It’s no secret that General Motors has never made a profit on its Saab brand, but the amount of money GM has lost on the Swedish brand is quite astonishing. General Motors became the sole owner of Saab’s automotive operations in 2000.
General Motors’ part ownership helped Saab turn a profit in 1995 – the company’s first positive fiscal year since 1988 – but the Swedish brand has been on a slippery slope ever since. The subsequent blending of Saab vehicles on existing GM platforms polarized the Saab faithful and failed to attract new buyers, leading to a significant sales decline.
Following GM’s complete takeover in 2000, Saab ’s lineup became even more homologized, including a rebadged version of the Subaru Impreza – dubbed the Saab 9-2X – and the Chevrolet TrailBlazer-based 9-7X SUV. Both models were market flops and were discontinued after a few short years.
Not surprisingly, the mismanagement of Saab has cost GM a pretty penny over the years. According to Sweden’s di, GM has lost $5,100 on every Saab sale since taking over the brand in 2000. Factor in other losses and the Saab brand has cost GM about $6 billion over the last nine years. It remains to be seen if Saab’s new owners – Koenigsegg – will be able to turn the ailing brand around, but one thing is for sure, the Saab brand can’t be any worse off under fresh ownership.
