As you may recall, Saab was recently forced to file for bankruptcy, after General Motors nixed any potential deal with Saab’s various Chinese partners, fearing its hard-earned technology could fall into the wrong hands – which is to say, any hands other than SAIC’s, GM’s official Chinese partner. But that doesn’t necessarily preclude Turkish or Indian ownership.

That said, a recent report indicates that Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., India’s biggest SUV maker, is interested in buying at least parts of the bankrupt Swedish carmaker, Saab Automobile.

Mahindra is in the process of trying to set up meetings with the two court-appointed administrators who are overseeing Saab’s bankruptcy to possibly buy parts of the carmaker or the whole company.

Rumour has it that a Turkish company is also interested in investing in Saab. The Turkish government wants the country to have a car brand of its own, and is trying to help a manufacturer take over at least parts of Saab.

Hans Bergqvist and Anne-Marie Pouteaux, the attorneys handling the bankruptcy, didn’t immediately return messages seeking comment.

In any case, we’d wager that neither the Turkish concern nor Mahindra would make a full-out purchase of the brand. It seems more likely that Saab’s most desirable assets would be its manufacturing capabilities, tooling and in-house technology. Stay tuned for more as this story develops.

After several long and painful months of struggling to stay afloat, Saab has reached the end of the road and filed for bankruptcy. This has been confirmed by several Swedish newspapers, as well as the district court in Vänersborg, Sweden.

Saab chief executive Victor Muller, who handed in the bankruptcy application on Monday, described the latest General Motors decision as “the last nail in the coffin of this beautiful company”.

Saab’s last hope was to be taken over by Chinese company Youngman. This was initially a controversial option but as time passed, it became evident that it was the only option left.

Youngman already sent Saab almost $4.5 million last week and allowed it to closely avoid bankruptcy. It promised subsequent payments and things were beginning to look up for the first time in a long while.

Over the weekend Youngman told the ailing automaker that it couldn’t continue to fund it because ex-owner General Motors was relentlessly blocking any Chinese involvement in the company. This included everything from a loan to a complete takeover.

Some accuse General Motors of killing Saab, while others say that the company merely defended its own interests. Whatever the case may be, it left Saab in a bad situation: it no longer had a potential new owner, and it did not have the necessary funds to pay its debts and continue its operations. Saab has been in a state of suspended production since April when the company ran out of cash and the company’s creditors came knocking.

Saab’s Board of Directors met over the weekend and decided that it was in the best interest of the company, its employees and its creditors to file for bankruptcy. Three of the companies affected are Saab Automobile AB (Saab Automobile), Saab Automobile Tools AB and Saab Powertrain AB.

Swedish Automobile N.V. (Swan) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chinese automakers, Youngman and Pang Da for the sale and purchase of 100% of the shares of Saab for EUR 100 million (approximately RM 435 million).

So far only a MoU has been signed, with the final agreement between the parties still subject to a definitive share purchase agreement between Swedish Automobile, Pang Da and Youngman.

This will contain certain conditions including the approval of the relevant authorities, namely, the Chinese government and Swedish Automobile’s own shareholders.

The move means Mr. Guy Lofalk, the court-appointed administrator of Saab’s reorganization process, has withdrawn his application to exit the process, thus saving the automaker from having its bankruptcy protection removed.

The MoU is valid until 15th November 2011, provided Saab stays in reorganization.

This move represents the latest push by the Chinese to break into the global automotive market. In July of 2010, the Chinese government approved a deal that saw the sale of Volvo to Geely for the sum of $1.8 billion (approximately RM 5.53 billion).

Saab is also jumping onto the EV-bandwagon and is planning to introduce its first real foray into the EV world at this year’s paris Motor Show.

Called the ePower, the long-roof Swede is the prototype for a test fleet of 70 vehicles set to be launched in 2012. The company is shooting for a range of around 200km thanks to a 35.5-kWh lithium-ion battery pack, though the range figure number is somewhat flexible due to the fact that it will be largely dependent on driving habits. Power is supplied by a 184bhp electric motor mated to a single-speed transmission.

With all of that power, Saab says the ePower will be able to get to 100kmh in around 8.5s. That’s not exactly slow by anyone’s measure. Top speed is a more than capable 150kmh, too.

The company says that its battery tech should allow the cells to survive up to 10 years of regular charge and discharge cycles, and that the ePower can be fully charged in as little as six hours using a “domestic mains” supply.

The Dutch supercar manufacturer has indicated that it plans to almost double the number of Spyker dearlerships around the world from 35 to 60 by utilizing the Saab’s old dealer network.

