Dubai should start an Dubai Automotive Oasis here...that would be super!
Associated Press
DETROIT
Ford Motor Co. is selling a controlling stake in Aston Martin, creator of exotic $100,000-plus sports cars made famous in James Bond movies.
Aston Martin now will be run by a consortium of investors, including racing mogul David Richards, car collector John Sinders and the Kuwaiti companies Investment Dar and Adeem Investment Co.
Ford officials announced the sale Monday at Aston Martin's headquarters in Gaydon, England.
Ford will receive $848 million and retain a $77 million stake in the company.
The companies placed the total value of the deal at $925 million.
Dearborn-based Ford, which lost $12.7 billion last year and expects red ink to continue until 2009, put Aston Martin up for sale last August.
It had acquired control of the brand two decades ago and owned it outright since 1994.
Sales dipped to a few dozen in 1992 but climbed to about 7,000 last year. You can get a new Aston Martin for about $110,000 but the price can run as high as $270,000, according to Beau Boeckmann, vice president of Galpin Motors in North Hills, Calif., one of Aston Martin's top dealers.
Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally said the sale supports the company's turnaround plan, which involves cutting factory capacity and rolling out new cars and trucks at a faster pace.
