Many Saabs still waiting for their new owners at Port Newark

Update June 16: Ally Financial to auction 900 new Saabs stored at seaports in the USA

We have seen the pictures that were posted earlier of the seemingly forgotten Saabs at Port Newark. I was in the Newark area last weekend to pick up a used Saab 9-5 I recently bought so a short stop at the storage area was on my list of things to do.

The pictures don't really tell the whole story about how sad it is to see these brand new Saabs waiting for their owners, seemingly forgotten and caught in a legal battle between Saab Cars North America and Ally Financial. I was there on a bright and sunny Saturday morning and it was very quiet. No other people were around and only a few cars passed by. The storage area is in the flight path of one the runways of Newark Airport so the quiet morning was disturbed by an airplane on approach to land about every 5 minutes.

I was there for about 30 minutes taking pictures and a security guard was driving by inside the fenced area, probably checking out what I was doing there. Apparently, I wasn't a thread to port security and he left quickly. I considered asking him if I could take a peek inside that warehouse but I was too far away. And I pretty much doubt they would let anyone in off the street asking questions and taking pictures...!

There are about 160 parked outside and it is difficult to say how many are stored inside that one warehouse with the open door and other warehouses at the same property. Total number of Saabs that are stored at the three sea ports is about 900. Ports are Newark in New Jersey, Brunswick in Georgia and Port Hueneme in California.

It is still not known what is going to happen with these Saabs. They could go to a fleet owner and used as rental cars. Or they could be sold at auction and distributed to Saab and other dealers. There are still many new Saabs sitting at dealer lots. I visited a few Saab dealers in the last weeks and it appears they are not clearing them out with crazy prices just yet.

The area is a typical sea port, industrial and a bit depressing. The cars are stored along Distribution street and it is easy to get to. It is a short distance from EWR airport and Ikea. The company that processes Saabs at Port Newark is FAPS, Inc. They process cars for many other manufacturers. Hopefully, these Saabs will be released and go to their new owners soon.



More reading:
SaabWorld - Port handling of Saabs near New York
SaabWorld - Ally Financial is suing SCNA to seize Saab vehicles at the Port of Hueneme, California
SaabWorld - Hundreds of new Saabs stuck in the Port of Newark, New Jersey