Ford sells Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata

[bananas]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7313380.stm

Tata buys Jaguar in £1.15bn deal

Car giant Ford has sold its luxury UK-based car brands Jaguar and Land Rover to Indian company Tata.

Tata, India's biggest vehicle maker, is paying $2.3bn (£1.15bn) for the British brands after months of negotiations over price and supply relationships.

The negotiations started last June when Ford announced its intention to sell the companies as a package.

<snip>

Ford has been forced to sell the two companies in order to concentrate on its loss-making core US car business, which it hopes to turn around in the next two years.

<snip>

[DS1]

1. British pride just got kicked in the balls

ouch

[Auggie]

2. Hard to believe. On the other hand, it should be a lot cheaper to build

cars if manufacturing moves to India.

[tinrobot]

3. I wonder if all auto manufacturing will move there...

Hope not.

[Auggie]

4. I don't think so. Honda and Toyota had to open plants here as a PR move.

Maybe we'll see an increase in parts manufacturing though.

[Kolesar]

11. Toyota moved the low-value-added jobs here to be close to the market

They had already won the public relations war (that sounded a lot like union bashing to me).

[Nihil]

7. Nah ... that happened years ago ...

... when Ford bought a decent car manufacturer and f*cked it up B.A.R..

I used to do some work with Jaguar and I know *exactly* what they
used to say about the wankers from Ford ...

[jwirr]

5. I wonder when US auto makers are going to get the idea: They need

to remember that Henry Ford built his empire on the idea that if you make an affordable care that most Americans can afford then you make money - that means that they need to realize that moving their companies to India just leaves more people who cannot afford their product or the gas to fill the damn thing.

[kestrel91316]

6. There's just something WRONG about a company named "Tata".

I keep hearing that guy in An Officer And A Gentleman talking about some chick's "bodascious tatas", and I cringe........

[Kolesar]

9. How about a restaurant named Chi Chi's ?

[kestrel91316]

14. Maybe I'm missing something. I don't see the problem with it.

Chi Chi Rodriguez and all........

[htuttle]

8. Now that's a sign of the times if I've ever seen one

Heck -- 10-15 years ago, most people were riding bicycles and scooters in India (and China). Now there's enough demand for luxury cars for Tata to buy Jaguar/Land Rover.

The world has indeed changed....

[Kolesar]

10. Those Indians could spend their fortunes buying some American products

With all the dollars they are accruing due to the trade surplus. Would be nice

[GliderGuider]

12. You guys still make products?

Maybe they could buy some nice made-in-the-USA SIVs, CDSs and CDOs. Those would take care of their new-found fortunes in short order. :sarcasm:

[Kolesar]

13. That's what Ohio's economy is based on

despite the misinformation