Ford and Ferrari Settle Lawsuit Over F150 Name, For Now

The Ferrari– Ford rivalry is back on! Just in case it was possible to confuse America’s best-selling pickup truck with Ferrari’s newest F1 car, the Prancing Horse has chosen to spell it out painfully and slowly for the rest of us. The two companies have come to an agreement over the name F150, which Ferrari sought for their newest F1 entry.

Ford objected to this, filing a lawsuit and disputing Ferrari’s similar logo. In response, Ferrari added a “th” to the end of the name, for “Ferrari F150th Italia,” in honor of the 150th anniversary of Italy’s unification. Ford was ok with this—after all, the 150th anniversary of Italian unification only comes around once.

But Ferrari wasn’t pleased enough at this frankly crass comparison between their almighty racing team and a mere blue-collar work truck! So they tweaked the name further, just to be sure—and the 2011 Ferrari Formula 1 racing car is now known as the “Ferrari F150° Italia.” The symbol is the Italian representation of the “th” suffix, a further change from the name that Ford agreed with, and gives the Ferrari car even more Italian-ness than an entire Olive Garden parking lot of Raptors.

And just to drive the point home, Ferrari issued a sardonic press release labeling the situation “Kafkaesque” and applauding the prevailing of common sense, “order to avoid the slightest risk of anyone confusing a Formula 1 car with a pick-up truck…which should make it clear even to the thickest of people.” Just in case, you know, you do forget.

No word on whether Ford will hire Carroll Shelby to vanquish the ghost of Enzo Ferrari behind the wheel of a Lariat, or if Ferrari will introduce a special Harley-Davidson Edition with a “man step” in the tailgate. What would Hank the Deuce do?