Honda earns 3D trademark on Super Cub in Japan

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today announced that the Japan Patent Office granted a three-dimensional trademark registration for the shape of the Super Cub, Honda’s popular and long-selling scooter. This is the first time in Japan for the shape of a motorcycle or any other product from an automaker to be registered as a three-dimensional trademark, and it is an extremely rare case for an industrial product of any kind.

More than 50 years since the Super Cub was first introduced in 1958, Honda has maintained the consistent design concept of the Super Cub while continuously achieving functional improvements. As a result, it came to a point where most consumers who see the design of the Super Cub recognize it as a Honda product, and that became one of the determining factors for the Japan Patent Office to grant the trademark.

The Super Cub has been sold in more than 160 countries. Cumulative worldwide production of the Super Cub has reached 87 million units as of March 2014, which makes the Super Cub a motorcycle with the largest production volume in the world.

Honda will continue cherishing the basic concept of the Super Cub and strive to deliver joy to customers all around the world.