Spyker to Sell its Sportscar Business in Order to Focus on SAAB

Spyker Cars N.V., the Dutch owner of Saab, announced today that is has started negotiations to sell its sports car brand in order to focus on the development of premium car maker Saab, which it acquired one year ago from General Motors.

The Dutch company said it will sell the assets of its Spyker sportscar business to the UK-based CPP Global Holdings Limited, owned by Russian millionaire Vladimir Antonov. The terms of the deal include an initial purchase price of EUR15 million, plus a further EUR17 million to be paid from future earnings over a six-year period. The money will be used by Spyker Cars N.V. to reduce its debt.

Once the deal is completed, the Dutch company will be renamed so it would not be confused with the Spyker brand. CPP Global Holdings Ltd. will become the owner of virtually all assets related to the Spyker business, including trademarks, intellectual property rights and, of course, the model range.

“Without Spyker we would not have been able to acquire Saab Automobile last year but the Spyker Business soon became a small fish in a large pond as a result. In terms of the overall results of Spyker Cars N.V., the Spyker Business had become immaterial, but to develop its business going forward, its cash needs are relatively significant,” said Victor Muller, CEO of Spyker Cars N.V. and Chaiman of Saab Automobile AB.

"The management of the company has very exciting plans for Spyker and the brand is entering a period of major developments," CPP's managing director Brendan O'Toole added.

CPP Global Holdings has been producing chassis and body panels for Spyker since 2000 and the C8 Aileron model since 2009. The company's controversial owner, Vladimir Antonov, used to own 29.9 percent of Spyker through his Snoras bank, but had his share bought out by Victor Muller's Tenaci Capital before the acquisition of Saab.

By Dan Mihalascu

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Top 10 of the Wildest Rides Money can Buy

The economy might still be down, but these are boom times for boutique automakers. Not since the early years of the automobile has the industry seen so many upstarts. And we're not just talking regular sedans or SUVs, but Ferrari-fighting, Aston Martin-smashing supercars. Because their reputations have yet to be established and they have quirky names such as Gumpert, Koenigsegg and Spyker, some might be inclined to dismiss them, but that would be a mistake. Here are 10 of the wildest rides money can buy, from 10 companies that are as obscure as the cars they produce.

a.d. Tramontana

For owners who find that a Bugatti Veyron just isn't getting enough attention, there's the a.d. Tramontana. That "a.d." stands for "advanced design," which is an understatement, considering that it's equipped with a carbon-fiber body, a 720-horsepower Mercedes AMG twin-turbo V12 engine, magnesium alloy wheels and a glass canopy covering the cockpit as on a jet fighter. Buyers can choose a single-seat version or a 2-seater that puts the passenger directly behind the driver. The jet-fighter canopy is optional. Only 12 or so are made per year at the fledgling company's facilities in Catalonia, Spain. The starting price is around $500,000.

Gumpert Apollo

The Gumpert Apollo is as German as a Ferrari is Italian. It's made in Altenburg in central Germany. The Apollo's austere form is very Bauhaus, with a heavily modified Audi V8 engine that puts 650 horsepower to the rear wheels. It's a true race car at heart, with a steel structure that complies with racing regulations. This car is so personalized that the seats are molded right into a carbon-fiber tub that underpins the whole interior, so you can't simply slide or tilt the seat for a good fit. The driving position is tailored to each buyer by adjusting the pedals, steering wheel and seat padding. The price starts at $400,000 and can climb to $750,000 — and beyond.

Iconic AC Roadster

Think of Iconic Motors' AC Roadster as a Shelby Cobra for the 21st century. This 800-horsepower, $350,000 2-seater might look like the 1960s classic, but everything about it is new and designed from scratch — including the push-rod V8 engine, the chrome-alloy and carbon-fiber chassis, the horizontally opposed shock absorbers and the center-locking wheel nuts machined from a single piece of titanium billet. Company founder Claudio Ballard even used his 35 years in the computer industry to reinvent the automotive electrical system, replacing yards of analog wires with space- and energy-efficient, single-cable digital modules.

Koenigsegg Agera

Swedish automaker Koenigsegg has been around for more than a decade, but its outrageous cars might as well be Martians to the average motorist. To car enthusiasts, however, it has become a David to slay Goliaths. The company's latest creation is the Agera, and the 850-horsepower beast's stats are staggering: a zero-to-62-mph time of 3.1 seconds and an estimated top speed of 245 mph. But a number of its subtler features are just as impressive, like "ghost lighting," which uses "invisible nanotubes" to emit light through billet aluminum buttons. Pricing not available.

McLaren MP4-12C

Back in 1993, a car called the McLaren F1 upturned the supercar world with its mind-bending performance and million-dollar price tag. Well, it is poised to do it again. After years of focusing mostly on Formula One racing and a few performance-oriented consumer offerings, McLaren is coming out with a tamer sports car. Unlike its F1 forebear, which is essentially a street-legal race car, the MP4-12C is designed to outperform established British and Italian sports-car makers while offering enough comfort and convenience for everyday driving. Cost of a ticket to ride starts at $250,000.

