Fake In China: An F150 By Another Name
Remember when Ford dragged Ferrari into the U.S. district court in Detroit, after Ferrari had the nerve to call their new Formula One racer the “F150”? Ford feared massive dilution of their F-150 truck mark and sued. Ferrari relented. Let’s see what Ford will do about this overdose of trademark and design patent infringement:
This is the new JAC 43R pickup truck. It looks “more than a little bit like the good old American Ford F150,” Carnewschina says. Even the logo is a blue oval. The headlights look like a 3rd shift job from a producer of OEM Ford headlights. The semblance is so canny ( or uncanny?) that even the Chinese interwebs are abuzz about the intellectual property infringement. You can rest assured that they have seen it all. The F150 lookalike is not even out yet, it exists only in spy photo form, and already causes a dust-up . The 43R will likely debut at the Beijing Auto Show in April, Carnewschina reckons. Ford will be there.
The F150 is not officially on sale in China, but there will be colossal likelihood of egregious confusion once the Chinese truck gets to Africa and South America. JAC and other makers of Chinese cheap pickups do brisk business there, filling the voids left by the now expensive offerings of GM, Chrysler and, yes, Ford.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
More by Bertel Schmitt
Comments
Join the conversation
Knowing JAC's current product line-up, the chassis is probably an Isuzu-clone, most likely built off the previous Colorado or even the upcoming Colorado ladder frame. Ford may sue, but their heart won't be in it. If you've ever driven a JAC pick-up, you'll know that they aren't exactly competing in the same circles as Ford is with the F150. Besides, Ford's upcoming Ranger would eat this thing alive and spit out the kibbles.
I wan't them to start faking GTO's Chevelles, Mach 1 Mustangs and all the early Muscle cars