Category Archives: Letters to GM

When this blog will end – or – please be honest and sell Saab if you’re not going to build the 9-X

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Robert Farago will most likely continue his GM Deathwatch right up until he’s on his own deathbed. One thing I’ve learned about people who either are, or who believe they are, in high places is that they rarely admit that they were wrong. It’d make them look somewhat silly and in an industry like the car industry – where your work is out there for all your peers to see – you don’t want to look silly.

From what I’ve heard, the same sentiments go a long way in determining who gets appointed where. You can do two things to make yourself unemployable in the motor industry – 1) you can be totally, irretrievably incompetent at what you do, or 2) you can rock the boat. Stay within those boundaries, stick to the company line as dictated by the board, and everything should be fine.

That’s probably why Peter Augustsson is no longer at Saab. I’ve got no first hand knowledge, but from what I hear, Jan-Ake Jonsson’s predecessor wasn’t too fond of GM’s ownership of, or attitude towards Saab. That’s why he was happy to see their money spent on design elements of the Saab 9-3 that made it almost impossible to build anywhere but in Trollhattan. It wasn’t a great career move, but one man’s vehicle design terrorist is another man’s vehicle identity freedom fighter, right?

I’ve been seething over this post for a little while now, scared to write it because it’ll quite likely alienate a significant portion of the readership here. I guess it’s time to look into the eye of the storm, though.

Stephen King once wrote that occasionally you have to “kill your babies”. He was speaking metaphorically, of course, about doing some of the literary things that scare you (in his instance, he was referring to a writer preserving a manuscript that he/she should really get rid of, because despite the fact that he/she loves it, it ain’t going anywhere).

Knives out….

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Why SaabUSA should get Hirsch on the phone….now

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I’ve been a Hirsch advocate for some time, ever since I took Jeff B’s Hirsched 9-5 for a drive back in Melbourne. It was a life-changing experience. The product is exceptionally good and I’d happily stand Jeff’s Hirsch against any Euro sedan and claim happiness, contentment and blistering acceleration. That car would be perfect for me.

Unlike my usual Hirsch-SaabUSA rants, however, today I’m not trying to get them to think about bringing the full catalog to the US market.

There’s several acknowledged areas in Saab’s current range that have room for improvement. They function OK and people are satisfied with them in general terms, but they could be improved. Some of these are quite complex, like the steering and shifter feel. These things take time, expertise and a huge investment to upgrade on a range-wide basis and the case for the investment has to be proven. I’ll leave that for another time.

Earlier today I published a number of photos illustrating some new Hirsch modified vehicles (9-3 and 9-5) from a dealership in Switzerland and those images got me thinking. There’s one area where the need to improve is acknowledged and a simple solution involving no investment, design or engineering costs is available right now…..

The interior of the Saab 9-3.

I still love the design of the 9-3 interior, despite them getting rid of that beautiful button dash (scroll down to the bottom). The new dash is simpler and easier to use, though not as sophisticated to my eye. Regardless of what I think, it’s a great design and right in line with saab’s ergonomic approach to design.

Most buyers will remain happy with it, but many who see it and use it comment on the materials. The Saab 9-3 dash does feature a lot of hard black plastics, which are also present elsewhere in the interior.

Hirsch have interior kits available in Europe right now that could address this issue. And what’s more, those interior kits would address it in a way that would put Saab interiors in a very competitive place relative to the competition.

Hirsch’s interior leather kit is made of full grade premium leather that’s embossed with a carbon fibre structure. They call it carbon leather and it looks fantastic. It’s totally unique, retains the ‘darkroom’ philosophy and would create a much more ambient experience for occupants. Further to that, it’d do away with the silver strip around the dash that aroud 50% of drivers complain about (not that I’ve ever found it a distraction, myself).

Here’s the carbon leather dash installed in a 9-3 Convertible. Click to enlarge.

Hirsch

As you can see, the difference is subtle, but much more elegant and premium in feel. I can’t imagine a 2007-onwards Saab owner who’s currently lukewarm about his dash materials not being impressed if they had this instead.

Add to that the other carbon leather accents that are available for door handles, handbrake and smartslot and you’ve given the 9-3 interior a subtle yet substantial makeover that justifies the premium tag (memo to Hirsch – please start work on indicator stalks!).

