RE: Jaguar goes Indian?
Thursday 19th July 2007
Jaguar goes Indian?
Tata shows interest in Jaguar
Indian car maker Tata is the latest company rumoured to be considering a bid for Jaguar.
The firm is said to have signed a confidentiality agreement with Ford, and is looking into Jaguar's accounts.
Tata Motors is India’s largest car maker with over 4m cars on Indian roads. The firm is part of Ratan Tata’s empire and began producing cars in 1954. It’s best known in the UK for providing the ill-starred CityRover during the final years of the MG Rover group.
Tata is certainly not short of the cash – Tata Steel bought the British steel firm Corus earlier this year for £7bn.
Ford has said that tomorrow (19 July) is the deadline for offers for both Jaguar and Land Rover.
Discussion
Oh the irony, the once mighty all conquering companies of the British Empire, end up being bought by it's very own colonies!
All Speculation, wait and see, then if Ford do sell to some less than satisfactory outfit, then we can start to worry. Tata have a lot of money, love the 'British' thing, so who knows. As long as as it's not a technology raid and the cars continue to be made in Birmingham, using British design and UK suppliers, does it matter.
Hopefully this is just Ford testing the waters. Good editorial in Jag World this month, re: Ford just seeing who is interested in the brand.
G
All Speculation, wait and see, then if Ford do sell to some less than satisfactory outfit, then we can start to worry. Tata have a lot of money, love the 'British' thing, so who knows. As long as as it's not a technology raid and the cars continue to be made in Birmingham, using British design and UK suppliers, does it matter.
Hopefully this is just Ford testing the waters. Good editorial in Jag World this month, re: Ford just seeing who is interested in the brand.
G
It's bad enough Ford owning Jaguar IMO!! Maybe Tesco's will put in a bid as well! Manufacturing in the uk is falling to pieces!! Brown and his numpties need a rocket up there ar-e They should make sure that british
products and cars like Jaguar are manufactured in the UK no matter who owns them.
products and cars like Jaguar are manufactured in the UK no matter who owns them.
Impossible to split LR/Jag without costing millions and millions. Maybe Ford have shot themselves in the foot because of it.
Latest word is that BMW have applied to see the books on Volvo as they are interested in buying another brand. So is Ford going to sell all the crown jewels and entrench themselves back in the USA. Sounds like it, all very 'American'. If you can't 'win', give up!
G
Latest word is that BMW have applied to see the books on Volvo as they are interested in buying another brand. So is Ford going to sell all the crown jewels and entrench themselves back in the USA. Sounds like it, all very 'American'. If you can't 'win', give up!
G
Triple7 said:
Impossible to split LR/Jag without costing millions and millions. Maybe Ford have shot themselves in the foot because of it.
Latest word is that BMW have applied to see the books on Volvo as they are interested in buying another brand. So is Ford going to sell all the crown jewels and entrench themselves back in the USA. Sounds like it, all very 'American'. If you can't 'win', give up!
G
I think the last bit of comment about the yanks is incorrect!! It should be....... Latest word is that BMW have applied to see the books on Volvo as they are interested in buying another brand. So is Ford going to sell all the crown jewels and entrench themselves back in the USA. Sounds like it, all very 'American'. If you can't 'win', give up!
G
"If you can't win, blow it up!!"
Triple7 said:
Oh the irony, the once mighty all conquering companies of the British Empire, end up being bought by it's very own colonies!
All Speculation, wait and see, then if Ford do sell to some less than satisfactory outfit, then we can start to worry. Tata have a lot of money, love the 'British' thing, so who knows. As long as as it's not a technology raid and the cars continue to be made in Birmingham, using British design and UK suppliers, does it matter.
Hopefully this is just Ford testing the waters. Good editorial in Jag World this month, re: Ford just seeing who is interested in the brand.
G
America was a colony as well.All Speculation, wait and see, then if Ford do sell to some less than satisfactory outfit, then we can start to worry. Tata have a lot of money, love the 'British' thing, so who knows. As long as as it's not a technology raid and the cars continue to be made in Birmingham, using British design and UK suppliers, does it matter.
