FCA Wins Case Against Mahindra For Roxor Infringing Jeep Design

Mahindra may no longer sell its little Roxor off-roader in the United States because of the International Trade Commission upholding a judge's ruling that the design of the little off-roader violates FCA's trademark on the look of the Jeep Wrangler. In addition to not being able to sell the machine, Mahindra may not import parts and complete Roxors into the country.

In November 2019, a judge ruled that the Roxor infringed on the trade dress of the Jeep's design, according to Automotive News. However, the decision did not cover the Mahindra's grille as violating the Jeep's trademark look. The judge suggested removing the Roxor from the market, and the ITC agreed with this decision.

Mahindra assembles the Roxor in Michigan. However, all of the component manufacturing takes place in India, and the American site puts together the parts.

In January 2020, Mahindra made styling tweaks changes to the Roxor that the company hoped was a solution to the trademark problem. The revised model had a new grille with an array of oval-shaped openings and a body-color surround. At the time, Mahindra said it was willing to make more design changes to make the vehicle compliant with the ITC. Given this ruling, the company might be going back to the drawing board, again.

While the Roxor is too close to the classic Jeep design in terms of trademarks, the two vehicles aren't truly competitors. The Roxor is not road-legal, so it falls more into the side-by-side off-roader segment. A 2.5-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel produces 62 horsepower (46 kilowatts) with 144 pound-feet (195 Newton-meters) of torque. The drivetrain consists of a five-speed manual, two-speed transfer case, and part-time four-wheel drive. The top speed is just 45 miles per hour (72 kilometers per hour).