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Late last year I asked Steve Shannon about the possibility of bringing Hirsch to the US in a phone interview that covered various subjects. Steve indicated that right now they don’t see that happening, though he admitted that it had been some time since someone had looked at the business case for it.

I’m not aiming this at Steve, he’s just the guy in the chair at SaabUSA right now …. but someone needs to look at this and look at it properly. When I asked Steve about this he spoke about doing the sums using the number of cold air induction kits they’d be likely to sell etc, and it sounded like they were some sort of boy-racer tuning company with high-volume low-value products.

That’s not Hirsch.

And I’m sorry to say it, but it reflects on how little knowledge SaabUSA had (or have) about what Hirsch do. To be fair, Steve was still fairly new to Saab at that time and I imagine his tuning experience would be relatively focused on the US market and it’s suppliers. Regardless, there’s definitely a case to be made for Hirsch in the US.

This issue of Saab interiors is one area that could really be improved in Saab’s largest market by establishing the Hirsch relationship.

They’re not cheap, though, and if they were to be offered as standard (in an Aero, perhaps) then there’d have to be a buyer’s premium. Lifting prices is not an easy decision to make, but the brand perception would be lifted well and truly by the inclusion of this interior treatment, and I can’t imagine it would be a backwards step. The interior unit cost would likely be reduced by the added volume, anyway, so the hit wouldn’t need to be so large.

I just don’t see a downside here and the only barrier to it happening is a little bit of paperwork to establish the relationship. The component has already been designed and fitted to cars elsewhere. It won’t ever cause a mechanical issue that you’ll need to cover by warranty and it dramatically improves the cockpit of the vehicle.

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I’ve based this story around the US, but it could apply just as easily to Saab in any other country as well.

In fact, Saab could make things easier on everyone by making this a global product and taking each country’s relationship with Hirsch out of the equation.

Rack it up

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I haven’t penned a letter to GM in a while……

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I’d just like to post a quick apology to the people at Reflective, who have produced the range of eco-friendly clothing shown by Saab in New York yesterday.

I’m quite sure your stuff is cut from the finest cloth, that squirrels love you and butterflies gather at your office doors to thank you every morning.

To Saab, on the other hand, I’d like to ask what the heck is going on?

There’s probably four auto shows that are considered the big ones in the US – Detroit, LA, Chicago and New York. I might be wrong on Chicago, but it’s a big town. Anyway, from what I can tell New York is regarded as the second biggest show on the US calendar.

Just a few weeks ago, we had what I think will prove to be the second biggest launch Saab will make this year: the 9-X BioPower Hybrid. It won the best concept car award at the Geneva Motor Show – one of the top 4 shows in the world – and yet all the press release material on Saab’s show night prior to media day is about this:

Saab reflective

I love my Saab gear just as much as the next guy. I’ve got a number of Expressions items and a black retro polo is on my Christmas list.

But what you’re all looking at in that photo is more than US$1,500 worth of stuff that pretty much no-one is going to buy (unless they’re quite cashed up) and one BIG distraction from what Saab needs to be focusing on at the moment – the product.

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More on Canadian sales

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Putting a finer point on things…..

Saab Canada’s pricing issues and the subsequent 40+ percentage drop in sales is all-the-more glaring when you read this:

February was a record month for sales at new car dealerships in Canada, according to figures released Monday.

Total sales of cars and light trucks came to 110,951 last month — a 14.3 per cent increase from the same month in 2007 and greater than in any other February, DesRosiers Automotive Consultants said…..

….All of the big car companies saw their sales jump year-over-year, with the biggest increases reserved for the import nameplates.

I can think of an import nameplate I’d like to see included in that commentary…..

Saab Canada contend that they have their pricing set to the market and to their competitors. Many of you, and I, would beg to differ. There’s been numerous comparisons offered in comments to previous posts, especially with regards to the Turbo X.

Where this whole issue started was the matter of price parity with the United States. Given that the dollar has now stabilised at a level similar to the US dollar, many Canadians are looking very enviously at showrooms south of the border.

The clued in companies have responded with adjustments to vehicle pricing….

Some Japanese brands scored even bigger gains. Toyota’s Canadian sales jumped 28.1 per cent last month. Toyota was among several automakers that reduced the sticker prices on many of its models in February.

Honda Canada’s sales in February set a record — soaring 53.2 per cent.

