DETROIT, July 19 (UPI) -- Ford Motor Co. has quietly told dealers about plans to reintroduce the midsize Ford Futura with a new name -- the Ford Fusion, the Detroit News said.
The five-seater intended the replace the Ford Taurus was announced at the New York Auto Show last year, but the Futura name, which had been used for a previous Ford car, prompted a lawsuit from Pep Boys. The auto parts and vehicle maintenance chain said it owned a copyright on Futura.
A federal court in Philadelphia upheld Pep Boys' claim in April and Ford's marketing department went back to the drawing board and came up with Fusion.
The Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Nissan Altima-fighting Fusion arrives in showrooms next year as a 2006 model.
Last year, Ford lost a court fight to name its awesome 500-horsepower street-legal racing car the GT40. A replica vehicle-kit maker held a copyright on the name GT40.
Ford's legendary racing car called the GT40 won the 24 hours of Le Mans in France four times during the 1960s. The renamed supercar will be called the Ford GT.
