Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (FHI), the Japanese auto manufacturer of Subaru vehicles, and Swedish automaker Saab Automobile AB (Saab), a wholly-owned subsidiary of General Motors Corp. (GM), agreed on collaboration for a new crossover vehicle.

　 The project represents an expansion of the cooperation between FHI and Saab that was initiated last year with Saab vehicle sales through select Subaru dealer outlets in Japan, and was followed this year with the introduction of the Saab 9-2X premium sports compact in the U.S. and Canadian markets.

　 "We continue to see a working relationship between FHI and Saab as a very natural fit," says Bob Lutz, GM's vice chairman for product development. "It makes sense for FHI and Saab to work together early in the development process to deliver their own distinct interpretations of a sporty and versatile ‘cross over’ product."

　 The new collaboration between FHI and Saab will integrate the development of a new Saab crossover vehicle with FHI’s crossover project for Subaru. Both vehicles will be produced at FHI’s U.S. manufacturing facility.

　 “We are pleased that our alliance with GM enables us to continue to work together with Saab,” said Kyoji Takenaka, president and CEO of FHI “This collaboration provides many benefits such as economics of scale, higher joint volume for FHI's US manufacturing facility, etc. and most importantly, creates a win-win situation for both FHI and Saab.”