Right now there are probably legions of long-time Saab fans and owners choking on the thought that Saab's Trollhattan plant in Sweden could build something other than Saabs.
General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz hammered that point home when he said there is nothing that says Saabs have to be made in Sweden.
Trollhattan is operating at just 59 percent of capacity, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. So something has got to give.
It shouldn't surprise anybody. After all, the 9-3 convertible is built in Graz, Austria, by Magna Steyr and in the past Saabs have been assembled in Finland.
In this era of global sourcing, automobiles are built where the manufacturer can get a cost advantage. And GM has slowly but surely made it clear that the traditional essence of Saab -- call it quirkiness or whatever -- isn't enough to sustain the Swedish brand.
It started when the 9-5 and 9-3 shared components to save money, which diluted the Saabness. But it wasn't enough. Saab needed more product variety.
So GM added the 9-2x sport hatchback based on a Subaru Impreza WRX, which is built in Japan, and a 9-7x SUV based on a GMC Envoy/Chevy TrailBlazer, which will be built in the United States. The 9-2x goes on sale in the United States this month and the 9-7x is scheduled to hit dealerships next February
Then GM announced that it is moving Saab's U.S. operations to the Renaissance Center in Detroit, which is corporate headquarters and home to its other U.S. marketing divisions.
These events and the pronouncement by Lutz, who is trying to reorganize GM Europe into a more rational, profitable operation, are bound to raise questions at Midsummer's Eve celebrations in Trollhatten, where Saab is headquartered.
Trollhatten is a company town largely dependent on the business of manufacturing Saabs, much as Wolfsburg, Germany, is a company town that depends on Volkswagen.
Adding production of another brand to the factory in Trollhattan might dilute the town's self-image, but it ought to be good news for the town fathers who care about full employment at the plant.
Does this mean there could come a day when there would be no Saab production in Sweden? It's hard to imagine, but maybe.
At least the Swedes will always have Volvo. Won't they?
