First Saab automobile among the 123 cars being sold from Saab’s museum

Photo courtesy Saab

It’s a wrap. India’s Tata, ostensibly the savior of Jaguar, has been sniffing around Saab a little, but that’s a faint hope at best for the brand. By Friday, it’ll be too late by far for their physical heritage, as Swedish bankruptcy administrator Delphi liquidates the company’s museum along with everything else.

That’s 123 cars (and who knows what else; show up with an envelope full of kronor and you could probably walk out with all their production records, as well), going all the way back to 1946, with the so-called “Ursaab,” Saab 92 chassis 92001, the first built. Forward, it includes concept cars, multiple race cars, one-offs and regular production examples all the way up to 2010. According to auction documents, “For bidders wishing to continue operating the museum in the existing premises, there may be an opportunity to acquire spare parts, workshop inventory, office and conference inventory and souvenirs.”

Of them all, I might like the Aero X concept car the best. I’m not sure if it’s the roller or the show version, but odds are it’s the driveable one. It’s a sad reminder of a moment when it seemed like Saab was going to be the future.

I managed to nab the .pdf lot listing in Swedish before Delphi yanked it (no explanation why), but Saab’s former frontman Steven Wade has been dutifully posting the entire thing in English (in one enormous post you don’t want to open on a slow connection/computer). Delphi is apparently entertaining all bids, on individual cars and the whole collection, from anyone. All bids must be in by Friday, January 20, when the last pieces of the 66-year-old car company are no more.

Saab Car Museum liquidation lot list