Ford is now threatening to take well-known YouTuber TJ Hunt to court if he does not stop the sale of a body kit that the car giant believes is plagiarism.
The YouTuber and car enthusiast TJ Hunt, who, among other things, is known for his love of the Ford Mustang, has been threatened with a lawsuit by the Ford Motor Company.
Ford believes that the car brand's rights are being circumvented when TJ Hunt wants to sell a body kit for the Mustang S650. The car giant thinks that the body kit is legitimately 'inspired' by the brand's own Mustang GTD.
Dubbed the "Street Hunter Mustang", Hunt's project has already caused great excitement among car enthusiasts. But Ford promptly responded with a threatening letter, in which they accused Hunt of plagiarism and infringement of the car brand's intellectual rights.
– A certain major car manufacturer sent us a threatening letter about our Street Hunter Mustang project. "However, my lawyers say the threats are baseless," says TJ Hunt in a video on his YouTube channel.
Although Hunt does not explicitly mention Ford in the video, it is clear that it is the American car brand behind the threat. Ford has proven to be very protective of its design and brand in the past.
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– We are disappointed, not because we have done something legally wrong, but because a certain large car manufacturer is doing this to a smaller company. It hurts when we have loved and respected them for many years."
Ford itself justifies the threat with the need to protect their investment in the Mustang GTD's design and exclusivity.
– Ford takes its intellectual rights very seriously.
– We have invested significant resources in the design and construction of this highly sought-after Mustang.
– Therefore, we must take appropriate measures to protect the value and exclusivity for our Mustang GTD customers and for Ford, says a spokesperson.
The case has already caused a stir in the automotive industry. But it is not the first time that such threats have been flying around in the air.
In 2020, the US authorities even went so far as to make a seizure because another YouTuber built a replica of another, but possibly even more famous Ford. Read more about it here .
Ferrari doesn't hold back with this sort of thing either. In addition to suing a car dealer who was selling an F430 replica built on a 24-year-old Ford, last year the brand from Maranello managed to crush several copycats. In fact, as many as 400,000 of this kind.
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