Ford Motor Co. seems to have bitten of more than it can chew. It acquired two hallmarks of the British Automotive Industry not long ago. You see Ford owns Jaguar and Land Rover. Well now it seems that this will not continue for long.

Ford Motor Co CEO Alan Mulally said on Monday that the automaker could announce the sale of its premium British brands Jaguar and Land Rover by the end of the year.

“We will probably have something to announce by the end of this year, toward the first part of next year,” said Mulally.

This move is almost a certainty as Ford needs to get it’s game together and focus more on it’s own core brand. With their multiple-brands-under-one-roof approach they are stretching their resources to thin. This is causing a slew of mediocre products across the brands. The key word here is focus.

So far, a decision has not been made, but the US automaker has been exploring a sale of the brands since around June. The brands have been valued by a Merrill Lynch analyst at as much as $1.5 billion combined. Ford has narrowed the auction of Jaguar and Land Rover to three bids. The remaining bidders include Indian carmaker Tata Motors and rival Mahindra & Mahindra which has teamed up with buyout firm Apollo.

Whoever ends up with them is a mystery. The fact that this will cause problems and headaches to current and future customers of the two brands is an almost certainty.

All we can do now is wait and see.