Team-BHP > The Indian Car Scene


View Poll Results: Is Hyundai's action justified?
Yes 14 29.17%
No 34 70.83%
Voters: 48. You may not vote on this poll

Reply
  Search this Thread
12,288 views
Old 28th October 2009, 15:24   #31
BHPian
 
silentscreamers's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: mumbai
Posts: 83
Thanked: 56 Times

According to the nov. issue of ACI the santro is selling 7749 units per month which is now the bottom end of the top 10 charts (8th to be precise)
While the i10 has a tally of 12733 units
IMO it seems like Hyundai is trying to gain mileage for its Santro brand, probably hoping for a spurt in sales in a landmark judgement or something
Now forgive me if am wrong, but hyundai has used words like "Renault is trying to cash in on its popular brand santro" and that "They are trying to gain mileage out of it"; so theyre kind of suggesting that the Sandero which is aiming for a higher perceived brand image than a Santro is trying to gain popularity by a name similar sounding to an outdated, bottom end hatch??
The statment itself suggests that Hyundai is not worried about the santro brand image getting hurt by it as one of us BHPian' had put forward earlier, but they are worried about the popularity the Sandero brand might enjoy due to the proximity of the phonetics to the Santro brand, which seems utterly ridiculous IMO.
I guess they should not waste precious time and money on silly law suits and concentrate on giving customers world class products like the current ''i" series, which are fabulous to say the least, such antics would just help decrease the brand value of their own premium products like the Sonata and the Tucson in the urban consumers view.
silentscreamers is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 16:01   #32
BANNED
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Chennai
Posts: 3,282
Thanked: 4,876 Times

Copying others' designs,
Comparing their cars with other manufacturer's cars which are segments apart,
Pricing their cars too high,
And this law suit against Renault when Hyundai themselves copy others' name and name extensions...

Everything makes me think again and again that Hyundai is a 'cheap' player, or a child with a superiority complex.
romeomidhun is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 16:15   #33
Senior - BHPian
 
gaurav_chopra04's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: New Delhi
Posts: 1,264
Thanked: 572 Times

Hyundai. When I think of Hyundai ... plagiarism is the first thing that comes to my mind.. it will be a great shock to the world if they come up with a car that hasnt been plagiarised.. all their cars are.. their latest model i20 is a copy of European Corsa, Accent was a copy of lancer, sonata of Jaguar, Tuscon of Cayenne, new sonata of accord, Old gets of Optra, Terracan a copy of 90's Pajero. You know its in their DNA.

So its like Ram Ram japna, paraye ka design apna. A new cheapster milestone achieved Hyundai!

Keep it up.
gaurav_chopra04 is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 16:30   #34
Senior - BHPian
 
Gilead's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Chennai
Posts: 2,142
Thanked: 60 Times

The debate here is not whether Hyundai is a design copycat. They may very well be, but that is irrelevant for the discussion. Santro and Sandero do sound similar especially when pronounced with an Indianised accent and I do believe that Hyundai has a genuine case here. Santro IS a major brand in India and the company that owns it will definitely feel the need to protect it.

Last edited by Gilead : 28th October 2009 at 16:31.
Gilead is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 17:03   #35
BHPian
 
abhi413's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Pune
Posts: 215
Thanked: 118 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by aaggoswami View Post

...Going by Hyundai's standards, I think Honda should drag them to court too, as Hyundai name itself is derived from Honda ( Hyundai motor company was established in 1967 and Honda is in automotive business since 1963 ).
Yeah, and 'Toyota' should sue 'Tata'! This lawsuit should have been torn and trashed out of the courts before we could start discussing it. This just goes on to show the competition is really 'cut-throat'.

For example, we all know Maruti had to change the Splash's name to 'Ritz' as 'Splash' was already registered by another carmaker in India. Now can anyone throw some light exactly *who* did it? I for one still don't know!
abhi413 is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 17:14   #36
Senior - BHPian
 
ashutoshb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: NOIDA
Posts: 1,750
Thanked: 4,256 Times

i always thought its 'sand-e-ro' and not 'saand-ro'. even if it is.. people here pronounce santro as 'saen-tro'.
ashutoshb is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 17:32   #37
BHPian
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Bangalore
Posts: 218
Thanked: 7 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by arunmur View Post
So no other car on earth should be even called close to Santro?
No. Not if both are in the same market.

Quote:
Originally Posted by arunmur View Post
I dont understand the logic.
Please read up about trademarks and rules and regulations regarding them. There have been numerous incidents both in India and abroad where companies have been sued for using similar trademarks and in some cases for even totally unrelated products. Just check who all has McDonald's sued for trademark infringement See Sheldon & Mak, Inc. for a sample.

Quote:
Originally Posted by arunmur View Post
And Sandero is actually a costiler bigger car compared to Santro.
Doesn't matter. See post #28 for just one example why.
bullinb is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 19:21   #38
Senior - BHPian
 
finneyp's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Bangalore
Posts: 2,716
Thanked: 319 Times

The names - Hyundai, Santro, their logo (slanted H) are trade marks, but Sandero, alltogether a different name, cannot be their trade mark!

Hyundai's suit is going to fall flat in the court!
finneyp is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 19:30   #39
Senior - BHPian
 
McLaren Rulez's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Mysore
Posts: 3,380
Thanked: 5,012 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by finneyp View Post

Hyundai's suit is going to fall flat in the court!
We'll let the judge rule on that one, finney.

