No one would question that this MB is a real MB. It left the Mercedes factory as a real MB and will continue to be a real MB no matter what modifications are done to it. But if you want to make your analogy relevant to this discussion, you need to add a little more to the story:Mark Flaten wrote:... One of these MB cars was a US delivered car with US accoutrements but I really liked the way it was originally designed in Europe so when it was restored it was restored as a Euro car. This car went through a 4 year nut and bolt restoration. It was recently sold, not because I was looking to sell the car but because I was offered a great price. It was one of the highest private sales of that car in the country. .... Was the car real?
Suppose after completing your resto/mod on this Mercedes you removed the MB badges and added the badges of a Rolls Royce. At that point your car is simply a lie--still a Mercedes but pretending to something else, even if it would be obvious to the rest of the world that the car isn't a Rolls. There is nothing wrong with an Intermeccanica as long as you are not trying to pass it off as something else. Intermeccanica supplies its factory-built cars with Intermeccanica badges, as it should. They are proud of their creation. But it certainly seems that the buyers of these cars don't appreciate what they have--most of them have replaced the Intermaccania badges with Porsche badges and script. The goal is to deceive. Even if they will tell someone who asks that it's a replica, when no one asks, they are displaying it as real.
Also remember, whether you agree with the law or not, it is against copyright laws to badge the car as the real thing. As an example of how serious copyright law is taken, Rolex took a private individual to court for selling two fake Rolexes at a flee market for $20 each. The seller sold them as fakes so there was no intent to deceive on the sellers part. The court still found in favor of Rolex, finding the need to protect Rolexes copyright.
I've had conversations with replica owners. Some have avoided answering "real or not", others have come right out and said "replica", others said "real" and one--only one--displayed Intermeccanica badges and was overjoyed with talking all about it. It was a great car and he was proud of it.