After months of negotiation, the Ford Motor Company and the Tata Group of India confirmed Tata's purchase of Jaguar and Land Rover for $2.3 billion, approximately 50 percent of the price Ford originally paid for the prestige brands.

As part of the arrangement, however, Ford will actually pay Tata $600 million to compensate for pension plan shortfalls. Tata, a major Indian conglomerate, has closed a series of acquisitions overseas in areas ranging from tea and coffee production to steel manufacturing, an expansion strategy fueled by the weak American dollar.

Originally Ford acquired the British Jaguar brand in 1989, paying $2.38 million and announcing ambitious plants to triple sales of the iconic cars. Instead, however, Ford was in the position of cutting both jobs and production as the market for luxury cars slumped in the face of economic woes in both the United States and the United Kingdom.

In 2000, Ford acquired Land Rover from BMW for slightly less than $3 billion. The brand has actually been profitable in recent years and likely represents a better business proposition for Tata.

The purchase does, however, present a marked contrast to Tata's other automotive production, the Nano, a minimalist and small hatchback with a price of just $2,500. Tata will now have the distinction of selling both the world's least expensive car and high dollar luxury models at the same time.

Ford will continue to provide powertrains for both Jaguar and Land Rover models and will contribute a degree of research and development support to the brands. Additionally, financing will continue to be handled by Ford Motor Credit for up to a year.