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Saab Dealers Ranked #1 in Use of Genuine OEM Parts

21 February 2000

Saab Dealers Ranked #1 in Use of Genuine OEM Parts

           Saab Parts Managers Buy 97.4 Percent of Parts From Saab

           Saab System Allows Many Dealers to Receive Out-Of-Stock
                         Part the Night it is Ordered

    NORCROSS, Ga., Feb. 21 -- Saab Cars USA, Inc., the U.S.
importer and distributor of Saab 9-3 and 9-5 automobiles, has undergone a
major effort to improve the loyalty and satisfaction of its dealers' Parts
Managers.  That is why Saab is pleased with the results of the 1999 Parts
Policy Monitor study conducted by Industrial Marketing Research, Inc.  The
study ranks Saab dealers number one in loyalty, ordering 97.4 percent of all
parts from the manufacturer.

    "This study shows us that Saab Parts Managers are happy with our prices,
availability and delivery speed," said Doug Williams, Saab's Parts Operations
Manager. "It's gratifying because we've worked hard to improve all aspects of
parts operations."

    Saab has met frequently with dealer Parts Department Managers to discuss
ways to improve the customer's cost of ownership and make it easier for the
dealer to do business with Saab Cars USA, Inc. "We started this process by
asking dealers what we were doing that they didn't like," says Williams. "We
made it much easier and less costly for them to do business with us. Then we
asked each other what our customers want. We targeted parts pricing and
eliminated the need for anyone to go anywhere else to buy their parts. For
example, we can now even compete on light bulbs, wiper blades and antifreeze."

    "Even Saab customers who have their cars serviced at independent garages
can be assured they are getting genuine Saab parts, if the shop is ordering
their parts from their Saab area dealer," said Williams. "This is very
important since genuine Saab parts offer the highest quality and some, like
shock absorbers and mufflers, carry a lifetime warranty."

    To improve customer satisfaction, Saab has set up a system that allows
many dealers to receive an out-of-stock part the very night it is ordered.
Therefore, when the Parts Manager comes in the next day, the parts are there
waiting and the service technician can get right to work, making the car
available to the customer quicker than ever.

    "I feel that Saab has fully addressed the needs of today's automotive
retailer," said Timothy Martino, Service Manager at Charles River Saab in
Watertown, Mass.  "We now have the ability to truly service our customers'
interests by having 24 hour turn-around at worst on getting the part to fix
their car. Saab owners value their time, and that's precisely what we're able
to save for them. If we don't have it today, we will by tomorrow morning.

    "Having this option also translates into increasing profit," added
Martino. "When our customers are offered a repair combined with the
convenience of having it completed by the next business day, they frequently
give us the go ahead. If we offer the repair but need to take a couple of days
to get it back to them, then they often decline. Saab has done the right thing
for the customer and for the dealer."

    In addition to its high score in loyalty, Saab finished fourth in overall
Parts Manager satisfaction out of the 25 OEMs who participated in the study.