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Ferrari's response to Ford's lawsuit

Discussion in 'F1' started by Agent Smith, Mar 5, 2011.

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  1. Agent Smith

    Agent Smith Formula 3

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    #1 Agent Smith, Mar 5, 2011
    Ferrari tweaked the name of their new racer again, and made some remarks about the Ford lawsuit (now dropped). THIS is the kind of response I expect from Ferrari lol

    http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/89741

    Ferrari has made a further adjustment to the chassis name of its 2011 Formula 1 car after settling its disagreement with Ford.

    The car had originally been designated the F150, a title chosen to mark the 150th anniversary of the unification of Italy. But this prompted a complaint from Ford, which feared the name would cause confusion with customers as it has a popular truck design known as the F-150.

    Ferrari then said it would switch to a full version of the car's name and use F150th Italia instead, and today Ford announced that the matter was settled.

    But Ferrari has subsequently revealed one final tweak, saying the chassis will now be known as the Ferrari 150° Italia.

    The name was announced in a sardonic 'Horse Whisperer' column published on Ferrari's website.

    "It might seem like a Kafkaesque scenario, but the affair relating to the name of the car with which Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa will tackle this year's Formula 1 World Championship saw its final and decisive episode played out these past few days with the concomitant withdrawal by Ford of the summons. Therefore common sense has prevailed," said the column.

    "In order to avoid the slightest risk of anyone confusing a Formula 1 car with a pick-up truck, for their part, the men from Maranello have decided that the car will lose the F that precedes the number 150 and which stands for Ferrari, as it has done on numerous occasions when it's come to giving a car a code name, be it for the race track or the road.

    "It appears that this could have caused so much confusion in the minds of the consumer across the Pond that, at the same time as losing the F, the name will be completely Italianised, replacing the English 'th' with the equivalent Italian symbol.

    "Therefore the name will now read as the Ferrari 150° Italia, which should make it clear even to the thickest of people that the name of the car is a tribute to the anniversary of the unification of our country.

    "Let's hope the matter is now definitely closed and that we can concentrate on more serious matters, namely ensuring that our car that already seems to be pretty good out of the box, becomes a real winner."
     
  2. SSNISTR

    SSNISTR F1 Veteran

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    #2 SSNISTR, Mar 5, 2011
    Man oh man, this damn 2011 F1 car name thing has gotten so confusing LOL.
    Instead of changing it to all these odd names they should have just done what they usually do as of late and went with F11 or F2011. But what do I know....
     
  3. ChalStrad

    ChalStrad Formula 3

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    #3 ChalStrad, Mar 5, 2011
    Does the average ford pick up truck owner or buyer even know what an F1 car is?

    This is the perfect example of the absurdity and stupidity of certain aspects of the "Americsn Way".

    Also, there can be little confusion as there is no room for a gun rack behind the driver in the F1 car
     
  4. GordonC

    GordonC F1 Rookie
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    #4 GordonC, Mar 5, 2011
    So that's TWICE Ferrari caved to Ford on the same issue! :p First Ferrari tries F150, Ford objects, Ferrari ignores them, Ford files lawsuit. Ferrari whines and changes name to "F150th Italia", making some lame excuse that this was the long form of the name all along anyway. Ford must have said "still not good enough", so Ferrari changes it once more (with more associated whining), and Ford finally drops the suit. :D
     
  5. GordonC

    GordonC F1 Rookie
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    #5 GordonC, Mar 5, 2011
    Oh, please - Ferrari has law firms (in Italy) on permanent retainer who do nothing but chase trademark infringement - Ferrari are well known for aggressively pursuing anyone, including enthusiast clubs, who hint at using a Ferrari name or logo. Ferrari is a most willing and active participant in these trademark infringement games, so let's not pretend that this is an American-only happening or that Ferrari is somehow above Ford in this issue. Tit for tat, what goes around comes around, karma dude!
     
  6. kraftwerk

    kraftwerk Two Time F1 World Champ

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    #6 kraftwerk, Mar 5, 2011
    And in other news : Rosberg has a problem with his hair.
     
  7. TheMayor

    TheMayor Ten Time F1 World Champ
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    #7 TheMayor, Mar 5, 2011
    So, if I order an Italia, do I get Alonso's car?
     
  8. p.roma

    p.roma Karting

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    #8 p.roma, Mar 5, 2011
    Hahaha
     
  9. SRT Mike

    SRT Mike Two Time F1 World Champ

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    #9 SRT Mike, Mar 5, 2011
    It's not the American Way, it's the Legal Way. Ford is obligated to defend their trademark.

