Aston Martin Rapide Forum | rapideboard.comFor the upcoming BMW M5 competitor: the four-door Aston Martin Rapide. Only unveiled as a concept car, but will be launched in 2007. rapideboard.com
"Ford desperately needs to tap into the potential $700m-$1bn the sale of Aston could generate and hopes to finalise a deal by the end of the year. That deal would include the Aston name, the company’s facilities at Gaydon and Newport Pagnell, the full research and development department and the management including boss Ulrich Bez."
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Forza Ferrari, Kimi vs Schumi..
check out this old article. BMW seem to knew that AM would be for sale.
BMW Group are more & more aware there is a gap in their brand portfolio. With MINI they are covering the lower end of premium segment, with BMW they are covering the middle, Rolls-Royce is at the highest end of the segment. But a "bridge brand" between BMW & RR (covering upper premium segment)is missing. Bentley was mentioned to be such a bridge (having plan of purchasing both brands): while RR have been planned to be very exclusive (with Phantom & Corniche), Bentley would offer smaller sedans, cabrios & coupes - even a possible supercar. But Bentley is now in VW hands. The Bentley plans are burried forever.
Yet recently BMW AG have put their eyes on Aston Martin (in Ford ownership) - and monitoring closely the Ford situation. Not that AM is on sale , but Ford is considering various PAG solutions, and one never knows when Ford will start to sell their crown jewles. And in such case BMW AG will be ready to take an action. Marketing dept. is daydreaming, but the BoD has already scanned the SB mood on such a theorethical situation ...
IMO AM would fit perfectly between BMW & RR brands: offering exclusive premium sports cars (coupes, cabrios, roadsters, small sedans , and a possible mid-engine supercar), and being perfect Bentley, Maserati & Porsche fighter.
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BMW and Porsche - can't get enough of them
OK both BMw and Chrysler deny to buy AM. Maybe its a trick to get the costs down?
BMW,DaimlerChrysler Not Interested In Ford's Aston Martin
Friday September 1st, 2006 / 14h59
FRANKFURT -(Dow Jones)- German car makers BMW AG (BMW.XE) and DaimlerChrysler AG (DCX) Friday said they aren't interested in Ford Motor Co.'s (F) U.K. sports-car maker Aston Martin.
"We have no plans to go down this road," BMW spokesman Mathias Schmidt told Dow Jones Newswires. "We're well positioned with our brands," Schmidt added.
A DaimlerChrysler spokesman likewise said his company has "no interest" in buying Aston Martin.
Ford Thursday said it would consider selling all or parts of its luxury Aston Martin brand, which is part of its Premier Automotive Group, or PAG.
The Aston Martin unit could be worth about $1 billion, according to some analysts' estimates.
Source: easybourse
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BMW and Porsche - can't get enough of them
Last edited by Just_me; 1st September 2006 at 18:15.
I personally find it hard to believe that they wouldnt be interested in buying.. M-B maybe doesnt need is as much as BMW, but BMW definately could you another marque.. Its hard to make a much higher priced BMW, but would be natural to offer something like A-M with price tags pretty much were they are now.. of course no Bangle required either..
We will see, I believe BMW have the cash, so its maybe just whether they find it has enough potential to pursue.. Mini, BMW, A-M and RR would sound right when fighting against for example VW, Audi, Lamborgihini et al..
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Forza Ferrari, Kimi vs Schumi..
The short sightedness of Ford if they now sell AM when it is making money and is ramping up production with an awesome product line, is staggering, and shows the idiocy of leaving Bill Ford as CEO when the man has no clue what he's doing. AM are now in the position that Ferrari once was with Fiat; i.e. a specialty car maker representing the very best of the 'corporate mothership'. It is a Halo product, that shows the world that Ford cares about the very best in the automotive world. Selling it now shows Ford at its desperate worst.
LR and Jaguar are also showing signs of life with their respective new product lines. The RRS and LR3 are selling very well and the new Freelander, (LR2), also looks to be a winner. The new XK line of Jags are sold out I've read for quite some time, and while the design of the XJ and S types are too old, (either looking or age wise), they are both intrinsically good cars, (especially the XJ line).
Ford needs to look to its US operations and its heavy emphasis on Pickups and large 4 by 4's. In the era of higher fuel prices, relying on these types of vehicles is a recipe for disaster. Ford needs to actually build small and medium size cars that US customers want to own. If that means bringing in the European versions of the Focus, Mondeo, etc., well just bring them on as they are ten times better than the US offerings. And don't mess with the suspension settings either, leave them as they are!
I hate to see a good company ruined by crappy management. Ford needs a Ghosn, (sp?), as its CEO BEFORE it's too late.
Bish
The short sightedness of Ford if they now sell AM when it is making money and is ramping up production with an awesome product line, is staggering, and shows the idiocy of leaving Bill Ford as CEO when the man has no clue what he's doing. AM are now in the position that Ferrari once was with Fiat; i.e. a specialty car maker representing the very best of the 'corporate mothership'. It is a Halo product, that shows the world that Ford cares about the very best in the automotive world. Selling it now shows Ford at its desperate worst.
LR and Jaguar are also showing signs of life with their respective new product lines. The RRS and LR3 are selling very well and the new Freelander, (LR2), also looks to be a winner. The new XK line of Jags are sold out I've read for quite some time, and while the design of the XJ and S types are too old, (either looking or age wise), they are both intrinsically good cars, (especially the XJ line).
Ford needs to look to its US operations and its heavy emphasis on Pickups and large 4 by 4's. In the era of higher fuel prices, relying on these types of vehicles is a recipe for disaster. Ford needs to actually build small and medium size cars that US customers want to own. If that means bringing in the European versions of the Focus, Mondeo, etc., well just bring them on as they are ten times better than the US offerings. And don't mess with the suspension settings either, leave them as they are!
I hate to see a good company ruined by crappy management. Ford needs a Ghosn, (sp?), as its CEO BEFORE it's too late.
Bish
'Couldn't agree more.
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Dan
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