Berlin, Aug 3 (IANS) Italian luxury car manufacturer Ferrari has threatened to sue German fashion designer Philipp Plein after he posted images and videos of his sneakers on the hood of his personal supercar.

Commenting on the subject, the Italian car company has said that Plein's behaviour has "tarnished the reputation of Ferrari's brands and caused Ferrari further material damage", The Verge reported on Friday.

A law firm representing the Italian auto giant quickly dispatched a letter demanding Plein to take the pictures under question down from his Instagram handle within 48 hours, calling them "distasteful" and incompatible with the brand-image.

However, the designer has decided not to delete them.

Justifying his side of the story, Plein wrote on his Instagram account that the car was his property because he bought it with his own money and posted its pictures on his personal handle.

The fashion designer has called the letter a "blackmail", and has asked his 1.8 million Instagram followers to send photos of their shoes on top of luxury cars.

"Can't even put in words how disappointed and disgusted I am about this unfair and totally inappropriate claim against me personally," Plein wrote in his Instagram post accompanying a picture of the lawyer's letter.

"Obviously I love cars and especially FERRARI !!!!"

"My lawyers will go hard and I will make every step public until FERRARI stops bullying their clients," Plein added.