If you’re wondering how dealerships that struggled to move $30,000 9-3 sedans are going to manage to talk buyers into the driver’s seat of a $215,000 C8 Aileron, you’re not alone. Odds are the Spykers will serve as halo cars for the rest of the Saab fleet, but there are other hurdles facing the company’s plans for expansion – production.

Spyker is a notoriously low-volume manufacturer – we’re talking somewhere in the mid-double-digits each year, or about one car per every proposed dealership. Is the company planning on borrowing some of Saab’s production might to get a few more models out the door annually? Hard telling. For now, the only real sharing going on between the two automakers is in tiny parts like windshield wiper motors.

As we reported before, it may seem like Spyker was one of the unlikely buyers of Saab but the thing for sure is that it is set to struggle with the real challenge which is to convert two loss-making companies into a profitable one.

Spyker Chief Executive Victor Muller also bought out his largest shareholder, Russian bank tycoon Victor Antonov, as part of the deal but the new Saab Spyker Automobiles NV faces huge challenges. The persistent losses, outdated designs, high labour costs, declining sales and, perhaps above all, little belief in the industry that it can pull off a turnaround.

“It seems like a gamble. They’ve got the new 9-5, the 9-4X coming out next and the new 9-3 should be coming out in 2012, which could be quite lucrative, but whether they can attract customers back to the brand and make it profitable again is the billion-dollar question,” IHS Global’s Ian Fletcher said.

Spyker, which only makes several dozen handmade supercars every year, is hoping to benefit from Saab’s technical resources and its distribution network, while CEO Muller has said he hopes the sports car maker will inject entrepreneurial spirit into the Saab brand. Saab, which has lost money over the past decade, was put up for sale more than a year ago. GM has suspended its plans to wind down Saab operations, pending a February closing.

At Spyker headquarters in the Dutch city of Zeewolde, there were high spirits at work on Wednesday. Hans van Rennes, Spyker’s vice president of marketing, said a Saab dealer sent the company a cake and one-time Saab suitor Koenigsegg called to offer its congratulations. Outside the offices, a Dutch television show organised a parade of old and new Saab cars.But happiness at Saab’s rescue aside, Spyker’s financing remains a question. As recently as July, the company did not have the money lined up for its 2010 production.

The new deal includes a 400 million euro loan to Saab from the European Investment Bank (EIB), with a Swedish government guarantee. European Union regulators said on Wednesday they would review the guarantee plans as early as possible.

Dutch luxury carmaker Spyker submitted an improved bid for Sweden’s Saab to General Motors Co yesterday, just ahead of a key deadline that could prompt closure of the brand. GM, which three weeks ago said it would shut down the 60-year-old automaker, did not indicate how it would treat Spyker’s bid or any other bids for Saab.

At least two other bids for Saab were submitted to GM yesterday, according to a report in Sweden.“GM continues to receive and evaluate proposals for Saab,” GM said in a statement. “We consider any discussions to be confidential, and we won’t discuss any details until a decision is reached.”

More than 3,000 workers in Sweden will lose their jobs if Saab cannot be saved.

On Wednesday, GM Chief Executive Ed Whitacre said he was “not confident” of reaching a deal to save Saab, citing difficulty by potential buyers in arranging financing for a purchase of the money-losing brand.

GM has said it is moving ahead with plans to wind down Saab operations first announced in mid-December but could stop that process if it finds a buyer for the brand under the right conditions.Swedish labour union newsletter Dagens Arbete said yesterday that Luxembourg-based investment firm Genii Capital had made a bid for Saab and has met Swedish officials to inform them of the plans.

Swedish daily Dagens Industri reported that two Swedish groups were submitting bids for Saab, and one was backed by Genii Capital. The report said the group would use the business plan drawn up by small Swedish luxury carmaker Koenigsegg, which pulled out of talks to buy Saab in November.

The other Swedish group, according to Dagens Industri, includes Hakan Samuelsson, a former Man AG chief executive. That bid calls for a smaller and split Saab and does not call for loans from the European Investment Bank said.Koenigsegg was said not to be involved in the new bids.

The notoriety of the Saab name is what would be valuable to any buyer, an analyst said.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Company owns about 23 per cent of Spyker shares, according to a January 2008 filing with Dutch market regulator AFM.

Convers Group, a Russian bank controlled by the Antonov family. Convers holds a 29 per cent stake in Spyker and Alexander Antonov’s 34-year-old son, Vladimir, is chairman of the carmaker’s board.

