Vw, Bmw Vie For Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars may be the epitome of luxury British craftsmanship, but the fight to run the fabled old automaker is looking like an all-German contest.

Volkswagen said Wednesday it has made a bid, and rival automaker BMW plans one soon.

Also in the running - but only as a long shot, it appears - is a group of well-heeled Rolls-Royce enthusiasts who complain Britain has lost most of its manufacturing base to foreigners.

The Rolls-Royce Acquisition Consortium wants to draw the line at Rolls-Royce, carmaker for kings and queens, oil sheiks and rock stars.

“It’s the last great auto company we have,” said John Richards, the consortium’s chairman. “It’s our crown jewels, really.”

Analysts predict BMW will be the eventual winner of the carmaker from Crewe, England, which has for decades built opulent Rolls-Royces and Bentleys that cost a bundle but are reputed to keep rolling forever, smoothly, in almost total silence.

BMW already has its foot in the door after teaming up with Rolls-Royce in a deal to build engines for new Rolls and Bentley models.

Volkswagen’s bid, however, appears to ensure BMW won’t be able to snap up Rolls-Royce on the cheap from its corporate parent, Vickers PLC.

“The real question lies in what bid price VW has put in,” said William Mackie, a securities analyst who follows auto companies for Credit Lyonnais Laing. “It’s quite clearly good news for Vickers. Confidence is rising Rolls-Royce won’t go for a bargain.”

Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piech would not say how much his company is willing to pay.

BMW has not yet made an offer, but plans one “when the time is right,” spokesman Uwe Mahla said. That will have to be soon, if Vickers sticks to its plan of deciding on a buyer by April.

Analysts have predicted Rolls-Royce should fetch around $660 million - although some news reports had suggested BMW might have tried for a cut-rate $413 million if it had been the only bidder.

Vickers has refused to say anything about price since it announced in October it would sell Rolls-Royce as part of a strategy to focus on other businesses, such as making military hardware and engines.

The chairman of the Rolls-Royce Acquisition Consortium also declined to talk numbers Wednesday.

“In the old days, when people asked you the horsepower of your Rolls-Royce, you said it was adequate,” Richards said in a telephone interview. “If you ask about the bid, I would simply say it’s adequate.”