Nobody Interested in Buying Saab, Says GM

The struggling Swedish automaker Saab gains no interest from larger corporations in the automotive industry, its parent company General Motors today said, confirming rumors that it plans to sell the Swedish brand. GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz told Autonews that Saab was put under strategic review last month, which means the American carmaker was analyzing its options regarding the European company. However, GM hasn't officially confirmed the decision to sell Saab but, according to the aforementioned source, the world's largest automaker tried to find a buyer since last year.

Selling Saab is just a part of the company's restructuring plan sent to the United States officials in December as well as the reorganization of the Pontiac lineup. General Motors also promised to closely analyze its options with Saturn, a separate GM brand which was close to shut down operations last month.

General Motors continues to deny reports and says it will make an official statement as soon as it takes a decision. "We are not commenting on the details of the strategic review. As soon as we have some details to report, we will,” Joanne Krell, a spokeswoman for GM's Hummer-Saab-Cadillac sales channel, told Autonews.

Saab hasn't brought too many sales since 1989 when the American company acquired a half of the Swedish carmaker. General Motors took full control of Saab in 1999. Last year, Saab reported sales of 21,368 units in the United States, down 34.7 percent from the previous year and much behind the 1986 figures when they delivered 48,181 vehicles.

The Swedish government last month agreed to provide a 25 billion kronor ($3.19 billion) loan to local struggling carmakers Volvo and Saab, but GM's division has not applied for financing yet. Ford also announced plans to sell Volvo in December.