In the 20th century, the Beetle is definitely a phenomenon-level sedan, there are super high fan groups around the world, even if the Beetle has been discontinued in 2019, but until now, there are still many Beetle fans, especially female consumers, who are deeply in love with the Beetle.
From its birth in 1938 to the suspension of production in 2019. Looking back at the past and present lives of the Beetle, we can see both persistence and change, and perhaps it is this change that does not forget the original intention that gives the Beetle enduring vitality and also creates the classic of the Beetle. While we were all still regretting the discontinuation of the Beetle, the Great Wall Euler revived the Beetle, and the Eulerpunk cat was questioned from the moment it appeared.
It can't be said to be irrelevant, it can only be said to be exactly the same
At last year's Shanghai Auto Show, the Great Wall Euler booth stopped many fans, because Euler launched a new pure electric car - punk cat. Who would have thought that what Volkswagen gave up was picked up by the Great Wall Euler, the appearance design of the punk cat is exactly the same as Volkswagen's Beetle, and putting the two cars together can be called a realistic version of "finding a difference", which makes many people put a "plagiarism" hat for Euler.
According to Euler the Great Wall, this is a tribute to the classics, and as for who the tribute is, Euler has never given a reply, but the discerning people can see that punk cats have too many similarities with the Beetle. To this end, Volkswagen even stated that it would investigate whether the Great Wall Eulabunk Cat infringed on Volkswagen's design patents and would retain the right to take any necessary legal steps, causing a war of words on the Internet.
But the Great Wall is not stupid, if the public really wants to sue the Great Wall, it can only be said that there is no chance of victory. Because punk cats imitate the original beetle, and the first generation of beetles has been completely discontinued in 2003, 18 years since 2021, and the protection period for design patents in most countries around the world is usually 10-15 years.
That is to say, the appearance patent of the original Beetle has actually passed the protection period, and even if the Great Wall Euler imitates the exact same model, from a legal point of view, it does not constitute an infringement of the volkswagen appearance patent. The reason why the public expressed its intention to sue the Great Wall Euler is more of angry, the Beetle that thought it was obsolete, but was replaced by Euler, and the public will inevitably be hungry when they see it.
What's more, Volkswagen's design patent for the Beetle has been controversial, and it is itself "plagiarized" T97, and even in 1961, it was sued by Taitra, and the court found that plagiarism was established and paid 3 million marks in compensation.
Who is more embarrassed that the masses want to resurrect the Beetle?
When the Beetle was first discontinued, Volkswagen made it clear that it would not resurrect the Beetle in an electric car, but after seeing the high heat of the Great Wall Eulabunk cat, Volkswagen obviously could not sit still.
Some time ago, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Dies said: "We have considered the Beetle Dune Buggy and other classic models, and everything is possible. We are also actively thinking about how to extend this classic heritage to the electric vehicle sector, and we also want to hear suggestions from China, if there is a big enough voice, it is possible to copy a classic model for China. ”
That is to say, the Volkswagen Beetle has the possibility of being resurrected as an electric vehicle. If the Beetle turns into a pure electric car and goes public, the most embarrassing thing is undoubtedly the Eulabunk cat, which will not become the Beetle's version of the Zotye SR9? But punk cats will not follow in the footsteps of Zotye SR9, because the Great Wall itself has its own core technology, far from Zotye can compare.
And if the pure electric version of the Beetle is not cared about after the listing, then the embarrassment is undoubtedly the public itself, as the "spokesperson" of the Beetle, but it is still not a competitor to an imitator, think about it is embarrassing. Not to mention, Volkswagen pure electric vehicles are not necessarily more competitive than the Great Wall Euler in China.
Taking the Volkswagen ID.3 as an example, although it is selling hot in overseas markets, it only sells more than 1,000 vehicles per month in China. Compared with autonomous pure electric vehicles, Volkswagen ID.3 competitiveness is far less than that of fuel vehicles, because in the pure electric vehicles of 150,000-200,000 yuan, there are too many independent pure electric vehicles to choose from, and the quality control is not lost to Volkswagen at all, and the VW car logo does not work in the new energy market.
What's more, if volkswagen launches a pure electric version of the Beetle, its price will inevitably be higher than the current ID.3, and although the Eulabunk cat has not yet been officially listed, the final starting price will not exceed 150,000 yuan, and the cost performance is higher, which will naturally have better market performance.
Write at the end:
Therefore, if Volkswagen really wants to resurrect the Beetle in the form of an electric car, although it will embarrass the Eulabunk cat at first, it will only be Volkswagen itself who will be embarrassed in the end. However, the author does not advocate Euler to imitate others like this, is it true that independent brands do not have their own classic designs?
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