Comments on: SaabUSA cancel European Delivery Program – “no future plans of re-establishing this program”

By: robert

robert — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 22:16:12 +0000

Here is an email I received from Jay Trice IDS administrator on 10/3/2008:

Hello Robert,

GM has the program on hold until the first of 2009. Although nothing has been decided on the direction of the program, I won’t have any clue until then.

I hope our program is ready when you are ready for your purchase. I checked my waiting list and have you near the top. I know you have been waiting a while for us and apologize for the lengthy wait.

Kind Regards,

Jaye Trice
IDS Administrator
Saab Automobile USA

By: Mike Becker

Mike Becker — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 03:50:46 +0000

I had plans on doing an EDP for my “Black Turbo” when I first learned of the car’s production. Unfortunately, the program was cancelled and I decided to buy my TurboX at a local dealer. The EDP was a great way to build loyal, lifelong customers. Hopefully the program will get re-established in the future, especially if Saab is sold to a new owner.

By: fred@dzlsabe.com

fred@dzlsabe.com — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 05:34:01 +0000

Sad…the only new Saab Ive owned is still happily driven most everyday because of EDP. Back in Feb03, I ordered(no test-drive possible till London) a $27K, 40+mpg, 90+mph 93 turbodiesel. The trip to Europe and Trollhatten in June was unforgetable and the car has been a joy to own. It coulda/shoulda been the gateway to thousands more. Tough to watch a great car, great(albeit obselete) engine, and buying experience be so much “water past the bridge”. Hopefully the stars will realign someday.

By: spazzz2002

spazzz2002 — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 22:20:45 +0000

I am happy to say that i participated in the EDP with my mother in 06. I think we were probably one of the last ones… It was a great experience.. Saab USA def has two lifetime customers!
I have a suggestion… I hate to see this program go but maybe it can be changed a little…
They could offer the same $2000 to cover some of the travel and instead of using the customers’ car, they could have a small fleet of cars for this program. It could be called the SAAB European Experience. They could only offer the program out of Trollhattan vs the other cities that were offered. Something is better than nothing in my mind… There is no doubt that this program creates a special bond with the car and the company.

By: SaabLance

SaabLance — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 21:34:40 +0000

Based on14 years in Saab sales at 3 dealerships in the NorthEast region all of which did 280+ new Saabs per year let me give you a brief typical synopsis of 99% of the European delivery inquiries:”Can you explain to me the European delivery program.I understand I can save thousands of dollars vs going through the conventional dealer network and by the way you have virtually an identical 9-3 (9-5 etc.) on your lot.My Reply “Okay,lets go over a few details: first off, I need a required $1,000.00 deposit at the time we place the order,I need 100% payment at least 30 days prior to delivery.You MUST take delivery in Europe,you need to purchase minimum of two weeks insurance coverage from a Euro broker,you need to purchase short term Euro registration plates.Your payment 30 days prior to delivery cannot be any form of auto financing because the lien required to be placed by the bank can’t occur until the car is registered in your home state and the car won’t arrive in the U.S. for 4-6 weeks after it is shipped from Europe.You also cannot lease the car for similar reasons and you’ll have to pay State tax and registration fees after it arrives.client’s response 98% of the time “uh….nevermind”. This is not to imply the program was poorly conceived,however almost all of the inquiries we received were just potential clients looking to backdoor the dealer system.Net result: 3 deliveries in 15 years,all of whom picked up the car at the beginning of anywhere from a two week to a full month stay in Europe .The last I.D.S.delivery I delivered after shipping back to the dealership had over 4,000 miles on it.This is the true intent of the Euro delivery program and is used so seldomly as to make it’s demise of little consequence.

By: 1985 Gripen

1985 Gripen — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 17:48:35 +0000

Unfortunately this is the kind of thing that has to be cut when a company’s bleeding money. Though a nice marketing and customer service plan, the European Delivery Program costs Saab money. In a time where advertising budgets have been cut to near zero (when was the last time you saw a Saab television commercial?) they need to spend their money wisely. I think cutting EDP and putting that money into advertising would have been a good use of what limited funds Saab is getting of late.

By: eggsngrits

eggsngrits — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:10:56 +0000

Bill: LOL!!

Instead of Y2K it’s Must eBay!

By: Bill H.

Bill H. — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:59:47 +0000

I suppose the cynic in me says this is in line with other moves, such as diluting the new Saab warranty.

But when there’s a real question as to whether GM can escape filing for bankruptcy, all bets are off. As for me, I’m still holding my breath as to whether the new 9-5 actually gets introduced on time, is delayed, or cancelled along with a bunch of other nascent GM projects. If it does, then it’s time to head for the hills along with all the spare parts we can gather up for our cars.

By: eggsngrits

eggsngrits — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:43:49 +0000

Well, JWV beat me to this, but I suspected as I read this post that the answer was from a low-level wonk that wasn’t completely in the know about the future of the program. Still, it is a tough one, particularly given the exchange rate at the moment.

GM is going throug some tough times. Let’s let them get back to us on the niceties like the EDP while they have bigger fish to fry.

By: John in Bismarck

John in Bismarck — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:24:31 +0000

I agree with what most of the others have said. Since Mr. Vester is reading these comments (and thank you for doing so), I’ll offer mine. My wife and I were seriously considering a once in a lifetime trip to Sweden to take delivery of a new 9-3 convertible in 2008. The suspension of the program led me to consider other options, and we bought a 2005 Porsche Boxster instead (which we love, by the way, but it only holds two people, which is the main reason we were leaning toward the 9-3). I was hoping to take advantage of European delivery for a replacement for our 2005 9-5 Aero in a few years. I am very disappointed that that may not be an option for us. Saab needs to keep its good customers, not send them to other brands.

John.