This is the end of Saab as we know it.
The Swedish carmaker which was founded in 1949 and wound down production in the early 2010s is leaving its home, with a handful of its last cars headed to auction in Sweden.
Purchased by Chinese-Japanese parent company National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) in 2012 but unable to make a meaningful comeback, there were still a handful of Saabs being built in its final months as a functioning brand, though some which didn’t sell at the time can now be purchased.
Swedish auction house Klaravik has announced it is running the sale of seven Saab 9-3s from May 21 to 30, with all of the vehicles currently located at the Trollhättan factory they called home.
“Over 75 years after the first Saab rolled out of Trollhättan, the last remaining cars are now leaving the iconic factory for good. The upcoming Klaravik auction marks the end of an era – and a tribute to Sweden’s automotive heritage.”
Of the seven 9-3s up for grabs, four are pre-production cars built in 2014, three are prototypes made in 2019. Included in the seven cars are also a range-extender electric vehicle, an EV with four in-wheel electric motors, as well as a NEVS-badged 9-3 EV.
Sadly the NEVS Emily GT, a preview of what the company was working on before it went into self-imposed hibernation in 2023, isn’t included in the auction.
Importantly, the Saab Group – which is the car brand’s former owner – withdrew the rights for NEVS to use the Saab name in 2014, while itself continuing to use the name on its defence and aerospace ventures.
US car giant General Motors had owned Saab since 2000, GM’s bankruptcy amid the Global Financial Crisis in 2009 sparked years of uncertainty for the company as it passed through multiple owners – and yet another bankruptcy in December 2011.
NEVS took control of Saab in June 2012, restarting production of the 9-3 Aero in December 2013, but sales failed to take off.
The former Saab factory in Trollhättan was used to develop electric and autonomous cars in the following years, though activity was slowly wound down to a stop.
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