Volvo-backed Polestar blocked from French market in Citroen logo dispute

PARIS — A trademark dispute over its logo has left Polestar, the electric-vehicle brand owned by Volvo Cars and Geely, temporarily unable to launch its cars in France. 

Ruling in a case that dates back to 2017, a French has court found that Polestar’s logo is similar enough to Citroen’s “double chevron” design as well as the logo of DS Automobiles, formerly a Citroen sub-brand, to potentially confuse car buyers. 

The court, in a ruling dated June 4 and published in July, ordered Polestar to pay Citroen 150,000 euros in damages as well as legal fees, and banned the use of the Polestar logo in France for six months.

Polestar this spring launched the Polestar 2, a Chinese-built full-electric sedan that is positioned as a rival to the Tesla Model 3, for the Chinese, European and U.S. markets. The first Polestar 2 models arrived in Europe in at the end of June. 

But French visitors to Polestar’s website see only a white page with the message: “Access to the Polestar…