Toyota files application to trademark ‘GR Hilux’ nameplate Down Under…

Toyota has applied to trademark the “GR Hilux” nameplate in Australia although the Japanese firm insists it has “no plans” to offer a high-performance version of the bakkie just yet.

According to CarsGuide, Toyota has filed to trademark the badge with the Australian government’s intellectual property office, with a result expected later in January 2020.

The publication approached Toyota for comment on the trademark filing, with the Japanese firm pointing out it is “standard practice for our parent company to reserve vehicle names that could potentially be used in future, as a means of protecting that name for future use”.

“There are definitely no plans to introduce a GR Hilux at this stage, but as always, it is something that we would definitely not rule out for the future, especially with the high level of interest locally for high performance [bakkies],” the company added.

In December 2019, a high-ranking Toyota executive in Australia said such a model was not on the radar “right now”. Interestingly, late in November 2019, Toyota in South America whipped the covers off an updated version of the familiar GR Sport bakkie, ditching the four-cylinder diesel engine for the familiar petrol-powered V6.