Saab seeks court protection from creditors

Saab is filing for protection from creditors from a Swedish district court, the automaker's owner, Swedish Automobile, said Wednesday. Saab is seeking court approval for a voluntary reorganization to secure short-term stability while it waits for funding from Chinese investors Pang Da and Zhejiang Youngman, Swedish Automobile said in a statement. Victor Muller, CEO of both Saab and Swedish Automobile, said in a statement: "We have concluded that a voluntary reorganization process will provide us with the necessary time, protection and stabilization of the business, allowing salary payments to be made, short-term funding to be obtained and an orderly restart of production to be prepared." Muller remains optimistic about Saab's future.

Who's Where: Martin Uhlarik appointed SAIC UK Design Director

SAIC Motor has announced the appointment of Martin Uhlarik as its new UK Design Director amidst plans to significantly expand its European Design Center at Longbridge, UK. Canadian-born Uhlarik has been appointed by Tony Williams-Kenny, who takes over as Global Design Director at SAIC's Shanghai design base. Uhlarik comes in with experience as Senior Interior Designer for Skoda's Prague studio, Project Design Leader for Nissan Design Europe in London.

First Sight: Fenomenon Stratos

The Geneva Show sees a surprising newcomer to its stands in the shape of Fenomemon Ltd and their concept Stratos project. This new London-based vehicle design agency is led by a current student on the Royal College of Art's Vehicle Design course, Chris Hrabalek, who has masterminded a complete full-size mockup of a reborn Lancia Stratos concept for this year's Geneva Show. In a world where multinational companies spend several million dollars on a concept car and stand, that's a phenomenal achievement.