(Wed 25 Nov 09)

The proposed sale of Saab to Swedish supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg - which seemed slightly odd when it was announced in the summer - has fallen through.

In June, Koenigsegg and Saab owner General Motors signed a memorandum of understanding on the subject, and the talk then was that Saab would change hands in the third quarter of this year.

But we're now in the fourth quarter. The sale hasn't taken place, and it's not going to, at Koenigsegg's discretion. "We're obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase," says GM President and CEO, Fritz Henderson.  "Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB. Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week."

Saab is now facing two possible, but very different, futures. It has several new products which are in the final stages of development and could soon start replacing the current and rather out-of-date line-up. But this almost certainly won't happen if a buyer can't be found.

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