DaimlerChrysler tense about alleged copies by Chinese automakers

(12 Sep 2007) SHOTLIST 1. Wide pan of BMW hall at Frankfurt International Motor Show 2. BMW Concept X6 on display at show 3. Close-up of BMW logo 4. Close-up of headlights, zoom out to car on display 5. SOUNDBITE: (German) Wieland Bruch, BMW spokesman: "The issue directly concerning BMW is that there is a Chinese carmaker trying to copy the side and rear view of the previous generation of our X5 model." 6. Tilt-up to car on display 7. SOUNDBITE: (German) Wieland Bruch, BMW spokesman: "Well, if you approach the car and take a closer look, you will immediately notice that it is not a BMW - with regard to manufacturing and equipment. It simply is the first impression. I think we have to counterattack at an early stage. At the moment I do not consider it critical, but if this continues, it is better to get things straight in the beginning. Then this whole thing maybe will be over soon." 8. Logo of China Automobile Germany 9. Rear view of Shuanghuan CEO 10. Close-up of name on car "CEO" 11. Pan of side of car 12. SOUNDBITE: (German) Karl Schloessl, manager at China Automobile Germany: "We do not deny, we do not admit. One gets inspiration from every SUV, no matter whether it is Japanese, Chinese, German or French. When you look at a car today, no matter from which perspective, you will always discover similarities, even with the wheels." 13. Tilt-up over front of car 14. SOUNDBITE: (German) Karl Schloessl, manager China Automobile Germany: "We are in a totally different market segment, and we don't understand all the excitement. Nobody would be interested if the price tag for our CEO said 80-thousand. But it's only 25-thousand for a nice car, and that's politics, of course, and it is asked why and how we do it." 15. Tilt-down of China Automobile booth at car show STORYLINE: Managers at Germany's BMW AG on Wednesday explained why earlier this week the Munich-based car maker filed suit in Frankfurt against Chinese car maker Shuanghuan Automobile to prohibit it from selling its new model. The German company claim that the Chinese company's new model, dubbed the CEO, too closely resembles its own X5. "The issue directly concerning BMW is that there is a Chinese carmaker trying to copy the side and rear view of the previous generation of our X5 model," said BMW spokesman, Wieland Bruch, speaking at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. "I think we have to counterattack at an early stage. At the moment I do not consider it critical, but if this continues, it is better to get things straight in the beginning," Bruch added. Undaunted, the Chinese company's European importer brought the SUV to the motor show. "We do not deny, we do not admit. One gets inspiration from every SUV, no matter whether it is Japanese, Chinese, German or French. When you look at a car today, no matter from which perspective, you will always discover similarities, even with the wheels," Karl Schloessl, a manager at China Automobile Germany, which plans to import and sell the car in Europe, said. Schloessl said the car was designed independently. The spat reflects wider concern among Western companies, many of whom want to do business in China's vast markets but also protect their own copyright. Shuanghuan maintains that the CEO, which is being imported by Italian-based Martin Motors and already is available for purchase, bears no resemblance to the X5, either in style or price. The X5's starting price in Europe is 81,560 US dollars, while the CEO's base model will sell for 35,800 US dollars. BMW is not alone in its concern. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/0534cb5dbdfe7052e5d709452a6c47d5

Added 19 Apr 2026