“Serious price cuts at the MSRP level last fall and into this winter together with aggressive incentives together with some great products and you have a blow-the-doors-out February across most [automakers],”

Saab Canada say that most of the carmakers who have reduced their prices have also reduced equipment levels. Maybe so. But what the customer sees is a reduced price and a more affordable car. And regardless, I’d counter that argument with a comparison of US and Canadian spec Saabs, which are almost identical and therefore don’t justify the current price gap (analysis underway).

As ctm noted in comments, during February Saab Canada managed to sell just two cars a day in a Western country of around 30 million people.

The companies that have reduced their prices have been rewarded. Why can’t Saab Canada do the same?

What Saab can learn from BMW

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If there’s one voice in the automotive industry that I consistently listen to and enjoy, it’s Pete De Lorenzo from Autoextremist.com. Thankfully, just in the last week or so, he’s dipped his toe into 21st century technology and implemented an RSS feed so it’s easier to follow his writing.

For the uninitiated, PMD is a Detroit born and bred auto columnist whose Dad was a former suit at GM. There’s very few people in high places there that PMD doesn’t know and he has an opinion on everyone.

Here’s an example from today’s Rant page:

….you gotta hand it to BMW. I swear these guys don’t understand the word “restraint” in the English language. These guys are inventing niches within niches, and in their obsessive quest to become all things to all people, I believe they get lost in their own talking-to-themselves brilliance to the point that they can’t even see the Black Forest for the trees. Add to that their annoyingly unhealthy habit of believing half the shit that Chief Designer Chris Bangle shoves their way, which just compounds matters, and you have a recipe for a truly ugly little bundt cake. Once again, some of my esteemed colleagues (cough, hack) in the media just couldn’t wait to gush over Bangle’s latest atrocity, the BMW X6, but believe me, it will not “redefine the category” or “set the standard for crossovers for years to come” or any other such nonsense. On the contrary, as a matter of fact. The X6 is nothing more than a German-accented Pontiac Aztek, a vehicle for Bangle’s self- aggrandizement, a rolling monument to one man’s mediocrity and an unmitigated P.O.S. that is “beyond category” tedious. Trust me on this one, the only inspiration other designers will take away from the X6 is the inspiration to turn their heads in horror and then walk – make that run – away.

Apologies to Ted for including the Aztek reference….. :-)

Apart from confiming my own thoughts on the BMW X6 and being one heck of a piece of writing, there’s a lesson in this for GM and for Saab in particular.

BMW have built a following based on a certain formula. Believing that they need to dominate the world they’re trying to expand vehicular boundaries, creating niches within niches as PMD refers to.

And the automotive press in general will let it happen, quite possibly because BMW run great press events in exotic locations where they give away jackets etc to attendees. I kid you not. I saw so many BMW jackets in Detroit I was tempted to go looking for them at Target. The press love this stuff and they don’t want to miss it. They also like driving BMW’s genuinely good machinery too, I guess.

Basically, BMW are surrounded by a bunch of yes-men in the press and they believe that gives them carte blanche to do as they please.

Saab have no plans to dominate the world. Heck, I think there’s a number of people in Sweden and elsewhere who will be happy with mere survival in the next 5 to 10 years.

But the lesson above is to know what you do, refine it and do it well.

Saab do turbocharging. They do well appointed cars that give a great mix of responsible performance, comfort, utility, safety and increasingly, environmental responsibility. They do distinct Scandinavian design. They should always do function over form.

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One of the sad things for me is that Saab is rarely in the spotlight long enough to come up on PMD’s radar. Up to now, though, that may well be a good thing.

The 9-4x did pop up briefly last week, but more for the mention of the 4.5 minute juggling act (literally, they had a juggler) that preceeded its introduction. That the 9-4x was mentioned as a relieving break from the juggling act was, I suppose, a positive reflection.

The message in the end is for GM to let Saab do what they do best. Do it pure. Build it and they will come. All that sort of thing.

Can’t wait for Geneva……

About XWD and the eLSD

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There’s been some conjecture about eLSD availability and XWD in comments, mostly owing to some vague pricing information that’s been floating around on the internets.

So here’s my take on it, based on initial releases and information from Saab. Following this, I’ll shoot off an email to Saab Sweden and USA and see if we can get some clarification once and for all.

