LONDON - Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, owner of Formula One team Racing Point, is preparing a bid for a major stake in Aston Martin,
magazine reported, sending the carmaker's battered share price up nearly 15% on Thursday.
Stroll, who is the father of Formula One driver Lance Stroll, is heading up a consortium looking to take a "major shareholding" in Aston Martin, Autocar said on Thursday.
Aston Martin declined to comment. Racing Point did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Aston is trying hard to turn around its performance and winning new customers will be key to its success.
Aston Martin has gone bankrupt seven times in its 106 year history and its share prices have plunged by around 75 percent in the last year on falling demand for the Vantage.
However, hope is on the horizon and it takes the form of Aston Martin’s first-ever SUV, called the DBX. With this vehicle, the company is also hoping to win over more female buyers - in fact Aston even used an all-female advisory body to design many of its features.
Built in a purpose-made factory in Wales, the Aston Martin DBX is built around a new dedicated SUV platform and its body is made from bonded aluminium to minimise weight. It is powered by an AMG-sourced 4-liter twin-turbo petrol engine, which produces 405kW and 700Nm. According to factory quotes, the DBX is capable of speeding from zero to 100km/h in just 4.5 seconds.