This started as an answer in another thread here, but the subject of car names from the past has come of fairly often, usually attached to the latest rumor related to Chrysler bringing back the 'Cuda or GM bringing back the "Trans Am".

Some 2nd tier (or lower) car magazines in the effort to generate more sales or less evolved enthusiast websites (the kind that fake up Corvettes as future models, for instance) are the ones behind this just as often as a poster who heard it from "a friend of a buddy's neighbor's brother-in-law who knows someone who's dad golf's with..."



The "American Motors Corperation" name is owned (to a large degree) by DaimlerChrysler. I say "to a large degree" because if someone wanted to lay claim to it, they might actually pull off getting the name & logo and win in court if DCX tried to prevent it. You'll see why in a moment.

"Javelin", like "Cuda" and "Barracuda" became abandoned trademarks and was picked up by someone else. Honeywell and a bike company use it.

"Matador" & "Hornet" is a record company & animation company, respectively.

"Gremlin", though also abandoned, apparently hasn't been trademarked.

"Pacer" is now the "Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights", though I'm not sure they trademarked the name.




Trademark subjects have come up often here, so here's the scoop.


A Trademark can be considered abandoned if not reregistered for 3 years, but if the owner can show intent that they "didn't plan on abandoning the trademark", then apparently they can still reestablish ownership.

Also some thing called "Lasting Goodwill" has been enough to keep ownership of a trademark. Examples: Short periods of non-use (5-8 years), non-use beyond owner's control (ie: labor disputes, bankruptcy, etc..), and continued efforts to sell the trademark or business. Another loophole to keep a trademark (especially in the auto world) is to continue manufacturing parts for the trademarked item.

If Chrysler never stipped making parts specifically for the 'Cuda (not generalized parts that could be used in anything else, ie: an engine or transmission versus a body stamping) they could still lay claim to the "Cuda name.

True story: Ford came within a whisper of losing the "Cobra" name in 1991 or 92. Ford's legal department advised Ford to use the Cobra name on something quickly, or at the very least show supportable intent to use the name. A set of emissions legal GT40 style heads and intake, and a pair of tail lights from the 6 year dead SVO Mustang along with a few cosmetic items, and Ford got to keep the Cobra name.


Ford is keeping the Thunderbird name by continuing to publically say the Thunderbird will return "some day", and because they can demonstrate (pretty much beyond any doubt) that they have had financial difficulties preventing them from reusing the name, Ford will be able to continue to lay claim to the Thunderbird name till it either goes under, or has some years of profits as long as they continue to show intent.


"Trans Am" is a copyrighted name of the Sports Car Club of America. Since they actually created the name (as opposed to a name already in existance), they have a copyright. They have pretty much lifetime ownership of that name, and no one else will ever make money off of the "Trans Am" name without SCCA's permission and profiting.

On the flip side, Firebird being a name that existed before can only be trademarked. When Bob Lutz and Lynn Myers were saying things like "the Firebird's days were over" & "that's not the direction Pontiac is going". they happened to unwittingly and unintentionally open the door for anyone who wanted to lay claim to the name "Firebird". It's been 5 years since GM last made a Firebird, so they are getting into the period where they have to make a decision on bringing back the name, reapplying for the trademark (if they already haven't), or face the likelyhood of loosing it within the next few years.



Going back to AMC, Chrysler bought the company in the late 80s. They no doubt owned the name because they continued with the Eagle division (which was essentially AMC) for many years afterwards and continued to make AMC parts for a period of time.

The Eagle division got shut down, and after Mercedes Benz took over Chrysler, they shut down Plymouth. Combine that with the fact it's been about 20 years since Chrysler-***-DaimlerChrysler made use of the "American Motors Corperation" name, it's clearly abandoned.

BUT...."AMC" can't be used as a registered trademark for the American Motors Corperation, if anyone did trademark the actual name.

It's trademarked by AMC Entertainment Inc. The national moviehouse chain.

 

Good stuff as usual.

 

Does anyone know the exact dollar amount that GM paid the SCCA on each Trans Am sold?

 

Five bucks.

 

This isn't true. No one else could start a theater chain and call it AMC, the trademark of American Multi-Cinema for their theaters (theatres in AMC speak). A trademark is an adjective, not a noun. In this case, AMC Theatres rather than AMC: American Motors Corporation or AMC: American Movie Classics, or AMC: Allied Management and Consulting, or AMC: Academy Mortgage Corporation, etc.

Do a search at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and you'll see that there are dozens of different companies with live trademarks for "AMC" across a variety of different industries.

DiamlerChrysler are shown as the owner of the AMC name and triangle logo for several things including toys and apparel.

Strangely, the AMC triangle logo to be used for "AUTOMOBILES AND STRUCTURAL PARTS THEREOF. FIRST USE: 20041028. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 20050121" is shown as being owned by American Motors Corporation CORPORATION CALIFORNIA P.O. Box 900544 Palmdale CALIFORNIA 93590. I don't know if that's a legit company established to keep the name alive, or if its just an individual who bought the trademark.

 

^ Correct, trademarks are specific to certain product categories. You can have a record company named "Matador" and a car named "Matador" without any legal problems. Or a Ford Explorer and a Microsoft Explorer.

The exception I think is for made-up words like "Maxima" and "Lumina", which are owned by the people who invented them.

GuionM is also right that most of these old car trademarks are abandoned. But that might not stop Chrysler from suing another auto manufacturer using "Cuda" or "Gremlin".

 

you know i was helping a buddy take apart his T-bird SC the other day adn i noticed on the draincockfor the radiator and some other parts had the chrysler star pentagon logo. is this just coisidence or is there some parts sharing going on.

 

It has nothing to do with Chrysler. It is an engineering callout relating to the plastic used.

 

I have a feeling anyone attempting to use the "firebird" name on a car could have a problem on thier hands still as it would introduce unneeded confusion into the market. I'm sure if GM wanted to they could make a case for keeping another car maker from using the name.

 

I think you're right, there. GM has protected the Firebird trademark actively enough that I think it could win pretty much any case.

But look at Ford - the Fusion was going to be the "Futura," a name they first used in 1961 (I think, was Falcon Futura the first?) and used on and off for more than two decades, but they lost the trademark to Pep Boys who were actively using the abandoned Ford trademark for a line of tires.

 

At least in my understanding, trademark legal issues aren't necessarily always black-and-white, but instead shades of gray depend on how recognizable the mark is.

"Firebird" is such a widely recognized Pontiac trademark that they probably would be able to defend it against other automotive companies. That might not be the case for other names like "Sunbird".

Another interesting trademark bit is that each state in the country has at least one "Standard" gas station because the successor companies to Standard Oil are protecting the old trademarks. If you're ever in San Francisco there's a Chevron Standard station on Van Ness ave.

 

Good stuff.

Thanks Eric.

Thunderbird SCs have a Mazda manual transmission, the '89-92 have a massive hydrolic antilock braking monstrosity that was also used by other car companies (including BMW if I remember correctly) and the Eaton blower is a bigger version of what GM was using on their V6 and most owners use GM's supercharger fluid because it's about 1/3 the price Ford's charging for the exact same stuff.

But no Chrysler parts.

Yep. I live a short distance away on Geary.

I was always curious about the name.

 

Sure, Guy. I've learned a lot from your posts on various subjects - in this case I just wanted to jump in and clarify as while I'm no lawyer, Trademark is an issue I've done quite a bit of research on.

 

I always wondered why there was a Chevron Standard gas station in my old neighborhood. Good stuff!

 

I thought it was category-based as well. I think there are some inaccuracies in the original post.