Old Roxor | Redesigned Roxor |
Posted on 07/24/2023 5:00:53 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
A court has ruled that Jeep's lawsuit against Mahindra over the Roxor UTV has no ground to stand on since the off-roader's substantial redesign. As a result, Mahindra is clear to sell its distant relative to the Wrangler in the United States.
The pair's legal spat began in August 2018 when Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (now part of Stellantis) complained to authorities of the Mahindra Roxor's visual similarity to the Jeep CJ. Jeep described the Roxor as a "nearly identical copy" as quoted by Automotive News, pointing to its "boxy body shape with flat-appearing vertical sides and rear body ending at about the same height as the hood."
It's not just the Roxor's body that was similar, either. The vehicle is descended from license-built CJs dating back to the late 1940s. In some major mechanical respects, its design is still similar to the CJ, meaning it stands to eat into sales of Jeep's off-road staple the 2024 Wrangler.
In June 2020, the U.S. International Trade Commission initially took FCA's side, stating the Roxor infringed on Jeep's trade dress (its appearance) and recommending a ban on importing and selling Roxor parts. Mahindra responded by aggressively restyling the Roxor for 2020, which satisfied the ITC.
Now, Bloomberg reports the Eastern District Court of Michigan has ruled in favor of Mahindra, re-enabling sale of the Roxor. In a July 19 decision, the court reportedly denied Jeep's request to enforce the "safe distance rule" that would've required a further redesign.
(Excerpt) Read more at thedrive.com ...
Wow, very cool. Super simple machine like the old school jeeps. I wonder if it has a metal dash like the oldies.
The article says it can be converted to street legal in some states but not others. Guessing we’ll be seeing these things on the road in the South and maybe out West.
I too enjoy motorcycling. If I wanted to buy retro, it would be HD Heritage or Deluxe; certain Indian models; certain Triumph models.
Jeep is a (failing) DUTCH COMPANY
Actually Ford is in bad trouble and not willing to spend cash on a law suit that can be a bottomless pit
Old Roxor | Redesigned Roxor |
These pictures tell me...yes, it looks a little like a JEEP, but not that much. If they do the job & the price is competitive....this works both ways you know. Admittedly, I am not a great fan of JEEP. I worked on the older ones for a number of years & saw many areas for improvement; including price for an outdated design.
We have an IH B414 tractor. Built in the early 60s. It’s a bit larger with more features than a Ford N.
It was built by an IH subsidiary in the UK and imported to North America.
Anyhow, when International discontinued it, they sold the rights and tooling to Mahindra, who manufactured it with modification for decades, which was a pretty decent bar to measure against.
When I ordered replacement parts from IH, they came in Mahindra boxes.
Ours is 60+ years old and getting tired, but I still use it to mow our pastures and grade the driveway.
Don’t know what their modern products are like, but I’ve heard that their tractors based on the IH Bs where close to parity with 1960s IH.
I’m pretty much in line with that although I have been impressed with the Royal Enfield 650s and I think the super meteor is going to be a very interesting release. If Royal Enfield decides to start making a 750 or 850 twin that will be even more interesting.
I’m not a big Harley guy, I have an Indian Scout. But my first bike was a BSA so I do have soft spot for the British twins and came close to getting a Triumph before I bought my Scout. The other retro bike I would throw in there that I find appealing is the Kawasaki w800, for obvious reasons.
Appreciate it.
Honestly that thing looks like a cheap piece of crap......not to mention unsafe.
Yep, and if they price it at 30k people will but the basic jeep instead.
30k ain’t gonna get you a Jeep......at least not a new one. But when it comes to safety I have no problem with an upcharge.
Also, I have mandatory rule of thumb, even if I wanted it, I never buy a make/model unless it’s been on the market for at least 5 years.....I hear the new broncos have all kinds of recalls.
2023 starts at $31,895 msrp totally stripped two door wrangler, still nicer than the Mahindra
And your gonna add 2 to 3k for taxes.
But yes I agree, even though the Jeeps are coming out of a union plant, I’m confident the quality control is far superior.
Also, after market upgrade parts and accessories for Wranglers are readily available from a multitudeof sources ......this luxor thing probably not so much.
Great vid, thanks .. back when vehicles were still sane !
Today’s vehicles are far too complicated and correspondingly far to unreliable. Just replacing a turn signal is an $800 affair on some vehicles. A fellow can’t change the oil himself on others. Absurd.
The becoming ancient Buick and Cummins we now drive are too complicated and they are closing in on 20 years old but all functions still go. If they still made a Buick Lucerne like the one they quit making and at a similar price I’d buy one today. As for the truck, I have no need for a new one and this one could well be my last.
Parts count matters. I learned that in spades in some of my industrial designs and that goes for electronics too. The more connections you have the more failure points, the more components the more there is to fail. It is inescapable.
I lied a little, the horn contact pad switch on the truck needs to be replaced again. They are an unreliable design.
Re-badge it as a Jeep. Buy a title from a wrecking yard from a totaled jeep. Cope won't know the difference. Saved you tens of thousands of dollars.
So Mahindra copied Jeep, after all. The best way to tell if the design is the same is to put in the Jeep's nature environments - park the Roxor along side the road with its hood up or put it on the back end of a tow truck. ;-) I'm jerking the chain of the Jeep/Chrysler people to see if they are awake, yet.
My daughter thought she loved Jeeps and bought a Wrangler and soon got rid of it. When I asked her what she was going to replace it with, she told me 'anything but a Jeep.'
I haven’t had a moments problem out of my JL.
You don’t want to know how the parts are made.
Generous use of garam masala
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