Automakers' Design Patents May Affect Availability of Replacement Parts

Automotive manufacturers have patented many aspects of their vehicles' designs. Ford Motor Company, for example, owns patents covering grilles (D488,111), bumpers (D497577), headlights (D493,552), as well as entire vehicles (D488,405). Two years ago, Ford filed an action before the ITC requesting an exclusion order to  block the importation of third-party replacement parts that infringe the company's design patents. Though some patents were held to be invalid, the ITC issued an order preventing the importation of parts that infringed Ford's valid design patents.

 As a consequence, vehicular body repair costs may rise significantly, as third-party replacement parts are almost always less expensive than those sold by the Original Equipment Manufacturer. The importers have begun campaigning for a "repair parts" exception to the design patent laws and have appealed the Administrative Law Judge's decision to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. A decision on the case is expected sometime midway through 2008.