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Saab are set for a bumpy ride. No I’m not talking about suspension I’m talking about the proposed bid by Chinese manufacturer Hawtai to buy a 30% stake in its current owner Spyker for £134 million. The cash would have allowed the manufacturer to re-start production after a one month shutdown but the Hawtai shareholders refused to back the bid and approve it. Boss of Spyker, Victor Muller, has reportedly continued discussions with other Chinese companies after flying out to China but after cutting off discussions following the Hawtai bid he looks to be struggling putting the future of Saab in doubt.

Any deal by a Chinese company will need to be approved by the Chinese Government. I find this all very sad as I am a supporter of Saab. I hope they manage to pull it off and survive. Any views on this? Please let me know. By Graham Hill

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• Saab Signs Up Another Chinese Investor (nytimes.com)

Good news for Saab lovers as it has been announced that GM finally agreed a deal with Spyker and that production on the new 9-5 has already begun with cars expected to appear in dealerships later this year. It has been a difficult time for existing owners, dealerships and the manufacturer’s staff but David Pugh of Saab GB now feels that all the problems are now behind them and the future is starting to look good.. They are looking forward to the release of the new 9-5 which will mark the re-launch of the brand. Good luck to them, Saab has been one of our most popular makes over the years and I’m pleased that they have been given another lease of life. By Graham Hill

It looks as though we may have seen the last of one of our more popular lease brands, Saab. Talks had been taking place to sell GM’s money losing brand to Spyker Cars NV but these have now broken down and whilst I have read that the Swedish have tried to put together a package to save their famous brand it now looks very unlikely.  By Graham Hill