VEHICLE DESIGN FRACAS:

BRISBANE: The two world carmakers engaged in a fierce battle to dominate Australian new passenger vehicle sales are at loggerheads over claims by one of blatant intellectual property theft by the other.

Kia is threatening to take fierce rival Hyundai to the International Court in The Hague, claiming a new Hyundai model that first appeared in a Brisbane showroom only recently is “far too similar to our own latest release to be coincidental”.

“Our design teams in fact believe Hyundai has virtually stolen, panel for panel, interior design feature for interior design feature, our new Bavas sedan that has been selling remarkably well Down Under since its launch some months ago,” a spokesperson told The Bug.

“It’s almost impossible to tell them apart.”

Kia is demanding that Hyundai remove immediately from all its Australian showrooms all models – petrol, diesel, hybrid and electric – in its 2023 Gleeson range.

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