A Saab Story
The Ursaab, which is Swedish for "Our heritage is on the auction block!"
J keeps himself abreast of all car news and happenings, and he mentioned last week that the company that now owns Saab will be liquidating their company museum to stave off bankruptcy. This makes me terribly sad. After 8 years with an automotive engineer and a lifetime of lusting after quirky cars, I know that cars are more than just transportation. (Okay, not all cars. My Mazda is just transportation. But my VW Bug was a love affair.)
This complete dismantling of Saab has been coming for some time. And other than the fact that my aunt, uncle and cousins will now have to find a different brand to be loyal to, Saab's disappearance does not in any way affect me. But I still feel a pang about it, similar to the one I might feel if the Mona Lisa or Winged Victory were to be sold to an independent collector.
I don't believe that cars are the same as priceless works of art. But take a long, hard look at the photo above of the Ursaab. This automobile from 1946 was the very first Saab ever built and it represents the hope of a company that wanted to enter a post-war market after years of making war planes. The engineers who designed it had no prior experience with cars and only a couple of them could even legally drive. And yet those engineers created a lasting and beautifully designed car that is both quintessentially of its time period and also strangely futuristic. According to the Wikipedia article on the Ursaab, this vehicle drove over 330,000 miles before it was retired, which (might) be more than I can say for my boring/utilitarian Mazda.
I know that the Saab cars in the museum in Trollhattan, Sweden (a funny name if ever I heard one) will end up with people who appreciate them. I know that in the scheme of things, it's not a huge deal that these cars will be sold. But I think it's important that we take a moment to appreciate the beauty and utility of cars (or houses or furniture) that are well made. In a slapdash world where everything is disposable, we should show some respect to beautiful old-timers that can still beat the pants off a modern whippersnapper.
We should all take the kind of pride in our work that the Ursaab's engineers did.
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