Driven only 41 miles, chassis No. YTNFD4AZXE1100257 is a true piece of Swedish automotive history, and it's set for auction this month. We first got word of this car back in June 2019, and the time has finally come for this Saab to be sold. As previously reported, this vehicle is from the National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) era. The seller, Bilweb Auctions, says it is the last Saab to come off the manufacturing line, and it was reportedly set aside for crash testing. The testing never occurred, and the sedan, one of only 420 built, survived. The seller says the mileage comes from running the car on the test track next to the old plant for photography and videography purposes.  This 9-3 Aero uses a Ecotec 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 217 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. It has immaculate Diamond Silver paint and matching silver turbine wheels. Inside, there is a two-tone interior with cream leather seats, a black dashboard, and black accents. According to Autocar, the proceeds of the auction will go to NEVS' Sustainable Mobility Scholarship at University West in Sweden. Bidding on the car opens soon, and interested parties can sign up to be alerted when the auction starts.   Auto News Auctions Saab Sedan