Aston Martin is considering stepping up production by more than a quarter in the next three years, boosted by the new Rapide model.

The sports carmaker, famed for its association with James Bond, expects to take on at least 200 more workers.

The company announced its plans for expansion as Ford confirmed its sale to a consortium including David Richards, head of the motor-racing business Prodrive, and Kuwaiti investment groups. The investors are set to gear it up with debt as part of their financial restructuring of the carmaker.

Ulrich Bez, chief executive of Aston Martin, said that the Rapide would add another 1,000 to 2,000 cars to its annual total of 7,000. The Aston Martin factory at Gaydon in Oxfordshire will have to be expanded with a new production line and developments to the body and paint shops.

The Rapide will be the second model to be produced by Aston Martin under its new ownership. Later this year the DBS, the car that appears in the latest Bond film Casino Royale, will be made. The DBS and the Rapide will take Aston Martin’s range to seven cars.

Mr Richards, John Sinders, an American banker, and the Kuwaiti investment groups Investment Dar and Adeem Investment bought Aston Martin for £479 million from Ford which has been involved with the business for nearly 20 years. Ford will keep a £40 million stake in the business — just under 8 per cent — in preferred shares. The £40 million is included in the £479 million price tag.

Mr Richards, a former rally driver and an accountant, said that the Kuwaiti investors were committed to Aston Martin for the long term and would not be seeking a quick turnaround as private equity groups may. He said: “The car industry and this business require long-term investment. You can’t come in and out in two to three years as some private equity groups do.”

Banking sources said that the investment groups were committed for between seven and ten years. The investors are expected to put debt into Aston Martin, which was bought from Ford debt free, but they are not thought to be intending to load it as highly with debt as an average private equity deal, which is about a third of the business’s value.

Ford put Aston Martin on the sale block last August as part of a wide restructuring. The US carmaker posted a record loss of $12.7 billion last year as it struggled with plunging sales, especially in its home North American market.

Ford also owns Jaguar and Land Rover in the UK, but Lewis Booth, head of Ford Europe, yesterday said that there were no plans to sell the marques although all businesses were always under review.

Aston Martin has very little commonality with other Ford brands and was therefore seen as the easiest to sell. Land Rover and Jaguar and Ford-badged cars share a great deal of parts and design.

Ford said that the sale meant that Aston Martin would be guaranteed additional investment to enable it to grow.

Motor marque

— 7,010 Aston Martins produced last year

— 1,800 employees

— 10,166 registered in Britain

— 5.1% private owners are women

— 11% registered as company cars

Source: Aston Martin, GMAP

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