Aston Martin heading to new owner

[SVT666]

Aston Martin Heading to New Owner
By Drew Johnson

Aston Martin may have found a new owner. After just five years under the control of Investment Dar, the Kuwaiti firm has reportedly agreed to sell the legendary British sports car maker to London-based private equity fund Investindustrial.

According to Bloomberg, Investment Dar has agreed to sell Aston Martin to Investindustrial, although the final paper work has yet to be signed. India's Mahindra & Mahindra was also in the running to purchase Aston Martin, but Investment Dar views Investindustrial as the best fit for the automaker.

?An industrial owner would have been preferable to a financial owner,? Ashvin Chotai, the managing director of Intelligence Automotive Asia in London, told Bloomberg. ?Probably Mahindra could have provided them with a long-term commitment. That said, it was a trophy asset for Mahindra and would have required a lot of investment with very few synergies.?

Investindustrial isn't a stranger to the high-end motoring world. The company owned Ducati before selling the motorcycle brand to Audi earlier this year.

According to insiders, Investindustrial's proposal included plans to use AMG-sourced parts for future Aston Martin models. Aston Martin has been long-rumored to be interested in Mercedes-Benz' performance parts bin, although nothing has ever come to fruition.

Aston Martin is valued at $1.21 billion, but it remains to be seen how big Investindustrial's investment will be in the company.

Through the first nine months of the year Aston Martin's sales have fallen 20 percent to 2,520 vehicles.

[2o6]

I heard Geely is bidding for it.

[TurboDan]

I'm surprised Tata didn't have an interest. They've done very well with JLR ownership and the brands both seem to have turned a corner in terms of mission/purpose as well as reliability and quality.

[SVT666]

By Drew Johnson


Italy's Investindustrial has successfully completed its bid to become part owner of Aston Martin. Investindustrial was battling India's Mahindra & Mahindra for an ownership stake in the legendary British automaker.

According to Reuters, Investindustrial has agreed to pay Investment Dar, the parent company of Aston Martin, $241 million in exchange for a 37.5 percent stake in the sports car maker.

With Investindustrial's investment secure, Aston Martin plans to spend $1 billion on new products and technology. Aston Martin has struggled to find its footing as an independent automaker, lacking the resources to compete with marques like Bentley and Ferrari, both of which are backed by larger automakers.

However, some analysts are skeptical of Aston Martin's long-term potential, despite the new investment.

"It doesn't look like a long-term solution," Bernstein analyst Max Warburton told Reuters.

"This deal doesn't sort scale, access to technology, emissions or entry to new segments."

So far this year Aston Martin's global sales have dipped 19 percent to 2,340 units.

[AutobahnSHO]

Time for more Bond movies to boost sales!..

[Raza]

Aston's going to have to go to a large manufacturer to survive.  Can't just sell rebadged Scions and expect to stick around forever. 

[TurboDan]

Aston's going to have to go to a large manufacturer to survive.  Can't just sell rebadged Scions and expect to stick around forever. 

This is why the lack of interest from Tata puzzles me. They could definitely have shared platforms with Jag (or even LR if there was ever to be a dreaded Aston SUV).

[Raza]

This is why the lack of interest from Tata puzzles me. They could definitely have shared platforms with Jag (or even LR if there was ever to be a dreaded Aston SUV).

CAFE and other regulations like that are the worry.  How can you get to 40mpg average if all you sell are high end V8 and V12 GTs?  Either that or Aston needs to buy Daihatsu off Toyota. 

[cawimmer430]

How can you get to 40mpg average if all you sell are high end V8 and V12 GTs?

Easy. Make 'em DIESEL V8s and V12s. 

[SVT666]

Easy. Make 'em DIESEL V8s and V12s. 

Diesels restriction in the US are really strict.  Far more strict than Europe.

[cawimmer430]

Diesels restriction in the US are really strict.  Far more strict than Europe.

And you guys are missing out as a result. Just saying. 

Audi, BMW and MB are bringing over more diesels though.

[SVT666]

And you guys are missing out as a result. Just saying. 

Audi, BMW and MB are bringing over more diesels though.

I believe the pollution restrictions are stricter, which means you have dirtier cars than we do. 

[Galaxy]

Diesels restriction in the US are really strict.  Far more strict than Europe.

Not really true anymore. The emission standards converge in 2014, so the diesel versions of cars coming online now already take that into account. The most impressive product currently seems to be the 2013 Mazda skyactive diesel which can make do without a chemical plant in the exhaust.

[SVT666]

Not really true anymore. The emission standards converge in 2014, so the diesel versions of cars coming online now already take that into account. The most impressive product currently seems to be the 2013 Mazda skyactive diesel which can make do without a chemical plant in the exhaust.

[Madman]

This is why the lack of interest from Tata puzzles me. They could definitely have shared platforms with Jag (or even LR if there was ever to be a dreaded Aston SUV).

Tata has bigger plans for Jaguar.  The XK8/XKR already sort of competes with the lower end Astons.  The new CX75 was going to be positioned further upmarket and firmly in Aston Martin territory but has now been put on hold.  There's more profit to be made from the new F-Type and Jaguar is said to be working on a compact executive (A4/3er rival) car which the company desperately needs.

Once those niches are filled, Tata/Jaguar may revisit the idea of putting something like the CX75 into production.  For the time being, however, Jaguar is looking to expand into bigger (and more profitable) market segments.

[Raza]

I hope Tataguar brings us a version of the XK180. 

[AutobahnSHO]

I hope Tataguar brings us a version of the XK180. 

You'd have to wear a helmet with that crap.   Looks good!  and I wonder though what the rear looks like- lights look weird