AUTONEWS

Chinese attack Mini: Chinese industry continues to look for ways to achieve its goals

The attempts by Chinese manufacturers to register blatant copies of European and North American models are all too well known, revealing a lack of creativity and respect for rivals. This time, the victim was the original Mini, designed by Sir Alec Issigonis and manufactured between 1959 and 2000. Beijing Estek Technology copied the 1959 Mini in its entirety and submitted it to the Chinese State Intellectual Property Register as its own.

Estek is above all an important company specializing in the production of semiconductors, the traditional chips, which thus intended to enter the electric vehicle market with a model full of history, small and agile, ideal for cities and surroundings.

The attempt to register the historic British vehicle as the intellectual property of the Chinese collided with the will of a German manufacturer, BMW, current owner of the Mini, which it acquired in 1996 along with everything that belonged to the Rover Group, some smaller brands such as MG and Rover itself, but also the mythical Land Rover, maker of the unavoidable Defender and the luxurious Range Rover.

Faced with opposition from BMW, the attempt to register the English Mini as Chinese was not successful, which must have contributed to the strong investments that the German group has in China. But the Chinese Estek may not stop there, as she has three months to appeal the decision. It remains to wait for new developments, remembering that another Chinese company managed to register a copy of the Beetle.

by Mundoquatrorodas