Saab owners gather in wintery Detroit, urge GM to sell brand

Filed under: Etc., Saab

Sell Saab Rally in Detroit – Click above for high-res gallery

Popular wisdom would hold that about the only people willing to show up in sub-zero, slate-gray Detroit for a last-minute rally to advocate for Saab’s sale would be stereotypical brand diehards – grizzled old-timers with air-cooled two-strokes and elderly three-doors, not folks piloting General Motors-era models. Interestingly, those in attendance at today’s “Sell Saab/Save Saab” demonstration ranged broadly in age from their early twenties on through retirement age, and with the exception of a couple of 1980s 900 models, most of the Saabs were remarkably contemporary (although a good portion of those who showed up professed to owning numerous classic examples at home).

To be fair, we turned up to the meeting point in the shadow of GM’s Renaissance Center headquarters this afternoon not expecting a big turnout of either cars or press, as the event was organized just a couple of days earlier by Ryan Enge of SaabHistory.com – and the weather wasn’t exactly hospitable, either. As it turns out, we were pleasantly surprised to see a rather small but vibrant group of both. Over a couple of hours, we counted around 50 demonstrators in about 30 Saabs (full disclosure: one of which was AB’s own 2001 9-3 Viggen convertible), with devotees venturing in from as far away as Maine, Iowa and Wisconsin, along with plenty of print, radio and television media – both local and international – in attendance. As a demonstration for a brand, the atmosphere was more one of conviviality than consternation and bitterness, a gathering of first-time friends more than an acrimonious protest.

Make the jump for more of the story and check out our high-res gallery below.

Gallery: Sell Saab Rally in Detroit