It appears that Indian carmaker, Tata Motors, is going to be the new owner of Jaguar and Land Rover. Several recent articles, including this one in the Financial Times, show Tata in a leading position to buy the brands from Ford. We've already discussed the premium brand Ford is keeping, Volvo, so today let's look at the two nameplates Ford is looking to unload.

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Every time I get into a new Land Rover test vehicle I think, "Maybe this will be the one to change my impression of Land Rover." For the record, my impression of Land Rover is a company with a rich history of buidling highly capable off-road vehicles. As for its current vehicle offerings, Land Rovers are still capable... but their transition to 21st Century reliability has yet to emerge.

And sure enough, on this 2008 Land Rover LR2 everything worked fine...except the one-touch up feature on the driver's window. One-touch down worked, and every other window had full one-touch up and one-touch down functionality, but no amount of fiddling could get the driver's window to go up without holding the button (yes, I even tried "re-setting" the window by holding the switch fully up and fully down for several seconds).

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In our ongoing series of future product plan coverage let's take a look at what will be coming across the Atlantic in the coming years. Glancing through the Automotive News analysis it would appear Europe's focus will be on crossovers, small cars and increased fuel efficiency. Who'd a thunk it? But a return of Alfa Romeo and a "cheap" Rolls Royce should keep things interesting. I'm only covering half of the European brands today because, well, there's a lot of them!

Alfa Romeo: After years of hints and innuendos it appears Alfa Romeo may really be coming to America in 2009. Look for the 8C Competizione (rear-drive coupe with 450hp V8), the 159 sedan (front- or all-wheel drive), the Brea (a 2+2 coupe) and the Spider (a two-seat convertible based off the Brea platform). Momma-mia!

Aston Martin: The DBS is debuting this week in Frankfurt, and it looks to be a worthy successor to the Vanquish. But the real test of Aston Martin's future will come with the launch of it high-end, high-performance sedan, the Rapide (in 2009). With new ownership and a new product direction the future could be very bright for this British brand.

Audi: The redesigned A4 is practically here, and the redesigned A6 follows next year. But the big news for 2009  is a sleek new A7 sedan that goes up against the CLS, plus not one but two new crossovers (one of which is the Q5, pictured). An A5 convertible and redesigned A8 round out the fun in 2010.

I have to admit, this one almost had me. I'm not a big fan of Land Rovers for three simple reasons. 1. They cost too much. 2. They have screwy ergonomics. And 3. They are one of the few brands of modern cars that actually concern me in terms of getting from Point A to Point B without a breakdown. But, when I drove this Range Rover SC recently I was undeniably smitten -- initially

First, it didn't break down (always a good way to score points with me). Second, while the center stack is unquestionably overburdended with buttons, knobs and switches, the car's basic controls (windows, shifter, volume, etc) are relatively straightforward. And an electric power brake system is always preferred over fumbling for pedals under the dash and risking a hamstring injury when engaging (though it still took me awhile to find the release handle). Plus, this thing is FAST and highly stable around corners, even with a 3 ton curb weight. And the black color (Java Black Pearlescent, officially) totally worked on it.

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Had a Land Rover LR3 to drive home last night. I consider Land Rover one of my larger automotive conundrums. One the one I had, I really like what the company represents. They've managed to greatly up their luxury quotient in recent years while addressing many of their worst ergonomic flaws. Yet through it all there's still a sense of old-school adventure associated with the marque. For instance, in the LR3 you have high, upright chairs and rubber floor mats, so functionality is clearly captured. But the seats themselves are covered in supple leather, the audio system rocks and the one-touch window switches (finally located in the right location these days), thus providing the premium factor many customers are seeking. And, of course, these vehicles absolutely shred in any off-road situation.

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I keep trying to convince myself that Land Rovers "aren't like they used to be" (which would be a good thing, btw). I tell myself, "They've been owned by Ford long enough to not have incessant mechanical gremlins and train-wreck ergonomics anymore, right?" Tonight I drove home a 2006 Land Rover Range Rover HSE. On the tight turns along Old Topanga Road (PCH was having traffic issues) I noted that on hard left-hand turns the axles were binding. It wasn't in low-range and all other settings were in "normal" mode but it still shuttered and groaned on hard lefts (the problem didn't exist on hard rights). I tried to distract myself from this trait by tuning in my favorite talk radio station. Problem was, my station is on the AM band and the audio system was set to FM (cue ominous "Bumm!-Bumm!-Bumm!" music). Because the buttons surrounding the LCD screen are decorated with bizarre pictograms that tell you NOTHING, and because most of the audio system must be controlled through the touch screen, I found it nearly impossible to switch bands. There are additional audio controls on the steering wheel, but these buttons -- while large and taking up a lot space -- can only adjust volume and frequency (I think...).

Our long-term Land Rover LR3 is turning over 15,000 miles -- and I just got my first drive in it. A combination of driver rotations and test car logistics has kept me out of the SUV since we bought it seven months ago, but in the last 48 hours I've put 200 miles on the odometer. And, after some quality time in our new long-term Jeep Commander over the past few weeks, I have a sense of how these boxy competitors line up. Despite the Jeep's remarkably car-like driving dynamics (for a large, solid-axle box), the Land Rover has the overall advantage in term of on-road behavior. The steering is even lighter and sharper on the LR3, and the ride quality is higher (not surprising consider its IRS advantage). However, while the Jeep's stiffer suspension doesn't filter out road imperfections as well, it also keeps the Jeep more upright around corners. If the "tippiness" of SUVs is one of your major issues, you'll probably like the Commander more than the LR3.