Landwind X7, the Evoque copycat, will cease production and sales will be stopped immediately as JLR wins court case after almost three years
The Chinese car market has grown immensely in the last decade with electrification technologies being advanced in nature than on any other country in the world. Global auto brands flooded into China out of nowhere due to its vast volume potential and it has got to a point of influencing every company’s sales due to their heavy reliance on the market.
However, despite being the leading automobile market, nothing has stopped some of China’s local automakers from copying the design and functionalities of the established international players. Landwind’s X7, the Range Rover Evoque copycat, springs to mind all of a sudden among other models.
The good news is that JLR has indeed won a court case against Landwind regarding the X7 clone after nearly three years. While it’s no secret that the offences against local brands on copyright claims would be hard to win in China, JLR has been an exception. Jiangling, the owner of Landwind, is discovered by the Beijing Chaoyang District Court to have copied five unique design elements of the Range Rover Evoque.
Consequently, the Landwind X7 has been ordered to cease production and the sales will be stopped with immediate effect. The company will have to pay hefty compensation to Jaguar Land Rover as part of losing the case. The victory has been lauded by JLR as the right way of supporting a foreign manufacturer with the prevalence of justice.
Jaguar Land Rover’s Global Head of Legal, Keith Benjamin, said that the court decision would encourage the British brand to consolidate its presence in China while investing more in future projects. He further stated that this would protect business investment in design and innovation, and not mislead consumers.
Landwind revealed the X7 back in 2015 and instantly raised eyebrows for its design resembling the Evoque. Due to the cheap pricing compared to the original model, the X7’s sales were on a boom for long but JLR did not relinquish and fought for justice.