By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – General Motors Co (NYSE 🙂 and Ford Motor Co (NYSE 🙂 Co reached an agreement to end a legal dispute over Ford Motor’s (NYSE 🙂 use of “BlueCruise”, the Ford Motor name used to market their hands-free technology.

Two automakers stated in a court notice that they were in the process of “settling all claims and counterclaims.” The judge granted dismissal of the case if the parties reached a settlement within sixty days. Details were not released.

Ford spokesmen said they are still working on the settlement, but that it was not final. The spokesperson for Ford stated that the settlement was not finalized but the No. 2 U.S. automaker would “continue using the BlueCruise brand, just as we do for F-150 or Mustang Mach-E today and for next year’s 2022 Expedition.”

GM claimed that the two automakers have “resolved this case and any related proceedings amicably.” “At this moment, we do not have any further comments.”

GM’s Cruise robotaxi subsidiary and GM brought a suit against Ford to prevent them from using BlueCruise. GM claimed that they had “protracted talks” about the matter, but could not agree on a solution.

“Ford knew exactly what it was doing,” GM stated in the suit. The lawsuit states that Ford’s decision not to rebrand using a core trademark used by GM or Cruise will inevitably lead to confusion.

GM declared in 2012 that Super Cruise would be used for the hands-free technology to assist drivers. The technology has been using this name as a marketing tool since 2017.

Ford called the suit, which was filed in California federal court, “meritless, frivolous”. He stated that drivers have been understanding cruise control for many decades and every automaker provides it. The term “cruise”, is the common shorthand of the ability.

Technology is being developed by automakers to allow drivers to get off the wheel during traffic jams and on roads. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems such as Tesla’s semi-automated Autopilot tech (NASDAQ:) Inc) do not allow drivers to stop driving completely for prolonged periods.

For decades, automakers used “cruise”, a term that describes systems that let drivers set the speed of their car. This is usually highway driving.

GM’s Cruise self-driving car unit, which is majority owned by GM, has been in operation since 2013.

Ford announced it would use the name BlueCruise https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/ford-offer-hands-free-driving-some-car-truck-models-later-this-year-2021-04-14 for its hands-free driving technology in April this year.