Mahindra Roxor news
- Thread starter thomat65
- Start date
As an engineer that's worked for companies that have been ripped off by companies in China (like straight-up steal a design, quit, and go start building it in a factory across the street) I'd be totally with you if it was a knockoff of a JL, or even a JK, where any realm of possibility could exist that a consumer could be confused and buy a Roxor instead of a Wrangler...but being that it's a knockoff of a version of a Jeep that hasn't been built in decades? The technological differences are vast, FCA doesn't have a monopoly on topless SUV's (hello, Scout II, Bronco, Blazer, FJ, Land Rover, etc) and there are exactly zero people cross shopping a Mahindra Roxor with a Jeep Wrangler, FCA offers exactly zero vehicles that are remotely comparable to a Roxor, so it's costing FCA exactly zero dollars for Roxors to be sold in the US. I think what intrigues me the most about this is how did FCA make a case that they were in any way damaged by this situation? Don't you have to have some sort of damages to make a legal claim?
I think it was all about the grille design.
https://gaadiwaadi.com/the-iconic-grille-from-mahindra-roxor-no-more-heres-why/Now that Mahindra has changed their front fascia it sounds like FCA (and more importantly, the court) is more okay with it?
I think I need to find the court's ruling and read it for myself.
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You are missing the iconic part of the Jeep brand and why that needs to be protected.
What's your opinion about the Israeli AIL Storm? It's produced under license from Chrysler. I'm sure you'll recognize the CJ, YJ, TJ, and JK base platform. In that sense it's a worse offender than the Roxor. However, while I'm sure anyone with enough money could import one, I don't think they are sold here in the States.
Opinion is the same as about the Roxor. What does the licensing agreement with Jeep say? Are they allowed to build and then export to the US or is that against the agreement?
Having enough wherewithal to import a few models to put in private hands is not even close to the same as what Manhindra is doing. There are a lot of gray market vehicles in the US from private sources. That doesn't make it correct, or easier to do.
I'm unable to quickly find the terms of their agreement on the internet, but given that the Storm III is a J8 which is (was?) manufactured by joint ventures of Chrysler with other international companies, it certainly looks like it has Chrysler's blessing. Beyond that I'm not sure, but the point of my last sentence was:
Where is the line between "protecting the Jeep brand" and "Jeep is asking other people to make Wrangler lookalikes"? If there are contracts with other parties to make them then why do we have to protect the brand? And if Willys gave the rights to some other company back in the 40s to make GPs, and if those rights haven't expired, then why is that other company blamed instead of Willys?
What if today you contracted with a buddy to manufacture and sell Black Magic Brakes, maybe because you're buddies and you know he'll make them right and you're going to get paid to boot, and then 70 years from now the schmucks who will purchase the Black Magic Brakes brand from your grandkids sues your buddy for making BMB even though they've moved on to BMBIII? Where's the line?
Like I said I need to read some court documents. I have a feeling that this FCA/Mahindra drama is not as cut and dry as any of us (myself included) might imagine.
How many J8's were sold through non Jeep Dealership networks in the US?
In this case the line is the US. Pretty simple.
The issue is the end run around US distribution.
What if you are flying as a passenger on an airplane over international waters and a rogue fly from another country sneaks up from the cargo hold and bites your wiener off? Can you still use Viagra or will the generics work? Where's the line?
What is or was Mahindra's intent?
The one thing they could do easily is make all the rebuild and replacement parts available for CJs and older Jeeps. My father in law needs some parts for his 1952 M38A1 and tracking those down through specialty parts people and old-farts trying to use an internet forum is a pain. He can't navigate the interwebs like I can, so I spend my free time finding odds and ends for him. Basically Mihandra should sell the thing in the US piece by piece.
The Roxxer concept is nice, but I spent less money on my Wrangler and could buy a road legal CJ off craigslist for 1/3-1/2 the price.
Maybe they should offer their diesel engine as a "conversion package"
for US made CJs and TJs.
As for technology, I agree. I use the crap out of it. I'm sitting here with my 3 computer monitors pulling data from a power plant across the country while looking at the operation of another. I bought my Jeep specifically to have a minimum of technology with acceptable comfort for the family. I'd have gone even lower tech if I was just me and my wife wasn't riding along.
