days after GAC M8 PHEV Now that the people mover has launched in Australia, the new Chinese brand may already be facing its first hurdle.
The use of the “M8” can be seen as a conflict, as BMW has had its own M8 – a high-performance coupe – on the local market since late 2019.
“BMW Group protects the reputation of its premium products, which are highly valued and valued by consumers,” a BMW Australia spokesperson said Daily Sparkz.
“We are aware that this brand uses a nomenclature similar to the naming system used by BMW. However, we would not like to make any further comment at this time.”
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Although BMW has not made an official objection at this point, BMW has said in an interview with Car Expert, GAC Australia president Kevin Shu said he was not concerned.
“It doesn’t matter,” Mr. Shu replied when asked about a possible trademark challenge by BMW.
“For example, I think my name is Kevin. A lot of people are named Kevin.
“But we just focus on our personality,” he said, explaining that GAC offers several different powertrain options in its models to meet customer needs.
“So different brands have different brand personalities (intellectual property), so this is a normal situation,” Mr Shu said Daily Sparkz.
Although GAC has filed several trademark applications locally, at the time of writing, it does not appear that the company has filed an application for the M8 nameplate.
According to the federal government’s IP Australia website, “BMW M8” has been a registered trademark for almost a decade.
It is not the first time that BMW has had a conflict with a Chinese automaker.
As reported in June 2025, BMW rejected Geely’s use of the EX5 name, claimed it was too similar to its own X5.
While this dispute is currently in a cooling phase, BMW may have decided not to pursue its opposition after Audi filed a similar but unsuccessful lawsuit against Nio.
In late 2023, Audi rejected Nio’s use of the ES6, ES7 and ES8 badges because the Audi models were named S6, S7 and S8 – but was ultimately rejected by IP Australia.
MORE: Explore the GAC M8 showroom
