Ford, the embattled American car-maker, has put its luxury Aston Martin brand up for sale, after being informally approached by several potential buyers, thought to include former company executive Jacques Nasser.

The hand-made Aston Martin is Ford's most prestigious brand, with sales of its various lines running at about 4,500 a year and a price tag regularly in excess of £100,000 each.

A Ford spokesman told Times Online: "We've already received confidential expressions of interest from parties," although he declined to name any of the parties involved.

He also declined to be drawn on a potential value for Aston Martin, the likely sale of which follows recent speculation the car giant was also considering a sale of its Jaguar operations.

Mr Nasser, a former chief executive at Ford, left the group five years ago and is now a partner at private equity firm One Equity.

As the creator of Ford's Premier Automotive Group, which houses both Jaguar and Aston Martin, Mr Nasser is reported to have expressed previous interest in buying ,Land Rover and Volvo as well.

Ford said today that no decision over the future of Jaguar had yet been reached, although sources close to the company played down the likelihood of a sale going ahead.

Bill Ford, chairman and chief executive, said there would be a "particular emphasis" on a sale of Aston Martin as part of a strategic review of the business unveiled today.

Mr Ford said Aston Martin "may be an attractive opportunity to raise capital and generate value" for the car-maker, which has been struggling to rebuild its business amid declining sales and fierce competition from low-cost rivals, particularly in Japan.

"Since Aston Martin's dealer network, product architecture and size are distinctly different from other Ford brands, it is the most logical and capital-smart divestiture choice," Mr Ford said, adding that a sale, should it take place, would help the group raise capital to channel into other brands.

Despite the lack of clarity over Jaguar, Mr Ford said he had been "encouraged by Jaguar's progress and by the strength and consumer appeal of the Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo product line-ups".

Today's early-stage sale process comes after Ford said earlier this month that it will cut production in the final quarter by more than a fifth as it moved forward with dramatic cost-cutting plans that will involve closing up to 14 factories and shedding up to 30,000 jobs.

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