On Monday, June 18, The Wall Street Journal reported that Ford Motor Company has entered into negotiations with Cerberus Capital Management about the potential sale of its Land Rover and Jaguar brands.

According to the article, insiders termed the inital talks "inconclusive." Cerberus, the same company that recently purchased 80 percent of Chrysler, is one of the most likely candidates to pick up the two brands as Ford refocuses its efforts on shoring up flagging operations in North America. Reportedly a private equity fund under the direction of Jac Nasser, former Ford CEO, has also expressed interest in the offering.

Last March, Ford divested itself of the Aston Martin brand after talks that lasted six months. In that case, the purchaser was an investment group that included David Richards, John Sinders, Investment Dar and Adeem Investment Co. The sale was concluded for $848 million. The Land Rover / Jaguar sale will likely garner $1.3 to $1.5 billion for the Detroit automaker.

Technically, both Jaguar and Land Rover are owned by Ford's Premier Automotive Group. The two are likely to be offered as a package deal in the sale since both are constructed at a factory near Liverpool, England. Any sales negotiations are expected to take at least a month to conclude.

Speculation runs rampant about the eventual fate of automotive entities purchased by groups like Cerberus. Some pundits claim a new automaker will emerge from the acquisitions while others expect re-sales to emerging car companies, perhaps even those from India and China.