BMW and new Saab-owner Spyker have announced that the German car maker will provide engines for the Swedish cars from 2012 onwards.
The four-cylinder 1.6-litre turbo-charged petrol engines will be adapted for Saab’s next generation of cars.
Saab chairman Victor Muller revealed the two car makers “are open to explore further opportunities… in the future.”
“BMW’s engines and their fuel savings innovations are widely regarded as a benchmark in the premium segment,” said Saab chief executive Jan Ake Jonsson.
The Swedish car manufacturer was sold to Dutch sports car maker Spyker by General Motors during its bankruptcy in February, after astonishingly never making a profit during 20 years of GM ownership.
Saab sold only 10,500 vehicles in the first half of 2010, down more than 50% from 24,300 in 2009. However Spyker remain positive and are aiming to sell 120,000 cars per year in the longer term.
BMW builds engines at plants in its home city of Munich, in Steyr, Austria, and Hams Hall in the UK. BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer has been looking for opportunities to sell components to other manufacturers to boost revenue.
BMW, the world’s largest luxury- car manufacturer, agreed in March to supply more than 240,000 six- cylinder diesel engines, cooling systems, and transmissions to Carbon Motors, which is developing a police car for U.S. law enforcement agencies and BMW also supplies engines to exotic car manufacturer Wiessmann.
Source: BBC / FT