Photo: Pininfarina/Ferrari
In a surprising turn of events, Ferrari has lost the rights to the Testarossa name to a German toy company, which now intends to use it for a line of electric shavers and bicycles, of all things possible.
The ruling can be challenged further, though, and it is a result of a lawsuit between Kurt Hesse, the founder of toymaker Autec AG and Ferrari. Representatives for the Prancing Horse argued that the carmaker should retain the Testarossa name since it continues to either maintain or restore various examples of the 1980s sports car.
On the other hand, Hesse claimed that since the name hadn't been used commercially for more than two decades, it should become free to use by other entities, and the court ruled in his favor.
According to the ruling, Ferrari did not use the Testarossa name adequately in the last five years, which means that the trademark should no longer be exclusive to Maranello.
The last time when the Testarossa name was used commercially was in 1996 when the last Ferrari 512 M was built. Almost 10,000 Testarossas in various specs were produced from 1984 to 1996, making it one of the best-selling Ferraris of all time.
If you're a child of the 1980s and early 1990s, there is a pretty good chance that if you had car posters on your bedroom wall, this Ferrari model was depicted among them.
Meaning “red head” in Italian, the car was named this way for two reasons. First of all, its twelve cylinder engine's cam covers are painted red, which can now be almost viewed as a tradition at Ferrari. Second of all, it was also built as an homage to the Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, a racing car from the late fifties, which also had its cam covers painted red.
Don Johnson's Sonny Crockett character in the famed Miami Vice series is also responsible for much of the Testarossa's fame, which was so well sold that it became synonymous with the yuppy movement in the 1980s. If Ferrari doesn't counter-suit, we may be able soon to buy a new Testarossa, this time one you can ride on two wheels, or you can shave with.
On the other hand, Hesse claimed that since the name hadn't been used commercially for more than two decades, it should become free to use by other entities, and the court ruled in his favor.
According to the ruling, Ferrari did not use the Testarossa name adequately in the last five years, which means that the trademark should no longer be exclusive to Maranello.
The last time when the Testarossa name was used commercially was in 1996 when the last Ferrari 512 M was built. Almost 10,000 Testarossas in various specs were produced from 1984 to 1996, making it one of the best-selling Ferraris of all time.
If you're a child of the 1980s and early 1990s, there is a pretty good chance that if you had car posters on your bedroom wall, this Ferrari model was depicted among them.
Meaning “red head” in Italian, the car was named this way for two reasons. First of all, its twelve cylinder engine's cam covers are painted red, which can now be almost viewed as a tradition at Ferrari. Second of all, it was also built as an homage to the Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, a racing car from the late fifties, which also had its cam covers painted red.
Don Johnson's Sonny Crockett character in the famed Miami Vice series is also responsible for much of the Testarossa's fame, which was so well sold that it became synonymous with the yuppy movement in the 1980s. If Ferrari doesn't counter-suit, we may be able soon to buy a new Testarossa, this time one you can ride on two wheels, or you can shave with.
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