The story
The Premier Automotive Group was formed in 1998 under then-CEO Jacques Nasser and grew to include the Lincoln, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo brands. Forbes estimated that, by 2004, Ford had spent $17 billion building on acquisitions to form PAG.
In 2002, Lincoln returned to Ford's direct control. Lincoln's headquarters had been merged into PAG's North American office, where it was run by a German executive based in London, England.
The four other marques in the Premier Automotive Group (Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover, and Volvo) operated as distinct companies with separate markets and dealer networks, which limited potential synergies within the division. Ford encouraged the brands to share parts and engineering to reduce costs, but this sometimes resulted in vehicles that were criticized for resembling mass-market Ford models. The Jaguar X-Type, for example, shared its platform with the Ford Mondeo and was seen as insufficiently distinct. Volvo, which had been successful in the United States as an independent entry-level luxury brand, lost market share during its time in PAG to German manufacturers such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, which had expanded their lower-priced luxury offerings.
When Alan Mulally became president and CEO in September 2006, he oversaw Ford's dismantling of the Premier Automotive Group. In 2007, Ford sold 92% of Aston Martin to a consortium of investors headed by David Richards. In September 2006, the rights to use the defunct Rover brand name had been secured from BMW by Ford to protect the Land Rover brand. In March 2008, Ford sold Jaguar and Land Rover to Indian carmaker Tata Motors. In 2010, Ford sold the Swedish brand Volvo Cars, the last of the PAG brands, to the parent of Chinese carmaker Geely for $1.8 billion.
From Wikipedia’s article on Premier Automotive Group, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3