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Luxury sports car maker Aston Martin is heading back into British hands. Ford have sold the company to a UK-led group for £479 million.

The buying consortium is led by Dave Richards, boss of respected motorsport specialist Prodrive.

The American car giant has had a big stake in Aston Martin since 1987, buying the company outright in 1994. Under Ford's ownership, the company reported record sales of 4,500 cars in 2005.

But with the onset of Ford's financial troubles, the group decided to sell Aston Martin. Ford lost more than $12bn in 2006, and faces huge restructuring costs. However the group has still held on to a £40 million slice of the company.

The sportscar specialist will remain at its purpose-built factory in Gaydon (Warwickshire), which employs 1,800 people.

Prodrive success

Under the leadership of Dave Richards, Prodrive has built a formidable reputation in motorsport, running the Aston Martin racing team in the sports car series around the world as well as the highly-successful Subaru rally team.

Dave Richards also managed the BAR Formula One team from 2002 to 2004, taking the team from eighth to second in the manufacturers world championship in that period, before Honda took a greater role in the team. Richards was also a leading figure in the Benetton F1 team in the late 90s.

Prodrive owns a slot to enter the 2008 F1 World Championship, but the consortium has called 'unfounded' speculation that Prodrive may now brand its cars Aston Martin.

Also in the consortium with Dave Richards is John Sinders - a banker in finance and shipping who spends his time between Texas and Dubai - and two Kuwaiti investment companies.

Future challenges

Looking ahead, the biggest question facing the new owners is whether, without the backing of a well-funded major car group enjoyed by many of Aston Martin's main rivals, the new owners will have enough cash to spend on developing the brand's cars to keep them ahead of the competition.

A further threat is looming EU car emissions regulations. If these are implemented on a per-manufacturer basis, that would present a major problem for independent sportscar makers unable to meet such rules by balancing the inevitably higher emissions of their products with the low-emissions city cars also produced by a large car group.

For the company to survive under such an imposed EU regime, huge investment would be needed to produce low-emissions powerplants that nevertheless maintain the required level of power and performance.