Initial Bids Due for Jaguar/Land Rover Sale

The Ford Motor Company reportedly has set July 19 as the deadline for prospective bidders to submit initial proposals to acquire the automaker's Jaguar and Land Rover brands.

According to the Financial Times, bids are expected to come primarily from private-equity firms rather than other automakers.

Both brands are part of Ford's Premier Automotive Group and are based in the U.K. Land Rover is said to be increasingly profitable, while Jaguar continues to lose hundreds of millions of dollars.

The two brands share management and product development resources, as well as a number of components, including powertrains.

The newspaper said prospective bidders include Cerberus Capital Management, which is in the process of acquiring the Chrysler Group from DaimlerChrysler; Ripplewood Holdings, which is run by former executives of General Motors and Chrysler; and One Equity Partners, with former Ford CEO Jac Nasser on its management roster.

It was Nasser who masterminded the creation of the Premier Automotive Group, which now is in the process of being dismantled by current Ford CEO Alan Mulally as part of his focus on reviving the Blue Oval in North America.