Selecting Car Trademarks – Ford Mustang Was Almost Called What?

Consumer reports, through Yahoo, has an informative and interesting article on the trademark selection process for cars. It correlates well with my article on selecting a strong and enforceable trademark for your goods and services. The process begins with numerous proposals that are whittled down to the top few, which are then researched by a trademark attorney and clearance provided. Luckily for some car companies, however, some ill advised trademarks are still avoided – like Lafayette instead of the Ford Mustang. I don’t believe the “Lafayette” would evoke the same impression of freedom and speed as the “Mustang” associated with the pictured vehicle from Ford’s website. But then again, some companies did not read my advice and used the Nova trademark on cars, which means “it doesn’t go” in Spanish. Not a great trademark or message for a car, Chevrolet.