That's Rich: Geely reportedly denies copying Rolls-Royce
Geely GE – Click above for high-res image gallery
With gloved white fingers pointing in their direction, Geely Automobile is in full denial of British accusations. The independent Chinese automaker, which rolled out its luxurious GE model bearing more than slight resemblance to the Rolls-Royce Phantom at the Shanghai Motor Show, seems rather unconcerned. "As it were, they are actually different ... people may feel they are the same at the first glance, but the details are certainly different," Geely spokeswoman Zhang Xiaoshu told AFP.
Keep telling that to the good blokes at Rolls-Royce who are considering legal action against Geely. To most observers in the industry, the production-bound Chinese GE concept clearly borrows the Rolls signature grill, down-sloping rear deck, and the Flying Lady mascot. Unlike the Phantom, the Chinese variant is set to hit the market at a sliver of the cost of the exclusive Rolls. While imitation is often considered the most sincere form of flattery, the British evidently aren't cracking so much as a smile.
Gallery: Geely GE
[Source: Drive]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Biomech 6:04PM (4/24/2009)
What's Rolls going on about, that looks nooooothing like a Phantom!
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Randy915 6:58PM (4/24/2009)
E X A C T L Y
Big Rocket 10:34PM (4/24/2009)
It looks nothing like a Phantom, but a layperson (not a car enthusiast) might confuse the Geely GE for a generic Rolls Royce. If that layperson notices the poor workmanship on the Geely GE, he might even come to the conclusion that Rolls Royce is just an overpriced brand with poor quality. This kind of damage to brand equity is exactly why the copyright owners should pursue legal action.
aj121489 1:09AM (4/25/2009)
Ok to the two above me, I'm pretty sure Biomech was being sarcastic. And if you don't think this looks like the Phantom you need your eyes checked. Obviously most people on here (myself included) can immediately tell you which is which but this is a Phantom clone.
Biomech 2:05PM (4/26/2009)
I thought about putting a [/sarcasm] tag on that but decided not to because I thought it was absurd enough to hint at its sarcastic tones. This car is too blatantly obvious this has direct design cues from the Phantom. Any person who knows even a little about cars would know.
Biomech 2:09PM (4/26/2009)
*It is too blatantly obvious this has direct design cues from the Phantom.
We reaaally need an edit button in the comment system.
paul34 6:04PM (4/24/2009)
>> the British evidently aren't cracking so much as a smile.
You mean the Germans?
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Taglane 8:30PM (4/24/2009)
Isn't RR British?
Duders 8:39PM (4/24/2009)
They were bought by the Germans
Taglane 2:22PM (4/25/2009)
oh.. ok.
Rob 6:05PM (4/24/2009)
I've always thought self-denial is one of the most sad traits anyone can have. Don't deny to yourself what you are, you are only hurting yourself. Getting to know oneself is time well spent, I think this very much applies to Geely.
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Taglane 6:07PM (4/24/2009)
LLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
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Turall 6:11PM (4/24/2009)
Because, you know, China's car designs are so original..
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dsharp23 6:17PM (4/24/2009)
HA! i really did get a good laugh out of this one....kind of reminds me of kim jong ill golfing his first time...he scored like 4 or 5 holes in one....seriously, they reported it in on state television. :) hehehehe!
hokieman09 6:17PM (4/24/2009)
Wow really? they said they didn't copy it. I didn't see that coming
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Jake 6:28PM (4/24/2009)
As an engineer who has products contract manufactured in China and who deals with them regularly, I can tell you that the Chinese do not place the same ethical taboo or stigmatism on lieing that we do. It is almost acceptable. It's like a completely different world-view.
I had this pointed out to me by Chinese people. They seem to be more concerned with saying what they believe the audience wants to here, even if it is a bold-faced lie.
I have had them outright lie to my face when it was obvious to me that they must be lieing and they knew it was obvious.
It is kind of like when you wife/GF says "do I look fat in these jeans."; you know she'd rather hear "no" even if it is a lie.
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the vegas style guy 6:35PM (4/24/2009)
Tee.
Hee.
This reminds of when Vanilla Ice got sued for ripping off "Under Pressure" in "Ice Ice Baby". To this day he says it's not the same beat!
Denial aint just a river in Egypt baby!
Judy Zik 12:22AM (4/25/2009)
+1
It's a cultural thing. They also don't see knock off's and rip off's as being shameful.
However. If they want to be a part of the global economy they should be forced to have some respect for copyrights and trademarks. But then we are talking about a country where people don't have basic human rights or decent wages. They couldn't care less about what RR thinks. They know their government and legal system will protect them and our governments are too busy trying to make deals with them to care.
Arthur 6:30PM (4/24/2009)
Just hopped on here. What's going on? And why does that Rolls have a "Geely" nameplate on it?
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joe23521 6:38PM (4/24/2009)
Geely deserves whatever they have coming for this.
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