Spyker’s bid to buy Saab has faced sceptics from the start given that the Dutch company has never made a profit. Saab has also been consistently unprofitable in the 20 years it has been controlled by GM

As we all know , the Saab brand which is owned by GM has been on the chopping board for the good part of this whole year. It seems the financial fiasco of 2009 has been the final nail in the coffin for this Swedish manufacturer of aeroplanes and automotive masterpieces. The Saab brand has a love hate relationship with many car enthusiasts out there. From its quirky looks to its insane turbocharged engines, the Saab brand has made many instrumental innovations in the creation of the everyday cars we see on the road this days. The Saab division has attracted many suitors but GM seems to pretty much want to shut it down despite multiple offers from both Spyker and Koenigsegg as well Geely from China.

The Saab automobile operation was started as sub operation of an airplane company in the late 1940s. SAAB actually stands for Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget, or Swedish Aircraft Co. Despite having no experience designing cars, its talented aeronautical engineers decided to build a car their way . This was basically transformed into a lightweight, rigid, aerodynamic and ergonomic automobile. Being Swedish, they were also very practical and the cars were pretty well engineered and planned.

“Form follows function” has long been the mantra at Saab, along with safety and intelligent design. Saab’s early cars had lightweight, high-revving two-stroke engines coupled to a neutral chassis that allowed the cars to be flung around the rally circuits of Europe with great success.

Being front-wheel-drive, which was a  rarity in those early days, they were also perfectly suited to winter driving conditions and won themselves a cult following in the Balkan countries as well as in the northern states of the US. They looked just a little strange compared to your average car, and they were certainly configured differently, but it was these differences that made people appreciate them.

n the 1970s, Saab unveiled their Combi-Coupe body design which has become the single most identifiable Saab shape. This versatile hatchback gave Saabs a sleek, sporting profile, and the folding rear seats opened up a cavernous luggage area

Later that same decade, Saab pioneered turbocharging for the everyday car. Whilst a few manufacturers had experimented with turbos before this, Saab was one of the first to get the formula right and make it available in what was essentially a Swedish family car . This was the day the world saw the Saab 99 Turbo.

Turbocharged engines became a common feature of the Saab lineup and remain so today. The Saab 900 Turbo was sold from 1979 to 1993 and is still considered by enthusiasts to be the “Saabiest” Saab ever made. It combined a luxurious, well-appointed interior with cutting-edge turbo technology and the Combi Coupe’s trademark load capacity. It really was a car that you could take to Home Depot in the morning  and then give a good thrashing to on the racetrack in the afternoon.

The 1980s also saw the birth of the Saab Convertible, an icon conceived when Saab USA’s legendary chief, the late Robert J Sinclair, was forced by his bosses in Sweden to take a quantity of unpopular two-door Saab 900s to sell in the U.S. Bob agreed to take the vehicles so long as he could name his desired specification, which included power windows and other modern amenities of the time, and no roof.

Bob commissioned a prototype from the American Sunroof Co. (for a mere $30,000), and this vehicle was an immediate showstopper. When the vehicle was finally released for sale in 1986, dealers didn’t have books big enough to contain the orders they received. Such stories are common in history books about Saab. The little company that could. Saab enthusiasts refer to this as the Spirit of Saab.

The 1990s saw the beginning of the GM era for Saab. General Motors owned a 50 percent share of Saab through this decade, buying the remaining 50 percent share in 2000. Saab had some fantastic vehicles in this period, but GM never saw the value of what they had in Saab. They never really invested in the company to build on what was a cult following with enormous goodwill.

When GM announced in early 2009 that it planned to sell Saab, the enthusiast community was abuzz. Finally, it seemed Saab might get a chance to spread its wings once again.GM was reported to have 27 interested buyers for the company early in the year and despite detailed negotiations with several of them, the right deal has failed to materialize.

If there is no last-minute miracle in the next few days, Sweden will lose a large portion of its industrial base, many enthusiasts around the world will lose their favorite marque and the generic car company overlords with their everyday transportation appliances will have won another battle in the war of automotive mediocrity.

GM hasn’t lost hope that it will find a buyer for Saab following the breakdown of negotiations with Swedish sports car maker Koenigsegg. Swedish government officials said GM still appears to believe that a suitable buyer can be found for the premium automobile brand.

“I talked to GM last night and my impression is that they have not given up hope,” said Joran Hagglund, state secretary at Sweden’s Industry.

As of yet, the Swedish government has shown zero interest in bailing out the Saab brand, though it did issue credit guarantees to make a private sale more appealing to the buyer. Still, the actual sale of the Saab brand rests squarely on GM’s shoulders.

“This is in GM’s hands,” Swedish Enterprise Minister Maud Olofsson told reporters. “They must decide whether they can sell Saab and if so to whom.”

“For every day that passes the challenge gets bigger and bigger,” said Olofsson.

What do you think will happen to Saab? Will GM find a new buyer?