If Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally appeared on NBC game show "Deal or No Deal," he'd likely tell host Howie Mandel "I'll take both."
It seems that while Ford is near a deal to sell its Aston Martin unit, the automaker refuses to sell its other British luxury car unit, Jaguar. While talking with journalists before the opening of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Mulally said Jaguar is not for sale. Mulally's refusal to sell Jaguar despite the insistence of analysts resembles the "Deal or No Deal" contestant who unwisely refuses a six-figure offer when the crowd is chanting "deal." Rarely does the gamble pay off.
Speculation surrounding Jaguar surfaced last year when the troubled company began evaluating its Premier Auto Group assets, which also include Land Rover and Volvo. Jaguar is the biggest drag on the Premier Auto Group's revenues, which are in the red, according to a Reuters report. Consequently, it was widely believed Ford would sell the unit. However, Ford's likely to receive only a fraction of the $2.1 billion it paid for Jaguar in 1989, perhaps causing the automaker to refuse to sell.
Meanwhile, Ford executive vice president responsible for the Premier Auto Group, Lewis Booth, said at the auto show a sale of Aston Martin is imminent, according to Bloomberg. The news coincides with a report in London's Independent listing some of the remaining bidders. Private equity firms Alchemy Partners, Doughty Hanson & Co., Permira Advisers LLP and Texas Pacific Group are reportedly some of the lead bidders, the paper reported. James Packer, Australia's richest man, also is part of a group bidding for Aston Martin, the Independent reported. However, Ford has already discounted a number of consortia of wealthy individuals
including a group headed by former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser.
Unfortunately, Mulally is not playing a game for the amusement of TV viewers, so hopefully his gamble on Jaguar will payoff in the long run. —Matthew Wurtzel
See story about Jaguar from Reuters
See story about Aston Martin from Bloomberg
See story from The Independent
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