As on-again, off-again romances go, it has been a bit of a classic example. Wealthy European business leader courting (or being courted by, depends to whom you speak) a classically beautiful English rose. Will the two star-crossed lovers unite?
No, not an undiscovered Barbara Cartland novel ('My Love Seeks a Platform Sharing Agreement' perhaps?) but the oft-spoken of, never-consummated relationship between Mercedes-Benz and Aston Martin. The British sports and luxury car maker, famed for its gorgeous designs, bellowing V12 engines and espionage connections, has been seeking a tie-up with a major car maker ever since it was sold by then-owner Ford to a consortium of middle-eastern investors led by Prodrive boss Dave Richards.
As late as last year, it seemed set that Mercedes and Aston would tie some sort of knot. Mercedes wanted Aston's low-volume and lightweight construction expertise to help revive the ailing Maybach super-luxury brand, Aston meanwhile craved the Mercedes ML platform for a putative Lagonda-badged SUV and needed Mercedes' engine tech to leapfrog upcoming emissions legislation. All of which seemed to have fallen apart when Mercedes boss Dieter Zetsche finally did the decent thing and put Maybach out of its bloated, under-selling misery.
Now though, the deal seems to be back on, with Mercedes admitting that it's back in talks with Aston Martin. "While both sides know and respect each other very much, no decisions have been made" Silke Walters, a Mercedes spokesperson said in an official statement.
Mercedes is known to be the prime target for Aston's newest shareholder, finance house Invesdustrial, which bought a 37.5% share of the firm last year from the Kuwaiti group Investment Dar - which purchased Aston from Ford. Aston Martin is celebrating its centenary this year and has recently announced a €700-million investment in new models and engines as it seeks to compete with heavy-hitting Bentley, Ferrari and Maserati. Interestingly, Invesdustrial has recent form in turning around niche-market motoring performance specialists. It was Invesdustrial that bought Italian motorbike maker Ducati before subsequently selling that firm on to Audi, under whose Teutonic tutelage it is now flourishing. Does a similar happy fate await Aston Martin?
Invesdustrial and Investment Dar will be feverishly hoping so, as Aston Martin risks being left out in the cold. It is the only niche supercar maker that is currently operating without the backing of a major car manufacturer and while its V8 and V12 engines and aluminium-and-carbon-fibre chassis technology are all compellingly entertaining, all will age. The engines, especially, are based on two-decade-old Ford and Jaguar units. The question will be whether or not Mercedes, which itself has seen falling profits and sales volumes recently, can afford (in both senses of the word) to take on Aston Martin as it also seeks to compete with BMW and Audi for the global premium badge No.1 spot.