General Motors Sues Avanti Motors in "Studebaker SUV" Dispute

Yahoo-AP ^ | Feb. 14, 2003 | not given

[pttttt]

GM Sues Avanti Motors in SUV Dispute

Fri Feb 14, 5:45 PM ET

DETROIT - General Motors Corp. has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Avanti Motor Corp., saying Avanti's new Studebaker XUV too closely resembles GM's Hummer H2 sport utility vehicle.

GM said in a statement Friday that the Studebaker XUV, which debuted Friday at the Chicago Auto Show, "knocks off and misappropriates the shape" of the Hummer H2.

GM trademark attorney Charles Ellerbrock said "the Studebaker XUV is so similar to the H2 that the public will be confused by the knock off of the H2.

"GM will not allow its world-famous trademark rights to be violated," he said.

Georgia-based Avanti said Friday that an official statement from owner Michael Kelly would be released Monday from the Chicago show.

GM is seeking a preliminary injunction enjoining Avanti Motors from manufacturing, advertising, and selling the Studebaker XUV.

 

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Fair use doctrine.

[pttttt]

Yeah, it's got four wheels and headlights on the front.

Them that can, do. Them that can't, sue.

GM is also lately famous for making Buicks in China which they will probably try to ship back here.

"Buy American" doesn't necessarily mean GM.

Hopefully this will be thrown out of court fast.

[Behind Liberal Lines]

My reaction: shock and amazement....at the fact somebody still made studebakers.

[Lady Jag]

Who knew there still was a Studebaker?

[Gorzaloon]

Who knew there still was a Studebaker?

Wish there still were.

I just bought two models of Studebakers I actually had.(And still have dreams about!)

My first one was the Studebaker Commander, a 1951, with a 232 CI V8. (That was the "Torpedo with breasts" style.)

And then the 1958 Golden Hawk.

Sigh.

[RIGHT IN SEATTLE]

[stylin19a]

I always thought the hummer looked somewhat like the old volkswagen "thing". who stole from whom ?

[pt17]

And then the 1958 Golden Hawk

Ahh. Nothing turned heads more than a Golden Hawk when I was growing up. Didn't they put a Cadillac engine in one?

[Seeking the truth]

Last I heard, gonzo has 2 or 3 Avanti's!

[RIGHT IN SEATTLE]

[Lady Jag]

Hey, gonzo, feel like selling one of those Avantis?

[lewislynn]

Their real problem is the Studebaker XUV looks better than their overpriced nothing but a box on wheels with no interior space.

[Lady Jag]

Look what I found on gonzo's page: Avanti Motor Corp. (Flash needed - click opens new browser).

[Wolfspring]

This could have wide ranging implications if GM has a trademark for the box shape in general! Cereal boxes will soon have to pay a stipend to General Motors. GM has really improved over the last few years, I must admit.

Personally, I'll stick with my two ton car that gets much better gas mileage than all but the smallest of SUV's.

[The Electrician]

Actually, I've always thought that the Hummer H2 looked a lot like the old Wells Fargo stagecoach.

Note the curve behind the rear door of the Hummer and that same curve at the front of the stagecoach.

[Gunslingr3]

"Buy American" doesn't necessarily mean GM.

Are you aware of the tremendous shares that GM owns of nearly all the car manufacturers not owned by Ford? Buying most any car means buying a car from a company that either Ford or GM own a large, if not controlling, stake in. Free markets operate independent imaginary political boundaries. If you want to buy a GM car made in the States, look at the VIN. If it starts with a 1, it was put together in America. A 2 was put together in Canada, a 3 in Mexico. The components are manufactured all over the globe. Many Japanese car manufacturers have facilities to build cars in the country, to save on transportation and avoid tariffs. Large shares of these companies are owned by 'American' companies. Is it 'buying American' to buy one of those? Who cares...

[niteowl77]

Their real problem is the Studebaker XUV looks better than their overpriced nothing but a box on wheels with no interior space.

You are probably right. A mechanically modern SUV with the Brooks Stevens styling of Studebaker's late '50's trucks would interest me even more.

[perfect stranger]

Looks like a miniature schoolbus.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I neighbor had a 58 or 59 Golden Hawk when I was in high school in the early 1960's. It was beautiful, but a little hard to see out of.

[reg45]

So, GM has a "trademark" on boxy, slab sided styling on SUV's. That's nuts! Honda does the same thing with its Element SUV. If a certain style is popular, all the manufacturers copy it. A few years ago, Dodge put a massive grill on its Ram truck to give it the "big truck" look. Now, Ford and GM do the same thing on their trucks. Should Daimler-Chrysler sue Ford and GM? Of course not!

[Erasmus]

Is the SUV in the top photo a Studebaker too?

Lest you think I ask in jest, that's what the Studebaker Brothers originally built: Stage Utility Vehicles.