Despite being home to two of the world’s best-known and largest trucks (Volvo AB and Scania AB), the Swedish automotive industry is focused on passenger transportation. It is distinguished by unrivaled quality and exceptional safety – both in passenger cars and buses. At the same time, the Swedish automotive industry is heavily dependent on foreign supply, as 95% of heavy equipment and 85% of passenger cars are sold in other countries around the world. There are some exclusive brands among them. For example, Forbes magazine named the Koenigsegg CCXR supercar the most beautiful in the world. The Volvo concern received the status of the manufacturer of the safest cars.
What are Swedish car brands?
There are not many car brands in Sweden, but they are quite famous: Koenigsegg, Volvo, NEVS, Scania AB, Uniti Sweden AB, Polestar, and Caresto. Previously, this list also included Saab, Jösse Car, and Scania-Vabis.
Major Swedish Car Companies
There aren’t many, but they are great! That is how one can exclaim when looking at Swedish cars of any class. The fact is that manufacturers pay a lot of attention to them since the vast majority of products are exported. And there are really few brands related to mechanical engineering in Sweden. The most famous among them are Volvo (premium cars), Koenigsegg (luxury supercars), Saab (universal models), Scania (heavy cars), and others.
Koenigsegg
The Koenigsegg Group automobile company was founded by Christian von Koenigsegg in 1994 and produces world-class supercars. Its headquarters are located in the town of Engelholm in Scania County. It will soon take over another Swedish brand, Saab Automobile, which is up for sale to General Motors. Written confirmation has already been received, and the deal is being negotiated.
This manufacturer has many technical merits that give it the right to call it the best in its country. It became a pioneer in the creation of the CC8S model. This is a sports car adapted for driving on ordinary roads, released in 2002. Another Koenigsegg car has attracted everyone’s attention. This is a representative of the CCXR series. Forbes marked it as the most attractive car in the world.
Volvo
It is one of the oldest companies in the country, which grew from a ball-bearing factory into a major automobile site. The company produces station wagons, SUVs, sedans of several types, hatchbacks, and luxury cars. The founders of the company are industrialists Gustav Larson and Assar Gabrielsson, who created it in 1927 in Gothenburg.
The Swedish brand is currently owned by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the parent company of the Geely Automobile brand. The transition occurred on the condition that Volvo would manage resources as before. However, talks of a full business merger began in 2020.
NEVS
The founding year of this automaker was 2012. It emerged from the assets and industrial plants of the bankrupt Saab. The company is owned by Evergrande Group and has several localizations: the head office is located in Trollhättan (Sweden), and production sites are in Guangzhou (China) and Toronto (Ontario, Canada). The company’s name is an abbreviation and comes from the phrase National Electric Vehicle Sweden. Its main specialization is electric vehicles.
Scania AB
This company came into being at the end of the nineteenth century – in 1891. It was founded by Gustaf Ericsson and was formerly known as AB Scania-Vabis. Currently, its parent organization is the Volkswagen Group, and it is located in Södertälje. The company manufactures heavy vehicles, buses, and diesel engines for trucks and marine vehicles.
Uniti Sweden AB
In the winter of 2016, Lewis Horn started Uniti, a company dedicated to the implementation of green technology and sustainability in the automotive industry. At first, it was a project started within Lund University, and then it turned into a business startup promoting the concept of high-tech urban transportation. Funds for the creation of the two-seater electric car were raised through crowdfunding. In 2019, the technical specifications of the first low-cost production electric car with a 12 kW or 24 kW battery were presented.
Polestar
Founded in 1996, the brand is currently owned by Volvo Cars and its parent company, Geely. The company is based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Electric cars and heavy-duty engines are produced under this brand. It is also a laboratory and design office that implements experimental technologies. The cars are produced mainly in China.
Caresto
This car brand appeared on Leif Tufvesson’s initiative and was officially registered in 2004. The company is located in the south of Sweden, in Ängelholm. It presents four models of the Hot Rod sports car developed by the owner of the company. Tufvesson worked at Volvo Concept Center for six years, designing for Koenigsegg. In 2004, he was honored with the Hot Rod of the Year Award and the prestigious American Most Innovative Car Award.
Defunct Car Brands
Saab
The full name of this Swedish company is Saab Automobile AB. It was founded in 1937. The company’s head office is located in the city of Trollhättan. The branded cars of this manufacturer were known for turbocharging, safety, and “green” technologies. Currently, the brand is mothballed and put up for sale. But since no one wanted to buy it outright, the entire property, including the intellectual property, is being sold as separate assets.
Jösse Car
The founders of the Swedish company Jösse Car originally wanted to assemble cars from Saab and Volvo parts. The first model hit the market in 1996. It was a high-speed supercar, which in appearance was a mixture of Corvette and MGB. The manufacturer planned to produce 500 copies per year, but due to a lack of funds in 1999, it went bankrupt. Now, the brand Jösse Car belongs to Braun Holding AB. Its emblem is a rectangular blue shield with a white horse and black inscription “JC.”
Scania-Vabis
The Scania-Vabis automobile brand was created in 1911 by two Swedish companies that wanted to strengthen their position in a competitive market. Their first joint project was a bus. Then, cars and trucks were added to the range. In time, the company was completely reoriented to the creation of heavy-duty vehicles, but the Second World War prevented the realization of ambitious plans. In 1969, Scania-Vabis ceased to exist as it merged with Saab Automobile AB, becoming a subsidiary. During the years of independence, it used a blue emblem in the form of a stylized wheel with a red griffin head and the gold inscription “SCANIA VABIS.”
What brand of cars are made in Sweden?
Trucks Scania AB and AB Volvo, Volvo Cars passenger cars, Koenigsegg luxury cars are produced in Sweden. But the universal models of Saab Automobile AB are no longer produced because this company went bankrupt.
What luxury cars are made in Sweden?
Volvo and Koenigsegg occupy the niche of luxury car brands in Sweden. The first brand is represented by passenger cars and the second – by hypercars.
What car is popular in Sweden?
In 2021, the following Volvo models topped the list of popular cars in Sweden: S / V60, XC60, and XC40. The five are closed by the cars of the South Korean company Kia: Cee’d and Niro.
What are Swedish cars called?
The most famous names of the Swedish car industry: Koenigsegg, Scania, Volvo, Saab, Polestar. Other brands include Caresto, Uniti Sweden AB, NEVS, Scania-Vabis, Jösse Car.
