Obviously you have never actually used a Mac, or owned/driven a Saab in the past ten years.

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Wow, so much Chevrolet hate.

Saab is a part of GM, just like Chevrolet. And the next set of Saab vehicles will likely use all GM platforms, many of which will be shared with the Chevrolet Malibu, etc.

There is nothing crappy about most current GM vehicles.

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LOL! That earned you a friend hearty-clicky-thingy.

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From what I've read, Saab is actually looking outside GM for its next-gen platforms (if they split), and if they put the right engine/platform/styling combo together, they could quickly regain their former image of quirky but clever and well-built machines.

With low overhead, Swedish government support, and a specific business plan, this sounds like a good idea to me.

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The problem comes in finding next-gen platforms. Low overhead or not, developing a platform from scratch is costly and time consuming. At this point, I would doubt that Saab has the resources (manpower, capital, or otherwise) to do that. And when it comes down to it, so what? Granted, the 90s GM platforms weren't exactly spectacular, but the new round of platforms, including Theta, Zeta, Alpha, Sigma II, and Epsilon II are all great platforms. Combine that with the fact that no one is willing to buy Saab, I don't see any other car companies sharing with Saab.

If they do it right, Saab could come up with some excellent cars, as all of GM's platforms are extremely flexible and capable.

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Using a GM or independently developed platform with an Alfa, Jaguar or Peugeot engine and a great design and things might get interesting again.

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I would think that it has a lot to do with wanting to buy the company. Shy of that, I can't think of too many instances in which there has been one-way platform sharing. Most platform sharing occurs as a trade. For instance, Nissan is getting access to the Dodge Ram platform in exchange for giving Chrysler a good small car platform.

Saab, on the other hand, has nothing to offer up in that respect. It does not have massive production capacity. It does not have much in the way of capital. This is why no one wanted to buy Saab, and why I highly doubt that any other company would even consider sharing platforms with them, as it would not be beneficial to them.

Platform sharing in any form would does not make them unique in any way, whether they be GM platforms, Alfa platforms, Jaguar platforms, or Peugeot platforms.

So why would they not simply stick to what they have: access to all of GM's new platforms, all of which are very capable and very flexible?

I would agree that they would need to work a little harder to distinguish their cars, and I think that a little more autonomy would help that. But complete independence from GM at this point in time strikes me as a poor business case.

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Sometimes, economies of scale are what are expected in return. With the dissolution of the mega-huge carmakers, there will be more need for this in the near future. Did BMW get anything other than a cheap engine from Chrysler Brazil or Peugeot/Citroen? Nope.

I think just being able to say "we're not overpriced GM products anymore" will be a good start for Saab.

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I'm old school. To me a car loan is 48 or 60 months. I understand that about a third of all car loans are 72+ months now (at least before the credit crunch). Scary.

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Things like market research, business models, customer needs and spending big money on materials and design are all considered unnecessary, despite the fact that they're what's required to be The Apple of anything.

I'd rather just hear leaders say "We're going to get it right" and go from there.

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:Gearhead looks around at the sea of cubes surrounding him thinking "Which one is Mad Science?":

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It wasn't all that long ago that apple had nothing.

I say give them a chance. I don't think they will truly be independent from GM for a long time yet, but I would be surprised if they didn't at least get some greater level of autonomy when it comes to product development.

I like the sketches of the new 9-5 that we have been teased with a couple of times here on Jalopnik, and I can only hope that they translate well into production.

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Amazing how things change.

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Seriously!

I was one of those people that wouldn't touch the Apple table, and now, ten years later, I swear by my new iMac.

Let's just hope that Saab does the same.

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