Photo: carnewschina.com
It’s a known fact that Chinese manufacturers are usually copying their European counterparts. The Shuanghuan SCEO is the perfect example of how a trademark design was copied in its entirety for a cheaper model.
While the Chinese defended themselves and claimed that the cars are only slightly similar, a court in Munich decided that the Chinese SUV brand is certainly a copy of the BMW X5 and prohibited the cars from being imported in Germany. However, that didn’t mean that much for Shuanghuan as their main market, from the get go, was supposed to be China. And they were successful.
Other examples can easily be found but what is even more surprising is that later on, the big European companies seemed to be ok with them copying. It’s also the case of the Zinoro 1E, a car that looks exactly like the X1 but it’s being made under license by Brilliance, the Chinese partner of the Bavarians. This one even has a BMW motor.
Of course, explanations can be found for such a blatant breach of trademark laws and the way BMW looked the other way when the 1E was launched but even though China is their biggest market and they can’t afford to lose it, it’s still disturbing to see such examples.
Now, Brilliance is showing signs of maturity and their cars are slightly moving away from BMW’s designs. The latest spyshots of the Brilliance V3 SUV show the car only wearing the kidney grilles up front as a common design trait but that’s about it.
Other elements seem original, including the headlights and, especially, the interior that has a completely new face. Of course, we could be wrong and once the camo drops we might be facing yet another rip-off but so far, the signs are looking good. Hopefully things will remain the same on the production version.
Other examples can easily be found but what is even more surprising is that later on, the big European companies seemed to be ok with them copying. It’s also the case of the Zinoro 1E, a car that looks exactly like the X1 but it’s being made under license by Brilliance, the Chinese partner of the Bavarians. This one even has a BMW motor.
Of course, explanations can be found for such a blatant breach of trademark laws and the way BMW looked the other way when the 1E was launched but even though China is their biggest market and they can’t afford to lose it, it’s still disturbing to see such examples.
Now, Brilliance is showing signs of maturity and their cars are slightly moving away from BMW’s designs. The latest spyshots of the Brilliance V3 SUV show the car only wearing the kidney grilles up front as a common design trait but that’s about it.
Other elements seem original, including the headlights and, especially, the interior that has a completely new face. Of course, we could be wrong and once the camo drops we might be facing yet another rip-off but so far, the signs are looking good. Hopefully things will remain the same on the production version.
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