Automotive industry in Sweden
In 1898 Gustaf Erikson at Surahammars Bruk built an automobile with an internal combustion engine for Vabis in Södertälje.
[5] The large and powerful Scania-Vabis trucks were also used for snow removal and other road maintenance work in Sweden.
Volvo started production of passenger cars and light trucks in Gothenburg in 1927, backed by ball bearing manufacturer SKF.
After the Second World War military aircraft manufacturer Saab AB started looking for a civilian product to fill their workshops.
The powertrain with a two-stroke engine and front-wheel drive resembled the German DKW which was popular in Sweden before the war, while the unibody showed influence from the aircraft industry.
By the end of the decade Volvo and Saab, like the rest of the European automobile industry, started exporting their passenger cars to the vast American market.
The US and Britain would remain virtually the sole export markets for Saab, which in the end would prove fatal for production volume.
Between 1969 and 1971 Kalmar Verkstad produced a purpose-built vehicle for the Swedish postal service called Tjorven.
During the general decline of the automotive industry following the 1973 oil crisis, Volvo and Saab-Scania felt they were too small to survive on their own in the long run.
The top-of-the-range Volvo 700 Series saloon and estate, launched in 1982, was a popular choice in the sector of the market dominated across Europe by the likes of BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
During the 1990s a couple of sports car manufacturers popped up in Sweden as a bright contrast to the safe and sensible automobiles associated with Volvo and Saab.
Koenigsegg was founded in Ängelholm in 1994 and between 1996 and 1998 Jösse Car in Arvika built some 40 Indigo 3000 roadsters, mainly using existing parts from Volvo.
[11] In 2001 General Motors took over Investor AB's share in Saab Automobile, taking full control over its subsidiary.
[14] In 2008 General Motors (GM) decided to either sell or, if no suitable buyer turned up, kill off Saab Automobile.
[15] In 2012 Chinese-Japanese National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) announced they had bought the remains of Saab Automobile.
NEVS is planning to start production of an electric car based on the well proven Saab 9-3 platform in Trollhättan.
[17] In 2013 Volvo AB announced they will set up a joint venture with Chinese auto maker Dongfeng Motor to build heavy trucks in China.
[18] In 2016, the startup Uniti Sweden raised over €1,227,990 via a crowdfunding campaign to develop and manufacture a high tech electric city car.
The car will be registered in the heavy quadricycle category (L7e) and will feature new technologies such as a steer-by-wire system as well as a head-up display.
