Ford [ Images ] Motor Co sued luxury automaker Ferrari [ Images ] on Wednesday for trademark infringement after Ferrari named its 2011 Formula 1 [ Images ] racing car the "F150."
Ferrari's F150 logo bears striking resemblance to the one on Ford's F-150 pickup truck, the top-selling vehicle in the United States, Ford said in a complaint filed in federal court.
"Ferrari has misappropriated the F-150 trademark in naming its new racing vehicle the 'F150' in order to capitalize on and profit from the substantial goodwill that Ford has developed in the F-150 trademark," Ford said in a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit.
Ford is asking the court to bar Ferrari from using the name. The automaker is also seeking unspecified damages, including damages of $100,000 under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act.
Fiat SpA [ Images ] has an 85 percent stake in Ferrari, and management control of Chrysler [ Images ] Group LLC, in which it has a 25 percent stake.
Ford and Ferrari could not be immediately reached for comment. According to the complaint, the two automakers have a "legendary history as rivals in auto racing."
Ferrari set up a website -- www.ferrarif150.com -- to promote the racing vehicle.
"The choice of name stems from Ferrari's desire to pay tribute to this year's one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the unification of Italy [ Images ]," Ferrari said, according to a Jan. 25 press release posted on www.ferrarif150.com.
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