Agreement Ends Feud Over Viper Name : Trademarks: Chrysler settles out of court with car alarm maker that filed an infringement lawsuit.

Chrysler Corp. and a northern San Diego County auto security company have agreed that both can use the name Viper, ending a yearlong trademark dispute out of court.

Directed Electronics Inc. announced Monday that it would let the auto maker use the name for its high-powered Dodge sports car and in the marketing of related clothing, drinking cups, jewelry, watches and other merchandise.

DEI, based in Vista, Calif., will continue using the Viper name for its line of car alarm systems under terms of the settlement, company President Darrell Issa said.

He refused to disclose the settlement amount, but said the agreement “specifically lays out how (Chrysler) can use” the Viper name.

“We tell them exactly what they can do and how they can do it,” Issa said by telephone Monday night. “That’s all we ever wanted was to retain our trademark.”

DEI filed trademark infringement lawsuits against Chrysler in federal and California state courts last January, contending that it had registered the Viper name for a line of car alarms in 1986.

The companies agreed in April to delay litigation over the lawsuits while they tried to reach a settlement, but talks were unsuccessful.

Rita McKay, a Chrysler spokeswoman, confirmed Monday night that an agreement had been made but said she had no further information on the settlement.

Chrysler began using the Viper name publicly in 1989 for its 10-cylinder, 400-horsepower sports car. The hand-built autos sell for about $56,000 apiece. The Viper car alarms cost between $229 and $900.

All 200 Viper cars produced this year have been sold, and all 3,500 planned for 1993 have been ordered or already are paid for.

The settlement was also designed to protect both companies from future trademark infringements on either one’s product, Issa said.

DEI’s claim was at least the third in recent years to challenge the name of a new car, but the first involving two automotive products.

Toyota’s luxury division Lexus was challenged unsuccessfully by the information retrieval service Lexis in 1989.