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I think Saab's expanded plant in Sweden is for their hoped for increased sales of the 9-5,the upcoming NG 9-3, and other furtre car models. Sure, I'd like to see every Saab built in Sweden too. And I wish Saab had put their money into areas other than the SUV market. But it's a done deal and the SUV is coming. I guess it makes economic sense to assemble the vehicle along side the other two vehicles, the Pontiac Aztek and Buick Rendevous, which share the same basic platform. Almost every car company now manufacturers vehicles in different countries, even Mercedes and BMW.
A quality can be produced anywhere, so long as the manufacturer takes the steps to make sure it happens. The country of origin doesn't necessarily make a difference. A brand new plant, with newly hired workers, is probably going to have some "start-up" problems. VW certainly had it's share when they began their Mexico operations. But they seem to have sorted things out now. I love Saabs but, lets face it, over the years, Saab itself has produced plenty of vehicles with less than stellar quality and reliability right at their own home base. They are getting better, but they are not quite at the top level quality-wise, not yet.
Yeah, the Saab SUV is supposed to be built in Mexico, based upon the Buick Rendevous platform, which is itself a longer version of the Pontiac Azrek platform. I haven't seen any definitive pictures of what it will look like as yet, but I believe Saab is getting much more than just a grill swap and a generic GM powertrain. I believe it is supposed to use a Saab engine, as well as Saab's own interior and exterior styling. Also, I believe the 4-wheel drive system was developed for GM by the Austrian firm, Styer Daimler Puch, a very respected company with lots of all wheel drive experience. I think this firm is also going to supply the all wheel drive system for Saab's upcoming 9-5 AWD Wagon. So, I wouldn't assume that the Saab SUV will be a piece of junk.
I saw the Buick Rendevous at the auto show last weekend and, while I didn't particularly care for it, it was far nicer looking, and completely different looking, than the Pontiac Aztek, which uses a similar, but shorter, platform. So, we'll just have to wait and see what Saab can do with their version.
, Thu, 15 Feb 2001 20:26:40
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