Ford fights to protect its reputation

Ford, as well as other automakers (see here about Suzuki’s efforts in India), are struggling to protect their intellectual and physical properties from copycats and counterfeiters. Foreign companies in countries such as China and areas of the Middle East have been either outright using the manufacturer’s emblem on their non-approved car parts or blatantly copying, for example, Ford’s or GM’s designs for their own domestic industries then selling their vehicles for thousands less.

A seizure of millions of dollars of counterfeit Ford parts in Saudi Arabia is what prompted the Blue Oval to issue a press release on the subject. The costs are high, with an estimated $12 billion lost per year for Ford and the other victims of this crime. Worse yet, the automakers and their suppliers’ reputations suffer by such fakes when they don’t perform as well as the original.

[Source: Ford]

Share This Photo X