UPDATE: Some facts have been checked and corrected.

Well, at least I know what the problem is with the convertible. And it has a lot to do with this picture of my (former) jumper cables.

Read on for the explaination.

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Wow, it’s been quite a while since I’ve posted here, and it’s been strictly due to the workload forced upon many of us with the weird and wooly business climate that exists at the moment.

On Saab (not) in the news

I’ve not heard much about Saab in the mainsteam news here in the US, period. Of course, the GM news always includes Saab as an aside, and there was that splash about the Swedish government backing Saab and Volvo to keep them viable. Other than that, Saab is under the radar, which I feel is a good thing in the long run. Saab will not be seen with the same taint that the big three (GM, Ford and Chrysler) will wear once things begin to roll again. Just as it was back in the 1980′s when the Chrysler Corporation was bailed out by the feds, the bail-out cars will be austere almost to a fault — the burden of massive debt does that to a company. Saab, being viewed in a somewhat different category, will hopefully side step that issue to remain somewhat on track as a premium brand.

On Saab as the Apple of Car Brands

I’m not sure that I want to wear the “Apple of car brands” badge, either. Apple certainly makes exquisite hardware that seems so “right”. However, they are pricey and proprietary. Apple tends to be very protective of their proprietary nature, almost to the point of arrogance. I hope that Saab doesn’t go there. The Saab legacy is as good design accessible to the everyman. I hope that isn’t lost in the translation.

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Happy New Year, all. It’s been a while. It’s always difficult to find time around the holidays, it seems. Click through through to read my comments…

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Well, it’s at least a month late, but never late than never, right? For some time I’ve had the notion to create a mug. This is a design that we would all chuckle at, something that is authentic, something that is truly Saab.

It’s finally online at my Carepress shop, the proceeds of which will go to this site just as anything else that Swade or I do. Click through to find out what I’ve come up with!

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All: It’s been sometime since I’ve posted, it being the year-end and all. This press release on the 2009 Saab 9-5 Griffin Edition dropped into my in box this morning and I thought that I’d pass it along to you gentle readers.

The 9-5 Griffin Edition seems to be more about small cosmetic appointments and revised interior palette rather than anything radical. The real news here seems to be that a) 2009 is certainly the last year of the current 9-5, and b) Steve Shannon is referred to as “Executive Director, product and marketing, Saab USA”.

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A quick gathering of material that I’m posting as I’m in the Columbus, Ohio airport. Inside: a minor 9-3 accolade, wisdom and balance on the state of the car business from a Forbes editorial and a cartoonist that speaks the truth with pictures.

It’s a dreary day in much of the Eastern United States today, and I’m seemingly in the middle of that gloom here in Columbus. At least it stopped snowing around 9 AM. I’m ready to go home.

First up, the 9-3 XWD Wagon has been named one of the 5 best wagons by Nadaguides.com. You may recall that the NADA is the National Automotive Dealers Association here in the United States. They publish quarterly car values that are considered “the” blue book for many — they are preferred over Kelley in most cases.

“When they say engineered from jets, they mean it,” said Don Christy, president and CEO of NADAguides.com. “The 2009 Saab 9-3 Aero SportCombi is a great looking wagon with a laundry list of standard equipment. In this category, this is something special.”

This is according to a press release from SaabUSA. I think that the actual review is a mixed bag, but a top 5 is a top 5.

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From Forbes writer Jerry Flint comes this little editorial about the promises that the Big 2-and-a-half automakers have to make in order to get government loans and bailout treatments. I think that his thoughts are pretty realistic. I primarily agree with him about the government’s heavy-handed assumption that exotic or semi-exotic fuel efficient technologies are a must for the Big Two-and-a-half to survive. He’s right when he says:

Electric cars and plug-ins are indeed on the way, but it is a long, expensive road to get there, and to be truthful, they just might lead to nowhere. Hybrid cars already are here, but only one hybrid, the Toyota (nyse: TM – news – people ) Prius, is a real success. Several hybrid models, including Honda’s (nyse: HMC – news – people ) first Accord hybrid, were or are commercial failures.

Yes, the automotive world is changing, but for the near future–and that means the next 10 to 20 years at the very least–the internal combustion engine is still going to dominate the automobile world. It is simply unrealistic to think exotic technologies are going to take over that quickly.

