Ford's Aston Martin on sales block

Ford Motor Co. said Thursday it might sell its British-based Aston Martin luxury-auto unit, as the No. 2 U.S. automaker considers unloading assets to restore profits.

"As part of our ongoing strategic review, we have determined that Aston Martin may be an attractive opportunity to raise capital and generate value," Ford Chairman and CEO Bill Ford said in a statement.

"Since Aston Martin's dealer network, product architecture and size are distinctly different from other Ford brands, it is the most logical and capital-smart divestiture choice."

Ford announced that it is considering selling Aston Martin because it has had inquiries from potential buyers, said Ford spokesman Tom Hoyt.

"We're initiating a formal process to open it up to all parties," Hoyt said. "We're not commenting on the parties."

Analysts say Hyundai Motor Co., Porsche AG, Toyota Motor Corp. or an investment house, such as the one where former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser is a senior partner, are all possible buyers of the British vehicle brand.

"Hyundai makes the most sense, because they don't really have a luxury brand," said James Bryant, Hoover's auto industry editor in Austin, Texas. "It'd be a turnkey operation."

The South Korean automaker's namesake brand trailed only Porsche and Toyota's Lexus luxury marque in the 2006 J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Survey. Hyundai, which has said it wants to have luxury cars on the market by the end of the decade, issued a statement last month saying it wasn't interested in buying Jaguar.

"It's true, at one point we did conduct an internal review to acquire a luxury nameplate like Jaguar, but that option was dropped in view of our immediate priorities," the company said.

Spokesmen for the company weren't immediately available Thursday to comment on speculation about Aston Martin. Seoul, South Korea, is 13 hours ahead of Detroit.

A Toyota spokesman declined to comment, and Porsche spokesman Tony Fouladpour said, "A decision like that would not be considered at this time, though as an international company we always keep our options open."

Peter Morici, an economist and professor at the University of Maryland School of Business, doesn't expect an automaker to purchase the British brand favored by the silver screen's James Bond.

"My feeling is that it would more likely go to an investment house," Morici said. "Aston Martin would be maybe the kind of company that would appeal to Nasser and his group. It has to go to a specialized buyer, like Nasser, who has experience managing an automaker and time to focus on the brand."

Whoever buys the low-volume, uber-highbrow brand would know it has Ford over a barrel, said Hoover's Bryant.

"They're probably going to sell it for about what they paid for it, and they've put more money in," Bryant said. "Are they going to get a whole lot of money? No. But it will allow them to narrow their focus on larger issues. I think it's more about that than getting money."

Ford had a $1.44-billion net loss in the first half of 2006. In August, it hired former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. merger-and-acquisition specialist Kenneth Leet as a strategic adviser to review assets and brands, setting off speculation about what Ford would sell.

"Aston Martin is making money, so it has a financial value," said Joseph S. Phillippi, auto analyst and principal at AutoTrends in New Jersey. Ford said in a filing this month that Aston Martin is expected to see sales improve in 2006. "But its sale is not going to get you a huge chunk of cash."

Following larger-than-expected second-quarter losses, Ford announced in July that everything -- including selling off parts of the company -- was on the table as the automaker accelerated its Forward restructuring plan.

The initial turnaround plan called for cutting 34,000 jobs and closing 14 plants, among other actions, but the company now says its needs a deeper, faster plan.

Analysts have speculated that Ford could be preparing to sell Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo.

A week ago, the Financial Times reported that Ford was in early talks with Nasser about selling its luxury brands to JP Morgan's private equity arm, One Equity Financial, where Nasser now works.

But Ford said in his statement that the company has "made no decisions" regarding those brands.