One corporate drama playing out in the news is the fate of Saab — a now-orphan division of General Motors that appears will narrowly escape extinction by last-minute buyer Spyker. For owners, employees, dealers, and suppliers of Saab, the potential death of such an iconic brand was probably hard to fathom. After all, the Swedish version of Saab, with its roots in the aircraft industry, existed for more than 50 years before becoming part of General Motors for another 10. Its products have always had a reputation for quality and safety, along with a somewhat quirky design. So how could a company with this kind of heritage almost go out of business?