Introduction: For design, EULER should be more confident.
If we talk about the most impressive electric car at this year’s Shanghai Auto Show, EULER Punk Cat must be one of them. With its retro styling and color scheme, Punk Cat has become the focus of attention.
However, according to recent reports from foreign media, Volkswagen is considering suing Great Wall Motors over the suspicion that EULER Punk Cat plagiarizes VW Beetle.
Volkswagen stated that “although Beetle was officially discontinued in 2019, its design copyright still belongs to the Volkswagen Group. We are currently investigating whether EULER Punk Cat has infringed on Volkswagen’s design patent and will reserve any necessary legal steps.”
Great Wall Motors has not yet responded to Volkswagen’s statement.
In recent years, HAVAL and WEY, both under the Great Wall Motors, have made significant progress in design, thanks to the recruitment of many designers from Europe. As for EULER, the new energy sub-brand of Great Wall Motors, there has also been a noticeable improvement in product design after iQ.
However, the two sides have presented completely different styles in their design. HAVAL and WEY are generally original, while EULER seems to be pursuing an imitation route, whether it is Black Cat similar to Honda e, or Good Cat and Lightning Cat resembling Porsche. This time, Punk Cat seems to resemble Beetle.
Regarding the accusation that EULER imitates Porsche, there is much debate among netizens. Some believe that Great Wall Motors is blatantly plagiarizing, while others believe that Great Wall Motors hired Aimon Delattre from Porsche for design, which is not considered plagiarism.
In any case, from a design standpoint, EULER has indeed brought visual surprises and significant impact to the market. As for whether there is an infringement of Volkswagen’s patent, we can only continue to watch.
If there is indeed an infringement, it may not be a bad thing to take the opportunity to change EULER’s design from imitation to original. At this point, Chinese brands should have more confidence in design, especially Great Wall Motors, which has already reached a high level of design.
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.