If I need the technology, I'll buy a cell capable tablet and plug it into the stereo aux input. Building technology into the car, guarantees you'll have out of date tech within a couple years. The more wires you run, the more likely one breaks. All of this is to make cars that run fine, obsolete in the minds of people sooner. My old car had a GPS with outdated maps and it cost $250 every two years to update it; so I never did. Google maps on my phone works better anyways.
I drive my cars into the ground. The shortest I've owned a car is 9 years and it was replaced because we had kids. Not counting the POS cars I bought my kids for high school. Those we only owned 5 or 6 years. I want something easier to work on, relatively reliable, and with lots of parts available. My TJ has 70,000 miles on it now. I plan for a diesel conversion and rebuild when I run it into the ground in another 10-15 years. Should last me the rest of my life at that point.
Cruise, AC, reliable powertrain. The only options this computer geek needs in a car.
The Roxxer concept is nice, but I spent less money on my Wrangler and could buy a road legal CJ off craigslist for 1/3-1/2 the price.
Maybe they should offer their diesel engine as a "conversion package"
for US made CJs and TJs.As for technology, I agree. I use the crap out of it. I'm sitting here with my 3 computer monitors pulling data from a power plant across the country while looking at the operation of another. I bought my Jeep specifically to have a minimum of technology with acceptable comfort for the family. I'd have gone even lower tech if I was just me and my wife wasn't riding along.
If I need the technology, I'll buy a cell capable tablet and plug it into the stereo aux input. Building technology into the car, guarantees you'll have out of date tech within a couple years. The more wires you run, the more likely one breaks. All of this is to make cars that run fine, obsolete in the minds of people sooner. My old car had a GPS with outdated maps and it cost $250 every two years to update it; so I never did. Google maps on my phone works better anyways.
I drive my cars into the ground. The shortest I've owned a car is 9 years and it was replaced because we had kids. Not counting the POS cars I bought my kids for high school. Those we only owned 5 or 6 years. I want something easier to work on, relatively reliable, and with lots of parts available. My TJ has 70,000 miles on it now. I plan for a diesel conversion and rebuild when I run it into the ground in another 10-15 years. Should last me the rest of my life at that point.
Cruise, AC, reliable powertrain. The only options this computer geek needs in a car.
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I fail to see where Mahindra is "Damaging the oh-so-sacred Jeep brand" whatsoever. Jeep is doing that just FINE by themselves. Mahindra appears to be building a real Jeep; Jeep, on the other hand, is letting that slip away slowly but surely by building vehicles that are too big, too expensive, and waaaay too overloaded with technology. Granted, some of that isn't Jeep's fault, our benevolent OverLords have decreed that we must have much of the electronic crap as they feel that Americans can't drive, can't brake, can't stay in their own lane, can't use their mirrors, and certainly can't back up. They're not all wrong...
I think to get in on the lucrative US 4x4 market.
Alright I think I see where you're coming from. Thanks!
Correct, but not on the coat tails of Jeep's brand and marketing over the past decades.
No kidding. I had to teach my kids to parallel park a car using our rubber trash cans. Now you push a button.
I did some traveling and had 3 rental cars in the last couple of months. It was like being a pilot and having to do a pre drive checklist before I could get moving. One car had adaptive cruise and it picked up cars a 1/2 mile ahead. So I would look at the gauges and realize the car had slowed down to 55 mph in a 70 because it did it slowly over 1/2 mile to match the speed of the car in front. I had to read the owners manual to figure out how to change the cruise control and lane assist options in the rental so it would stop doing what it wanted and beeping at me every time a car passed me on the narrow 4 lane highway.
I could see how everyone has that on so they can read their phones more instead of driving.
Hey look, there is a tree, neato. Oh look, there is another over there, neato. Wow, everywhere I look there is a tree. I wonder what they call it when there are so many trees in one spot?
Possibly, or one can understand that regardless of one's opinion of FCA's current vision, that does not negate the legality of the situation.
I was thinking maybe one of these:
