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This is an interesting one.

The agreement that Hirsch has with Saab is that any market that wants to promote Hirsch has to ensure that Hirsch products in the Saab range has to get the products tested to make sure that they meet safety standards, etc. Consequently, Hirsch products aren’t available in every market where Saabs are sold. They’re only available in markets where the Saab operation in that country has sought the appropriate certifications to sell them.

One of the markets where they’re not sold at the moment is the US market. I’ve argued long and hard for Hirsch to be promoted there as I think it’s a market that could really embrace the boosted image that Hirsch provides.

It seems there’s a strong likelihood that that might happen now.

One of our number here at TS recently made enquiries with Hirsch about product availability and was advised by return email as follows:

Please check our website regularly the following months. We might announce details about the availability of our products in the U.S.

That would indicate to me that the products are approved and ready to go. The “might” in that sentence could have something to do with the uncertainty around Saab’s ownership. It’s Saab USA that Hirsch have to deal with now to get the approvals necessary to sell there, but if Saab is sold and SaabUSA are folded then those arrangements might all be moot.

I received a similar note relating to Hirsch availability in Australia around the middle of last year, so it looks like the Hirsch guys have been actively trying to get more access. Congratulations to them on the decision and I hope it’s rewarded soon. Hirsch make some great stuff and it’d be a positive for all prospective Saab owners if their gear was more widely available.

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* For the people new to this site: Hirsch are Saab’s official tuning company and are based in St Gallen, Switzerland. Their tuning products and Saab accessories are all covered by Saab’s factory warranty.

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