Ford Motor Company is suing Ferrari for trademark infringement. The suit was filed in federal court in Detroit Wednesday after Ferrari named their 2011 Formula One racing car the F150. Ford says the Ferrari logo bears a striking resemblance to Ford’s F-150 pickup logo. Note that Ferrari’s name F150 is not hyphenated, as is Ford’s name for the F-150 Pickup. According to The Detroit News, "Ford has used the F-150 name on its flagship, full-size pickup trucks since the 1975 model year."
Ford wants to bar Ferrari from using the name F150 for obvious reasons. After all, the differences between a Ford pickup truck and a Ferrari Formula 1 race car are so subtle that only the most discerning automotive cognoscenti can appreciate them.
Ford is also seeking damages under an anti-cybersquatting provision of the Consumer Protection Act. According to Ferrari’s website, Ferrari chose the name in honor of the 150th anniversary of the unification of Italy.
Who will win? Ferrari has more horsepower but Ford has more lawyers. Stay tuned.
UPDATE Feb 11, 2011
This morning, sources are reporting Ferrari has backed off, and will call their new race car by its full name, the Ferrari F150 Italia instead of calling it the F150. No doubt Ferrari had second thoughts about facing Ford's army of attorneys and placing their fate in the hands of a Wayne County jury. For those not familiar with the Detroit area, Wayne County juries are notorious for exhorbitant damage awards.
Also see: www.ferrarif150.com
Comments
Oh great--I was looking forward to telling people I was the owner of an F150 when I went to Italy this summer....
As if anyone would be confused by the name and purchase a Ferrari sport car instead of a Ford pick-up! Ford should have been flattered!
I agree the whole thing sounds silly. Pontiac appropriated the name GTO from Ferrari and no one confused Ferrari and Pontiac. The Pontiac GTO was a Tempest with a big V8 engine stuffed in it while the Ferrari GTO was true race car.
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