Louis Vuitton buys Aston Martin

[Marty Weiner]

Not since the day that I bought a Peugeot (Sp?) about 30 years ago have I been so upset.

Aston Martin, that bastion of English motoring has been sold to the same people that make Moet champagne, Hennessey liquor and easily knocked-off luggage.

Ford Motor Company is so desperate to rid itself of liabilities, it's just selling off it's assets helter-skelter.

Is nothing sacred?

 

[gregw]

Hmmm... Bernard Arnault's interest was known for quite a while now... Any link to the latest news or Ford announcement? Have they actually closed the deal?

My understanding is that Bernard Arnault has formed a new/separate investment company to buy Aston, and Aston will not be under LVMH... The only common denominator is that the Arnault family controls LVMH, not that LVMH is buying Aston..

Looking at the resurgence of Aston over the last 10 years, I don't think having a new owner would make any difference, as long as Ulrich Benz stays on as CEO.. IMHO, Aston makes the most beautiful cars in the world today...

Regarding Peugeot, I used to own a 205 GTI, which was a fantastic little pocket rocket in it's day... The reliability, however, was something else...

 

[twentysixtwo]

wOW, is that official?

 

[Marty Weiner]

wOW, is that official?

According to autoblog.com the bidding is closed and the LV group is the winner.

 

[Marty Weiner]

Motor Trend is disputing yesterday's published reports about the buyer being Vuitton.

They're saying that the buyer is a group of high-finance types that no one has ever heard of at a cost of $1 Billion.

Who knows at this point. Marketwatch ran the story of Vuitton being the buyer yesterday so we'll have to wait and see what the facts are.

No announcement from the buyer(s) (or seller) at this point.

 

[gregw]

At this point, I think it's just rumours.. I wouldn't give any credence to these stories until Ford makes an official announcement.. BTW, Bernard Arnault is one of those "high finance" types, who doesn't have any car industry experience, but knows a good deal when he sees one..

BTW, have you seen the new Aston Martin Vantage Roadster? That's going to sell very well indeed..