Published

Saab Aims to Resume Output in August

National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB intends to restart production of Saab vehicles in August at the brand's plant in Trollhattan, Sweden, Bloomberg News reports.
#hybrid

Share

National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB intends to restart production of Saab vehicles in August at the brand's plant in Trollhattan, Sweden, Bloomberg News reports.

The news service cites a letter from NEVS to Saab suppliers informing them it will begin by building diesel-powered 9-3 compact cars.

Saab stopped making vehicles in March 2011 and mothballed the Trollhattan factory when the company entered bankruptcy that December. NEVS, a Chinese-Japanese consortium, bought most of the carmaker's assets late last August.

The new owner originally planned to relaunch Saab in 2014 with an electric model based on the next-generation 9-3 platform. The cars are to be sold mainly in China. But the company said in November it was considering starting with a conventionally powered model, thus generating revenue to fund the EV program.

EV production will begin on schedule next year, according to the NEVS letter. It tells suppliers that annual output in Trollhattan will reach 120,000 vehicles by 2016. Bloomberg notes that NEVS's ambitious goal exceeds last year's total global EV output of 107,200 units.

RELATED CONTENT

  • On Military Trucks, Euro Car Sales, Mazda Drops and More

    Did you know Mack is making military dump trucks from commercial vehicles or that Ford tied with Daimler in Euro vehicle sales or the Mazda6 is soon to be a thing of the past or Alexa can be more readily integrated or about Honda’s new EV strategy? All that and more are found here.

  • Electric Trucks Emerging

    Rudolph Diesel—who, incidentally, died mysteriously while traveling by a post office steamer on the English Channel in 1913—must be rolling in his grave.

  • On Ford Maverick, Toyota Tundra Hybrid, and GM's Factory Footprint

    GM is transforming its approach to the auto market—and its factories. Ford builds a small truck for the urban market. Toyota builds a full-size pickup and uses a hybrid instead of a diesel. And Faurecia thinks that hydrogen is where the industry is going.

Gardner Business Media - Strategic Business Solutions