In 1948, Bofors began work on developing a new self-propelled gun as part of a private venture in an effort to realize a long-lasting goal of establishing itself as a manufacturer of armored fighting vehicles, alongside its already proven reputation in arms production.

To do so, Bofors came up with a design for a new SPG, which incorporated a 12cm cannon, whose design was heavily inspired by those used on destroyer vessels, along with a highly effective autoloading mechanism. The design was ready by the end of 1948 and a single prototype was constructed in the following year.

However, while test results didn’t seem to impress the Swedish military enough to consider placing an order for the vehicle, the factor that certainly sealed the vehicle’s fate for good was its price. Namely, being developed with the use of its own funding, Bofors had to demand a high production price for the vehicle, a price deemed too high by the Swedish military considering the vehicle’s most probable role being an infantry support vehicle.

As a result of the lacking interest, the SAV 20.12.48 never went into production. Despite its failure, the project wasn’t a complete loss for Bofors, as some of the experiences gained during its development later found application in other vehicles, such as the far more successful Strv 103.