Spyker and Saab: from the horse's mouth

How many times have we heard automotive executives tell us they are a ‘car guy'? Spend just a few minutes in the company of the chief executive officer of Dutch niche supercar-maker Spyker and the new boss of Saab, and you don't need to be told.

Victor Muller is car crazy. Just 100 days after buying the iconic Swedish brand from General Motors and there's not a thing he doesn't know about the company, its finances, its models, its future and its history.

How can he have amassed such knowledge in just over three months? He shrugs it off by saying: "I'm a lawyer, I took part in all the due diligence."

But there's a passion, a real passion, about cars and the industry.

Muller, 50, doesn't just swat questions aside, he answers them as fully as he can - even questions you hadn't thought of asking - and those he can't (or rather won't) he explains his reasons why.

His passion for all things automotive goes back to the 1970s. His first cars were Lancia's, of which he owned many in a collection of vehicles, including Ferraris, Maseratis, Jaguars and Aston Martins, which numbered 50 by the year 2000.

He has since trimmed his collection considerably because they had become too difficult to store and maintain "and I only ever drove a few of them". He funded his passion by qualifying in law at Leiden University in 1984, working in the Amsterdam office of law firm Baker & McKenzie. In 1989, he joined the management team of offshore company Heerema and a management buyout made him part owner of salvage and towing company Wijsmuller.

This was the beginning of an entrepreneurial career from 1992 which saw Muller snap up an eclectic group of companies ranging from fish processing to fashion, and rebuild them.

But it was a call from a man called Maarten de Bruijn that eventually saw Muller break into the auto industry."Maarten has designed and built a sports car with his own hands. I went to see it and it was both pathetic and impressive. I told him to find an engine and get it running - never expecting to hear from him again.

"But he did it and got roadworthiness certificates." And so, Spyker Cars was born. Muller added: "Spyker was a former Dutch carmaker and the only one with any brand history. I was amazed to discover that the name was not even registered.

"Even so, I tracked down the family and asked their permission to use it and they agreed."

Spyker dates back to 1898 when two brothers, Jacobus and Hendrik-Jan Spijker, coachbuilders in Amsterdam, built their first Benz-engined motorcar with which they won immediate acclaim for the craftsmanship of their bodywork. In the same year Spijker built the famous golden state coach, still in use today, to commemorate the forthcoming coronation of the Dutch queen, Wilhelmina.

In 1903 Spyker introduced the extremely advanced 60/80 HP. It was the first car with a six-cylinder engine as well as permanent four-wheel drive and four-wheel brakes. In the same period Spyker introduced its patented ‘dust shield chassis,' a chassis fitted with a streamlined under tray that prevented the car from making dust on unpaved roads.

Spyker continued building record-breaking cars. Most famous of these is the C4 with an engine built by the famous German engineer Wilhelm Maybach. It had a double ignition system with Bosch high-tension magneto and battery-coil ignition with two spark plugs per cylinder.

The Spyker C4 was a powerful and luxurious car. In 1921, a standard C4 established a new endurance record, driving continuously for 36 days and covering a distance of 30,000kms.

Spyker Company ceased trading in 1925 but reappeared, thanks to Muller, at the 2000 Birmingham Motor Show when the C8 Aileron Spyder was unveiled. It won instant acclaim and was awarded the 2000 Institute of Vehicle Engineers Design Award on 18 October 2000.

Since then, the Spyker name has been seen in Formula One and at Le Mans. Now, with the acquisition of Saab from General Motors, Muller really does have the full train set to play with.

And he means business. Not just in terms of growing global sales, but actually being part of the design team on new models. He has already penned Saab's new premium small car, known as the 92.

But he insists that he is not a car designer "I'm a lawyer turned crazy who likes to design my own cars and have some sort of influence."

The 92 is a car Muller wants to put into production around 2013 once he has the right partners in place. That means a partner to share engines, platforms, technologies and even electric vehicle and hybrid versions.

Has Muller identified a partner yet? "They have identified us," he replied enigmatically. He is not saying who but it is a partner "who can deliver what we need rather than Saab having to use what it's given. Every decision is now taken on the basis of how best it serves us."

In terms of design the car will not be a throwback to the original 92 launched in 1949. "It will never be retro, that just demonstrates a lack of imagination, but it will embody all that was good in the original - an upmarket, premium small car."

Ahead of that, Saab has just launched the new 9-5, a car which is now 13 years old.

Muller said: "Saab is a car of passion. My only contribution to the 9-5 is that it exists. Under GM, and before that, Scania, Saab lost its DNA. It's a miracle that it has retained any of its integrity. Something needed to be done to get the soul back.

"9-5 was developed while GM still owned the company, but 70 per cent of the parts are not interchangeable with the Insignia with which it shares a platform and that is a massive step in the right direction.

"But considering it is now 13 years old, the 9-5 has done well for Saab with just the odd bone being thrown at it by GM. What were they thinking?"

The 9-5 will be followed by the 9-4X next year and the 9-3 in 2012; "my first full shot at developing and making a Saab".

Will Saab revert to making hatchbacks rather than trying to compete with German luxury saloons? "That is what we are looking at now - seeing what customers want around the world and we know how our customers are.

"Saab has the most loyal customers in the world and we can reach them very easily. They are generally highly educated so they read everything and are internet savvy. There are 6 million former and current customers out there. If we can persuade 8 per cent of them to buy a new one we are home and dry."

Muller's business plan, he says, is very conservative aiming for 125,000 sales annually by 2012 - up from just 39,000 last year but fewer than the 2007 peak of 139,000.

"We have lost most of our customers to Audi because Saab could not deliver and has a very narrow product portfolio. But those customers are still there and we can get them back."

Muller's aim is for Saab to be back in profit by 2012 and he is very aware that to be profitable it is necessary to have manufacturing presence in emerging markets. The 9-4X will be built in Mexico under plans already in place with General Motors.

Number one priority, however, is China. Muller said: "We are establishing our own distribution channel there and if we can achieve annual sales of around 10,000 cars this would justify setting up local manufacture. This is something I am aiming for with the 9-3 by 2013 or 2014."