    You will find Ferrari is probably one of the most hard-core trademark/IP defensive companies in existence. So perhaps it should be the Ferrari way, or the Italian way.


    Or maybe the "...another excuse to bash American" way?
     
  10. Hawkeye

    Hawkeye F1 Veteran
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    #10 Hawkeye, Mar 5, 2011
    :D Classic
     
  11. toddjw73

    toddjw73 F1 Rookie

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    #11 toddjw73, Mar 5, 2011
    Oh D@MN! I already had a gun wrack ready to mount for when I get my Ferrari F150.:)

    I didn't like the name anyways. I understand the commemoration behind it though. If that's the case, Ferrari should have left it as is and Ford should have got that boot out of their butt that was shoved up their by Enzo when he told them where to go.
     
  12. rydermike

    rydermike Formula Junior

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    #12 rydermike, Mar 5, 2011
    Upside for Ford is the wieght of the F1 car should easily be in range to haul in the bed , especially after a shunt !!
     
  13. Wolfgang5150

    Wolfgang5150 F1 Rookie

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    #13 Wolfgang5150, Mar 5, 2011
    This F150 thing has been a disaster for a Ferrari ; what a crappy name regardless.
    But more importantly, this 'horse whisperer' thing is a joke.
    I'm not sure who writes it, or what the point is, but every time they publish one I cringe.....
     
  14. LightGuy

    LightGuy Four Time F1 World Champ
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    #14 LightGuy, Mar 5, 2011
    Suprised to see that Ferrari takes others copyrighted trademarks so flippantly considering their protectionist history.
    Ford should name its next dually hauler the F458.
     
  15. GordonC

    GordonC F1 Rookie
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    #15 GordonC, Mar 5, 2011
    :D Oh, I think Ford returned that butt boot to Enzo when they trounced Ferrari at LeMans 4 years in a row (66-69), breaking Ferrari's LeMans winning streak and chasing them out of LeMans competition.
     
  16. wazie7262

    wazie7262 Formula 3

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    #16 wazie7262, Mar 5, 2011
    Didn't Ford and Ferrari collaborate on the FF? Sure seems like it...
     
  17. SRT Mike

    SRT Mike Two Time F1 World Champ

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    #17 SRT Mike, Mar 6, 2011
    Horse Whisperer has to be Luca... no way could anyone else in the organization get away with making them look as bad as "Horse Whisperer" does.

    Luca is the only one who could embarass Ferrari to that extent and get away with it.
     
  18. toddjw73

    toddjw73 F1 Rookie

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    #18 toddjw73, Mar 6, 2011
    And that they sure did.

    At least I can say I had my hands on The Gurney/Foyt GT Mark IV. What a pain that was to push uphill for the photoshoot last year at the Motorsports Reunion at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Well worth the oppotunity though. Als helped pull some others to the shoot, as well as offload a semi hauler with 6 more of Gurneys Cars. All I can say is I hope the Henry Ford Museum gets that GT Mark IV restored.
     
  19. SrfCity

    SrfCity F1 World Champ

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    #19 SrfCity, Mar 7, 2011
    Sorry F control freaks. You better do your homework a little better next time. The 150 ° name thing will become fodder for the rest of the season.
     
  20. Tony K

    Tony K Formula 3

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    #20 Tony K, Mar 7, 2011
    Perfectly stated. :)
     
  21. rob lay

    rob lay Administrator
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    #21 rob lay, Mar 7, 2011
    what has Ford done lately? ;) I think they are #2 for tow vehicles in the pro bass fishing grand prix.
     
  22. Bas

    Bas Four Time F1 World Champ

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    #22 Bas, Mar 7, 2011
    Which reporter will come out with the cliche saying 'Massa did a full 150° there...living up to the name of the car'.

    :rolleyes:
     
  23. GrigioGuy

    GrigioGuy Splenda Daddy
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    #23 GrigioGuy, Mar 7, 2011
    The Cosworth DF line was a Ford-bankrolled-and-based design, and only recently has Ferrari managed to pass the winning record generated by that engine.
     
  24. rob lay

    rob lay Administrator
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    #24 rob lay, Mar 7, 2011
    interesting.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosworth
     
  25. It's Ross

    It's Ross Formula 3

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    #25 It's Ross, Mar 7, 2011
    However, the FF shall henceforth be known as "Country Squire"
     
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