Personally, I don't see why Hyundai can't go to court. They are a car company, not some morally bound individual. They've every right to copy designs (and are certainly not the only ones who do it) as long as their "copying" isn't termed illegal by a legal order. They also have every right to protect their brands by going to court. And there is definitely a genuine chance that they have a point.

Last edited by McLaren Rulez : 28th October 2009 at 19:33.
McLaren Rulez is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 19:38   #40
BHPian
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Chennai
Posts: 778
Thanked: 542 Times

I fully agree with Hyundai, Sandero sounds just like Santro so it should not be allowed.

May I submit too that Hyundai itself should not be allowed, since it's name sounds like Honda and also the logo looks like a slanted version of Honda's?

Even more curious is Mahindra Renault's reaction:

Quote:
In a press release, Mahindra Renault CEO Nalin Mehta said, “We have filed a reply requesting the honourable court for removal of Mahindra Renault’s name as the defendant. Mahindra Renault does not have any ownership of the Sandero brand. Mahindra Renault has never used or promoted the brand. The Sandero brand belongs to Renault and we have no locus standi on the brand. Our appeal with request stated above is filed with the court and awaits hearing.”
So is that some kind of legal tactic, or is he saying that Mahindra Renault has no idea of using the Sandero in the future, or is he washing his hands of all responsibility for any a Renault brand?

Last edited by chncar : 28th October 2009 at 19:43.
chncar is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 20:09   #41
MCR
BHPian
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: BLR/MYS
Posts: 882
Thanked: 636 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by chncar View Post
I fully agree with Hyundai, Sandero sounds just like Santro so it should not be allowed.

May I submit too that Hyundai itself should not be allowed, since it's name sounds like Honda and also the logo looks like a slanted version of Honda's?

Even more curious is Mahindra Renault's reaction:
In a press release, Mahindra Renault CEO Nalin Mehta said, “We have filed a reply requesting the honourable court for removal of Mahindra Renault’s name as the defendant. Mahindra Renault does not have any ownership of the Sandero brand. Mahindra Renault has never used or promoted the brand. The Sandero brand belongs to Renault and we have no locus standi on the brand. Our appeal with request stated above is filed with the court and awaits hearing.”


So is that some kind of legal tactic, or is he saying that Mahindra Renault has no idea of using the Sandero in the future, or is he washing his hands of all responsibility for any a Renault brand?
This is a Good move from Mahindra-Renault I believe. If the court can consider Mahindra-Renault request, then Hyundai will be kicking itself for creating free Publicity for the car Sandero. Also Renault is much bigger than Hyundai and I think Hyundai will just stop at that.
MCR is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 20:16   #42
Senior - BHPian
 
sandeepmdas's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Varkala
Posts: 1,536
Thanked: 2,489 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by MCR View Post
Also Renault is much bigger than Hyundai and I think Hyundai will just stop at that.
Nope. Hyundai is the 4th largest automaker in the world:
1. Toyota
2. GM
3. VW group
4. Hyundai/Kia
5. Ford

"To climb six positions in just eight years isn't a simple accomplishment as it required stepping over such global automakers as Fiat, Chrysler, PSA/Peugeot, Nissan, and Honda. "

Hyundai-Kia overtakes Ford to become world's 4th largest automaker — Autoblog

Last edited by sandeepmdas : 28th October 2009 at 20:19.
sandeepmdas is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 20:18   #43
BANNED
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Kochi
Posts: 2,522
Thanked: 751 Times

We often see sports wear from "adbas", which are "made as japan", and furniture / locks from "Gordej". It is understandable that people paying around 50 to 500 get carried away by such imitations.

If people paying six figure amounts get fooled by similar sounding names, they deserve a car like the Logan.
BaCkSeAtDrIVeR is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 20:29   #44
Senior - BHPian
 
blackasta's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: WB 26
Posts: 3,405
Thanked: 2,916 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by chncar View Post
I fully agree with Hyundai, Sandero sounds just like Santro so it should not be allowed.

May I submit too that Hyundai itself should not be allowed, since it's name sounds like Honda and also the logo looks like a slanted version of Honda's?

Even more curious is Mahindra Renault's reaction:

So is that some kind of legal tactic, or is he saying that Mahindra Renault has no idea of using the Sandero in the future, or is he washing his hands of all responsibility for any a Renault brand?
Buddy, Honda is a family name - like 'Mahindra'. You cannot compare that with another name.

And I repeat, Hyundai construction was founded in 1947, which forms a major part of Hyundai conglomerate. Honda was founded in 1948.

And if a company name starts with H, you expect the logo to be some form of H! Don't expect TATA logo to start with A, or Honda logo to start with D, do you??
blackasta is offline  
Old 28th October 2009, 20:31   #45
Senior - BHPian
 
asr245's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Gurgaon
Posts: 1,162
Thanked: 389 Times

Quote:
Originally Posted by blackasta View Post
Because SX4 does not sound like i10/i20 in anyone's wildest dreams.

Not sure why you trying to defend Hyundai here about this. Sandero is Renault's hatch in international market - they just didn't make it up for India. Did Hyundai try the same stuff there? And it's not as if they have a copyright on Sandero in India.

If I were the judge, I would have thrown the case right out.
asr245 is offline  
Reply

Most Viewed
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Team-BHP.com
Proudly powered by E2E Networks