|
VW bids for Rolls-Royce
|
 |
March 25, 1998: 4:26 p.m. ET
Volkswagen faces rival British group and BMW in pursuit of luxury icon
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Volkswagen AG said Wednesday it has made an offer to buy Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the British auto maker whose auction has shaken up the stuffy world of European automaking.
Volkswagen didn't reveal how much it offered, but auto analysts say Rolls-Royce, a high-class car maker and perhaps the quintessential symbol of British style, could fetch as much as $670 million.
Waiting in the wings behind Volkswagen is its fellow German automaker BMW AG, which is expected to make an offer soon.
A clan of well-heeled investors who hope to keep Rolls-Royce in British hands reportedly also has made a bid.
BMW has made no secret of its desire to buy Rolls-Royce since its owner, engineering group Vickers PLC, put the company on the auction block last October.
Analysts say that BMW is still the presumptive favorite to win Rolls-Royce, but the road has been far from smooth driving so far.
Earlier this month, BMW, in an unusually harsh critique, charged Vickers with "running a poker game" by dragging out the process as a way to elicit a higher bid for Rolls-Royce.
Playing a bit of hardball, BMW threatened to cut off the supply of engines it provides Rolls-Royce if a rival bidder buys the company.
The bids from Volkswagen and British venture capital firm Doughty Hanson should accelerate the bidding, with a decision expected sometime this spring, analysts said.
"I would still see BMW as the most likely [successful bidder] and I would expect them to make an offer shortly," Jonathan Storey, a European auto analysts, said.
Last November, BMW was said to have driven off rival suitor Mayflower PLC, a British auto parts maker, from buying all of Vickers.
Vickers has said it wants to sell Rolls-Royce so it can focus on its defense and engineering businesses.
|
|
|
|
|
|
BMW
Vickers
Volkswagen
|
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNNmoney
|
|
|
|
 |
|