Morgan Aero SuperSports

British automaker Morgan Motor Co. has long made roadsters the old-fashioned way, with wooden frames (yes, wooden) and classic styling — and it still does. In 2000, Morgan introduced a convertible called the Aero 8, which polarized enthusiasts with its classic yet updated styling. A limited-edition AeroMax coupe followed in 2008. Now comes the Aero SuperSports, which is a blend of its predecessors, with the longer tail of the AeroMax and a removable roof panel for driving al fresco. Like the Aeros before it, the SuperSports, which runs about $200,000, is powered by a BMW V8 engine that offers scintillating performance with robust reliability.

Noble M600

Noble is a small, obscure British company founded by entrepreneur and engineer Lee Noble. Until recently, it offered little more than so-called kit cars, whose steel chassis, fiberglass bodies and Ford-sourced engines had to be purchased piecemeal and assembled, because the cars themselves did not comply with U.S. safety and emissions regulations. They were, nonetheless, capable of humiliating Ferraris and Lambos off the line and in the twisties. Noble's new M600 is a true supercar with an exotic carbon-fiber body and 650-horsepower twin-turbo V8 engine. It does not comply with federal safety regulations, however, so it won't be coming to the U.S.

Pagani Zonda

Argentinian Horacio Pagani started carving wooden models of supercars when he was 12. Now he builds real ones that cost more than $1 million. After managing Lamborghini's composite division and later branching out on his own as a design and engineering consultant, he started Pagani Automobili in 1992 to create his very own Lamborghini fighter, the Zonda. Its jet-plane design motif is evident in the cockpitlike cabin and unique quad exhaust pipes. A hand-built V12 engine from Mercedes' AMG division propels the lightweight 2-seater with turbine levels of thrust.

Spyker C8 Aileron

Before Spyker Cars bought Saab from General Motors in early 2010, relatively few people knew this tiny Dutch automaker even existed. But it has been building sexy supercars powered by Audi engines since 2000. The company's latest car, the C8 Aileron, is an evolution of its predecessors, the C8 Roadster and Laviolette. Like them, its styling pays homage to Spyker's aeronautical heritage, with chrome dials, turned aluminum trim and quilted leather seats that look like they came straight from an old airplane. Its performance, however, is anything but antiquated, with a 400-horsepower V8 that propels it to 62 mph in 4.5 seconds. Prices start at $250,000.

SSC Ultimate Aero

Shelby Supercars (SSC) of West Richland, Wash., seemingly came out of nowhere in 2007 to slap Bugatti in the face. Its Ultimate Aero supercar beat the blueblood brand's million-dollar-plus Veyron to become the fastest production car in the world — a title that Bugatti has since reclaimed with its Veyron Super Sport. Still, the Ultimate Aero sits at the very top of the supercar heap, with a supercharged V8 engine that puts out an astounding 1,287 horsepower that can launch the car from zero to 60 mph in 2.78 seconds, with a top speed of 257.4 mph. Sticker price starts at $650,000.

Saab to Cut Workforce after Poor Sales Forecast

Sweden-based Saab Automobile plans to reduce its workforce by 200 employees or about one-eighth of its current staff, according to report from Reuters citing a union official. Hakan Skott, a union representative at Saab, told the news site that the move was expected after the company's new owner, Dutch supercar maker Spyker, cut the firm's sales target from 60,000 units in February, to 45,000 a few months later and finally to just 30,000 cars at end of October.

"I'm not exactly surprised [about the layoffs]. We reduced our sales forecast just a couple of weeks ago and there is a decline in sales every year around Christmas and at the end of the year," Skott said. "I'm sure that by February-March we will see an upward trend and people will buy cars again," he added.

Saab has said in the past that it needs to sell around 80,000 cars per year to break even.

On Friday, Swedish business daily Dagens Industri quoted Spyker's CEO Victor Muller as saying, "There is absolutely no reason to worry. Our plans for the future still stand. Next year, we will build 80,000 cars".

As for the staff being laid, Muller told the newspaper that they were temporary employees. "You take them aboard when you need them and when they are not needed, they are not on board."

Source: Reuters & Dagens Industri

Simbol Design K1 Attack is a Shed-Built Italian GT with an Alfa V6

From the creators of the Ferrari Enzo-emulating GTX-R comes the K1 Attack, a car that takes styling cues from the Spyker C8 Aileron, Lotus Europa and others. Simbol Design has fitted the Attack with an Alfa Romeo-sourced V6 turbo good for 246 horsepower. Mated to a 5-speed manual, this gives the custom built sports car an apparent 0 to 100 km/h [62 mph] time of 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 265 km/h [165 mph].

The K1 Attack also features a polyester body and a tubular steel chassis. It's not all good news, however. There are... F1 cars with more upmarket interiors and the design is more Chinese knockoff than Italian chic. Pricing of course remains unspecified.

By Tristan Hankins

Photo source: Simboldesign

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