Saab and GM's mismanagement of global brands

[Jesda]

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a ... /311299980

CLIFFS: GM kept shuffling top management in and out of Saab, moving people to Opel/Vauxhall and other divisions rather than staying focused and building the brand consistently. You can see from what happened at Saab what eventually happened to Saturn and Pontiac.


While GM gets a lot of blame for diluting the brand, they also deserve a lot of credit for introducing Saab to modern efficiencies and processes and changing the way Saab does business. Without GM, I'm convinced Saab would have disappeared on its own by the late 90s.

[Encryptshun]

So I've heard very mixed reviews on the current-gen 9-3x. I love the way they look, their price point, their interior, and the fact that they are scrappy little AWD cars that still come in a 5MT. I have heard that they are woefully underpowered.

What's your take, Jesda?

[Jesda]

Never driven a 9-3x, but I like the way Saab's manuals feel. I've mostly driven 'classic' 900s like mine, but I did drive a turbo V6 2006 9-3 and fell in love with it.