The British Motor Industry Heritage Centre at Gaydon has been bought by a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company. Premier Automotive Group, the luxury arm of Ford, will take control of the Gaydon site as part of BMW¹s sale of the Land Rover brand. Premier has also acquired the rights to the Gaydon Research and Development Centre, the Land Rover plant in Solihull and a workforce of 13,000 employees. "This agreement, following the sale of Rover, is the second decisive step in implementing the strategic reorientation of BMW Group," said Joachim Milberg, chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG. The sale of the Heritage Centre came as a surprise to most in the Mini fraternity, who believed Gaydon would be retained by the German manufacturer as part of its Mobile Tradition group. Just three weeks ago BMW spokesperson Mike McHale told us the Ford deal would "not include Heritage". Premier Automotive Group was established around a year ago and is based in London. It controls the luxury brands within Ford Motor Company, including Aston Martin and Jaguar. Christoph Sieder, from PAG, said no plans had yet been made for the future of the Heritage Centre. "It's still very early to have come up with any ideas," he said. "But there is no need to worry about Gaydon or the cars there. Ford is a tolerant company and we are very thrilled to have it on board." At the Heritage Centre itself the mood was also upbeat, even though staff only heard of the news via a press release-style memo. "I think most people here are optimistic," said archivist Karam Ram. "We don't expect there to be any negative changes, in fact we expect Ford to develop the site further. Most of us think it's a good thing." The Ford/BMW announcement follows the developments of recent weeks that confirmed the Phoenix Consortium as the new owners of Rover Cars. BMW sold the ailing British brand to the company led by ex-Rover boss John Towers for a nominal ten pounds. This includes current the Mini production line, although the life of the classic car is unlikely to be extended, and will end as planned in September 2000. "The Mini still belongs to BMW," says Mini spokesperson Jill Howes. "We've just been given the licence to produce it until later this year."

Mini World News
Article Date: May 25, 2000
Car Accociations: MINI,MORRIS,SPRITE,
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