Once upon a time, Saab was a shining star in the sea of vehicles GM built or had a hand in building. Now, with Swedish creditors pounding on the doors and Swedish employees unpaid, the factory shuttered in Sweden (although the one in Mexico has its doors open), and the Chinese government saying the Chinese "white knight" money is doubtful - the "administrator" put in charge of the Swedish company appears to be fed up, according to news reports.

Saab dodged the bankruptcy bullet last month but without money to get by from day to day, it may be only a matter of time. That's a shame in many ways, not the least of which is the fact that reviewers like what they saw when Saab unveiled it new 9-4X model only weeks ago.

Orphaned by GM during the GM bankruptcy, and shuttled back and forth among suitors ever since while it struggled for cash flow, it likely now faces the end of the fight soon. Perhaps very soon.

As we have been saying for months, maybe you need to think hard before you buy a new or used Saab unless, of course, you can get a bunch of spare parts as part of the sale. You may not be able to find a dealer who has any when your Saab's parts wear out or break down.

It's a sad story for Saab owners around the world. The only vehicle actually being built right now is reportedly just the 9-4X Suv model with the rest of the Saab model line on hold while every day is undoubtedly causing heartburn in the board room.

While Chinese (and other? the Russian banker Vladimer Antonov?) investors promise millions in badly needed support money to keep the Swedish maker going, time is running out while the Chinese struggle with their bureaucratic red tape that prevents money from flowing to Sweden. By the time it does, it may be too late. Reportedly unpaid suppliers are owed $625,000 and the government is threatening to simply being the legal process of seizing the Saab assets. If that happens, the company would very likely fold.

Meanwhile Saab dealers have little in the way of inventory. Saab itself is building very little. And without vehicle shipments occurring, the money is running out.

Swedish Enforcement Agency representatives, who are the ones in the government who would do the asset seizure, have now publicly said that they have contacted Saab's banks - the first step in the process that could spell Saab's demise and that could come at any moment.

Millions of dollars in payroll is due to be paid out this week and that could well drain the bank account to near nothing status.

We certainly wish no car maker ill, but Saab certainly already has its share. If you haven't figured it out yet, now is probably not a good time to buy a Saab.