Hopefully this is just Ford testing the waters. Good editorial in Jag World this month, re: Ford just seeing who is interested in the brand.
G
For the sake of Uncle F@ck!
As noted by poster above: the irony is terrible.
We will soon be a colony ourselves, economically speaking and all because we stupid, lazy westerners, legislated our way into socio-political impotence on the altar of some pop cultivated, bourgois guilt trip.
Well guess what, Cherie, we're all headed for Tata's premium rickshaws sometime soon.
As noted by poster above: the irony is terrible.
We will soon be a colony ourselves, economically speaking and all because we stupid, lazy westerners, legislated our way into socio-political impotence on the altar of some pop cultivated, bourgois guilt trip.
Well guess what, Cherie, we're all headed for Tata's premium rickshaws sometime soon.
Hang on, there seems to be a stack of assumptions being made in this thread:
- there is nothing to say production won't stay in the UK
- it could be they are looking at just Jaguar. LR was only bundled in as sugar, but sales of LR are still going well, so they would arguably be worth keeping or selling separately
- it isn't impossible to split Jaguar and Land Rover. I think the splitting of Aston and of Chrysler from Daimler have shown it CAN be done. They just need to secure parts supply and move to another production facility
- Tata have deep pockets and they already know about making cars, distribution, supply chain etc. This may be a better bet than a VC compnay having a go.
I am accepting that Jaguar can't be "British" if it is to survive. There just isn't the momentum in the UK to keep something like this going. As long as they stay making them here I couldn't care less. I mean, we don't see Lotus as Malaysian, do we?
- there is nothing to say production won't stay in the UK
- it could be they are looking at just Jaguar. LR was only bundled in as sugar, but sales of LR are still going well, so they would arguably be worth keeping or selling separately
- it isn't impossible to split Jaguar and Land Rover. I think the splitting of Aston and of Chrysler from Daimler have shown it CAN be done. They just need to secure parts supply and move to another production facility
- Tata have deep pockets and they already know about making cars, distribution, supply chain etc. This may be a better bet than a VC compnay having a go.
I am accepting that Jaguar can't be "British" if it is to survive. There just isn't the momentum in the UK to keep something like this going. As long as they stay making them here I couldn't care less. I mean, we don't see Lotus as Malaysian, do we?
Edited by Hendry on Thursday 19th July 12:10
I wouldn't rush to compare Tata to a curry house, or other such Forsythian thoughts.
India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, it certainly has the fastes growing middle class.
Indians are very pro- British products and Jaguar would be seen as a great status symbol.
Tata have more money than Ford and understand the English far better than Ford.
Can't see anything wrong with this, to be honest.
India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, it certainly has the fastes growing middle class.
Indians are very pro- British products and Jaguar would be seen as a great status symbol.
Tata have more money than Ford and understand the English far better than Ford.
Can't see anything wrong with this, to be honest.
silv said:
It's bad enough Ford owning Jaguar IMO!! Maybe Tesco's will put in a bid as well! Manufacturing in the uk is falling to pieces!! Brown and his numpties need a rocket up there ar-e They should make sure that british
products and cars like Jaguar are manufactured in the UK no matter who owns them.
<devils advocate>products and cars like Jaguar are manufactured in the UK no matter who owns them.
I can see it now..
a Tesco extra in all Jag showrooms...
get 5000 loyalty card points with each XJ bought...
By one get one free...
X Type Diesel rebadged as Jaguar Value...
But lets face it, tescos have one hell of a business head on them at the moment... and take plenty of risks
</devils advocate>
In this day and age it does not matter who owns what company. as long as Jaguar remains then it should not bother us. No one seems to care that VW own Bentley anymore. Its still a Bentley!!
If Ford hadn't bought Jag in '89 then it may have dissapeared already by now!! Who knows. But like all of us, if you are struggling for money you sell your assets.
If Ford hadn't bought Jag in '89 then it may have dissapeared already by now!! Who knows. But like all of us, if you are struggling for money you sell your assets.
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