Chrysler's New Owner Might Buy Jaguar and Land Rover

[TDRadmin]

[RAW]Just when I thought we could start thinking about something beside Chrysler&#8217;s change of ownership, this came along. Ford has announced that its Land Rover and Jaguar divisions are for sale, and Cerberus, the firm that just bought a controlling interest in Chrysler, is said to be among the possible buyers. <br/><br/>Ford&#8217;s desperate financial situation is forcing the sale; Jaguar and Land Rover could possibly be sold for $1.5 billion or less. That is much cheaper than the $5.5 billion Ford originally paid for the two companies and it has lost billions more on them in the ensuing years. <br/><br/>The good news is that the Land Rover and Jaguar brands may be priced right and a good match for Chrysler. Jaguar could give Chrysler a premium car brand and Land Rover&#8217;s high-end SUVs could slot in above Jeep. <br/><br/>The bad news is, if Cerberus isn&#8217;t successful, it could bring down Chrysler and our beloved Dodge brand as well. There are a lot of challenges. It is very costly to develop new vehicles and efficient drivetrains, especially now with strict emission regulations, super-clean diesels and complex hybrids. The only way to contain costs would be to share components with Chrysler products, but this dilutes the premium brand&#8217;s reputation, as we&#8217;ve seen before. If Land Rover and Jaguar couldn&#8217;t make it on their own, and couldn&#8217;t make it under Ford&#8217;s control, how can we expect them to make it now? [/RAW]