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Saab XWD

The new XWD system will be initially available via the Saab Turbo X. This is a special launch model for the XWD system and will feature the full XWD system, including the eLSD, which is the device that splits the torque from left to right at the rear wheels.

After the Turbo X, the XWD system should be available on the V6 9-3 Aero. In normal 2WD guise, the 9-3 Aero will put out 255hp. An XWD model will have an output of 280hp, just like the Turbo X. Initial information from Saab indicated that the eLSD would be an option on the V6 9-3 Aero, not standard equipment as it will be on the Turbo X.

Other models

Word to me is that the XWD system will only be available on the Aero V6 model at first.

After that, it is expected to trickle down to other models in the 9-3 range, most notably the 2.0T. I haven’t heard of any other concrete plans for it to be used with other engine setups, but Saab Sweden did mention that they would look at it for the TTiD in Europe. Not definite, but they’re looking at whether there’d be a market for the diesel/XWD combination.

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As mentioned, I’ll shoot off an email to both SaabUSA and Saab Sweden. Somehow I imagine the USA guys might be busy right now, however.

GM Snippets

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In the good news section of these GM Snippets lies the story about GM canceling a previously arranged line of credit in the amount of 4.1 Billion dollars.

GM put the line of credit in place back in 07 when things were looking a bit gloomy with UAW negotions and the possibility of a strike looming. Despite the current US economic situation, they’re obviously feeling more comfortable with their cashflow and have put the credit line to rest.

As Autoblog mention, any time you feel you don’t need access to an extra 4 billion has got to be a good time.

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And in the not-so-good news section is yet another story that makes one feel, through comparative analysis, that GM aren’t giving Saab what they need. Especially in marketing and promotion.

I’m occasionally downcast when it comes to SaabUSA’s handling of Saab marketing (ok, that’s a candidate for understatement of the year…) but am also fully cognisant of the fact that they’re given a limited bucket of money to play with and what I tend to gripe about here would be conidered the Utopian alternative.

But…..

I’ve mentioned here recently that Turbocharging is the new black in the automotive industry and companies are looking to turbos to give them some efficiency and power upgrades without costing the consumer any more at the bowser.

Saab should have a competitive advantage here as they’ve been doing it for 30 years, but they don’t because no-one knows about it.

Now Ford are all over the news services today with the following:

Ford is using the 2008 Detroit Auto Show to kick off the transition of a significant portion of their engine lineup to what they are calling EcoBoost technology. EcoBoost consists of smaller displacement engines with direct fuel injection and turbocharging (GDTI) to provide a fuel economy boost without any loss of performance….. Thanks to the combination of small low-inertia turbos, the direct injection and variable valve timing, the new engines should have no lag and a much fatter, flatter torque curve.

Sound like anyone you know? Even the name Ecoboost is pretty familiar, huh?

Saab are yet to get a direct injection engine and now their turbocharging expertise is not going to be a highlight item, but merely a feature that’s available quite commonly throughout the automotive world.

GM have publicly stated in the past the Saab are their global premium brand. Wouldn’t it be fitting for an already existing global premium brand to have access to things like direct injection and proper development and marketing?

Yes, I’m going back to Cadillac with this. Once again, I feel compelled to say that the tens or even hundreds of millions of that GM has spent trying to develop Cadillacs for Europe as well as a supporting infrastructure for that brand, with nothing but abject failure to show for it, would have been much better being spent at Saab.

I heard from one Saab person in the last week, saying that people inside GM do love the brand and want to work for it, at least in the field that he’s working in.

Unfortunately he’s not in management or finance.

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I just want this storied brand to be given the right chance and the proper resources to reach its potential.

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My thanks to 1985Gripen for the links and thoughts that shaped this post.

My 0.02c on the 2007 US sales data

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The December sales numbers are in, as are full year numbers for 2007, and it isn’t a pretty picture at SaabUSA.

2007 saw an 11% fall from 2006. There were 32,711 vehicles sold in 2007, down from 36,349 last year and way down from the 38,343 sold in 2005. That year will always have an asterisk beside it due to the Employee Pricing for Everyone sales, but there’s no denying that losing around 12% year on year for successive years is a bad thing.

This ain’t an easy piece to write as I’ve got to fly into Detroit next week and break bread with SaabUSA’s people. But the numbers don’t lie…..

Someone’s dropped the football.

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