Good stuff.

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Finally, from Jeff Darcy, the political cartoonist (read satirist) at Andy Rupert’s hometown paper, the Cleveland Plain Dealer comes this great cartoon.

A very quick snippet to put before you an editorial in the Detroit Free Press that agrees with me — Saab isn’t going to leave the GM nest anytime soon.

Mr. Mark Phelan of the Detroit Free Press

No, not Chrysler: This time we’re talking about Saab and Volvo. It’s possible the register will ring up “no sale” when General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. are done evaluating their Swedish brands, and that might be best for all concerned.

If nobody buys, it won’t be because Saab and Volvo are irretrievable brands, but because there’s no money out there and every automaker on Earth has its hands full as the global economy totters.

He puts his confidence in the lack of financing available for a deal like this, but I’m more apt to agree with his secondary points:

Ford has certainly been well served by Volvo. The brand has made money over the years, though not consistently enough.

Saab has never made a dime for GM, but it has contributed to the automaker. It’s been a test bed for alternative-fuel technology with ethanol-burning cars that account for a huge chunk of its sales in Sweden.

Both brands — if run properly — also attract customers who wouldn’t enter a Ford, Lincoln, Chevrolet or Cadillac dealership. They have loyal owners around the world and appeal to a well-educated, affluent demographic. While GM and Ford will entertain whatever offers come over the transom, they continue to work on some intriguing upcoming models for Volvo and Saab.

“If run properly”. Sounds as if he’s been reading TS!!

I agree with Mr. Phelan. Now let’s see the 9-5!

An interesting sidebar to the GM/Ford/Chrysler bailout talks: The junior Senator from my state, Bob Corker, is a member of the banking committee that is questioning and negotiating with the CEOs of the Big Three and the President of the United Auto Workers union. Mr. Corker is, as we may say around here, “bringin’ the wood“.

Before I quote Mr. Corker, let me say that he is somewhat unique among the Senators sitting at the table in that he is a self-made millionare, having run his own construction and real-estate development companies in his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee prior to becoming mayor of that city of about 200,000 (450,000 metro area). That is, he’s got some real experience as a corporate CEO. It must also be said that he has a reputation of being something of a bull in a china shop when it comes to politics.

His stance is pretty obvious from this single quote aimed at Bob Nardelli, CEO of Chrysler, from the Tennessean, my hometown fish wrapper:

“The fact is basically what your plan is about is that you want to hang around long enough so that you can date somebody and hopefully get married soon before you run out of money,”

Ouch! Of course, given that Chrysler is owned by private equity, Senator Corker is correct. The aim of private equity is always to buy low, keep the assets a brief period, then sell at a profit.

On GM, Mr. Corker has some other choice comments:

GM, he said, should offer its bondholders 30 cents on the dollar, which he said is above what the company’s debt is now selling for. The UAW should allow the company to reduce its scheduled $21 billion January payment to a fund that provides retiree health coverage, he said. And the union should eliminate a program under which the company pays supplemental unemployment benefits to fill the gap between state benefits and the worker’s usual salary.

Corker said he would not support any legislation without these provisions.

There are two items in that quote that should shock all of us. First, that the UAW is still insisting upon a $21 Billion payment from GM in January!! They’ve agreed to reduce the 2010 payment, but not the 2009. Doesn’t that seem to be a little counter to the message that has been transmitted by them to date? Second, that GM bonds have sunk well below 30 cents on the dollar. Not that it’s suprising given the circumstances, but that it’s shocking that a company like GM which is rife with assets could be seen as that worthless. It’s really an eye-opener.

The Big Three CEO’s will try to make Mr. Corker out to be an enemy with hidden motives given that our state has the Nissan USA HQ, two Nissan plants, a VW plant under construction and numerous tier one suppliers to the Toyota plant in Kentucky, the Nissan plant in Mississippi and the Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama. That is, they would consider him in favor of transplant success. However, I believe that he would consider the loss of the GM Spring Hill, Tennessee plant and the loss of the Visteon (ex-Ford) auto glass plant in Nashville as failures, and the Tennessee suppliers to the Ford plant in Louisville, Kentucky (full-sized cars) and the GM plant in Doraville, Georgia would certainly suffer, too.