A Logo that Defines the Car
Every car has a logo. The logo embodies each manufacturer’s mission statement or heritage. Some logos have a pretty lame history and are not worthy enough to be mentioned in detail, while others, like the ones on this list, have intriguing stories behind their logo’s creation.
What we noticed is that the majority of the good logos are from Europe. The Europeans know how to make great logos and cars that define themselves from others. American car manufacturers don’t seem to understand or care so much about their heritage. The big three in Detroit went an entire generation chasing profits, and just now are starting to put the heart back into their vehicles.
If you can’t make out the resemblance between models within one make. Where’s the heritage? Where’s the lineage over the years to show you’ve been making continuous improvements on that specific model? It’s difficult to see any sibling rivalry within any particular American manufacturer because the pride in the heritage just hasn’t existed
Let’s look at the different logos and what the story is behind each one…
Founded: 1910
Headquarters: Turin, Italy
The red cross celebrates the deeds of Giovanni Da Rio who is reputed to have been the first to climb the walls of Jerusalem and erect a cross there during the first crusade. The other half of the symbol is occupied by a man-eating serpent that reportedly terrified the local populous of Milan in the early part of the 5th century A.D.
Audi
Founded: 1910
Headquarters: Ingolstadt, Germany
The four rings which embodies the emblem symbolizes the 1932 merger of the four companies: Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer. The Audi name, which is Latin for “Hear!,” disappeared, but was revived in 1965 using the four rings as a logo. Also, “Audi” is a sort of pun on “hoerch”, German for “to listen”, the name of one of the founders.
Founded: 1916
Headquarters: Munich, Germany
The Bavarian Motor Works logo is a derivation of the Bavarian flag and representative of BMW’s heritage in which it built engines for German military planes during World War II. One half of the propeller was painted blue and the other half was painted white.
Buick
Founded: 1903
Headquarters: Detroit, Michigan
The logo represents the three Buick models in production at the time, the LeSabre, Invicta, and Electra.
Founded: 1911
Headquarters: Detroit, Michigan
Legend has it that the Chevy logo was inspired by a wallpaper in a French hotel where William C. Durant was staying. However, his wife says that the bow tie emblem was first seen by her husband in a Virginia newspaper on a vacation around 1912, upon which he told her that he thought it’d be a very good emblem for Chevrolet.
Cadillac
Founded: 1902
Headquarters: Detroit, Michigan
The Cadillac logo is based on the family crest of the man for whom the company was named, Antoine de La Mothe, Sieyr de Cadillac. The symbolism of the wreath surrounding the crest is uncertain.
Founded: 1900
Headquarters: Auburn Hills, Michigan
The Dodge ram logo first appeared as a hood ornament in the 1930s, used on both trucks and cars. The Ram was chosen for the image it portrays: sure-footed and king of the trail.
Ferrari
Founded: 1947
Headquarters: Maranello, Italy
The infamous prancing stallion used by Ferrari was originally the symbol of an Italian air force World War I ace, Count Francesco Baracca, who painted it on the side of his plane for good luck. The horse symbolized the squadron he belonged to – the Calvary regiment. Count Baracca’s mother, Countess Paolina, convinced Enzo Ferrari to use the symbol in 1923 on his racing cars to bring him good luck. The yellow background represents Ferrari’s birthplace, Modena.
Ford
Founded: 1903
Headquarters: Dearborn, Michigan
Harold Wills, a friend of Henry Ford, made lots of money by printing business cards, and when Henry was looking for a logo to mark his car in 1903, Wills was on the job. The type-font of the Ford logo is the same one used by Wills on his business cards. The oval appeared in 1912 and the blue background added in 1927 in conjuction with the launch of the Model A.
Jaguar
Founded: 1922
Headquarters: Coventry, England
It is believed the leaping jaguar represents the power, speed, and quickness of its cars.
Lamborghini
Founded: 1963
Headquarters: Sant’Agata Bolognese, Italy
The Lamborghini logo stands for the founder’s zodiac sign- the Taurus (a bull). Ferruccio Lamborghini’s love of bullfights is displayed in the logo and Lamborghini models get their names from famous bulls. Lamborghini is now a subsidiary of German car manufacturer Audi AG, which is in turn a subsidiary of Volkswagen.
Founded: 1952
Headquarters: Hethel Norwich, Norfolk, England
The letters at the top of the logo are the initials of the founder of Lotus, Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman. It is not known why Chapman chose the Lotus name for the company. The Green is the famous British Racing Green, worn by British racing cars, and the yellow background symbolizes the sunny days Chapman wanted for his company.
Founded: 1914
Headquarters: Modena, Italy
As in the case of Alfa Romeo, the Maserati logo represents the town of the mark. The trident is the traditional symbol of the city of Bologna, where Maserati cars were built before they were relocated to Modena.
Founded: 1920
Headquarters: Hiroshima, Japan
The Mazda logo is more than just a stylish tulip. Developed by Rei Yoshimara, a world-renowned corporate image-maker, the “V” represents outstretched wings, and in Mazda’s words, “The creativity, the sense of mission, the gentleness and flexibility that are Mazda.”
Mercedes-Benz
Founded: 1871
Headquarters: Stuttgart, Germany
The star in three corners represents the Mercedes-Benz dominance on land, sea and air. The star appeared for the first time in 1909 on a Daimler. In 1926 the crown of laurel was added to mark the union with Benz. The current logo with a star in a circle was used for the first time in 1937.
Founded: 1970
Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan
The three diamonds of the Mitsubishi logo represents the three ship fleet owned by the company founders and the first activity of the Nippon manufacturer.
Founded: 1882
Headquarters: Sochaux, France
The lion from the logo of Peugeot comes from the Belfort city emblem, the place where the first Peugeot model was manufactured. Bartholdi, Belfort city’s logo creator is the same sculptor that designed the Statue of Liberty.
Founded: 1931
Headquarters: Stuttgart, Germany
The Porsche logo is almost identical to Stuttgart’s coat of arms. Stuttgart, was built on the site of a stud (horse) farm. The antlers and red and black stripes are part of the arms of the Wruttemberg Kingdom.
Renault
Founded: 1899
Headquarters: Boulogne-Billancourt, France
The Renault diamond had a functional purpose in its early life. The badge was placed on the hood and the center of the badge cut out to allow sound from the car’s horn, positioned directly behind the logo, to escape.
Founded: 1937
Headquarters: Järfälla, Sweden
The Griffen head is derived from the coat of arms of Count von Skane, which was used as the symbol for the Swedish province of Skane, where Saab was formed.
Founded: 1953
Headquarters: Gunma, Japan
“Subaru” is a Japanese word meaning “unite.” It is also a term identifying the Pleiades star cluster in the constellation Taurus that includes six stars visible to the average eye. According to Greek mythology, Atlas’, the Greek God of weightlifting and burdens, daughters turned into this group of stars. In 1953, five Japanese companies merged to form Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. The new corporation adopted the “Subaru” cluster of stars as its official logo for its line of automobiles.
Founded: 1937
Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan
The Toyota logo contains three ellipses which represent the heart of the customer, the heart of the product and the heart of technological progress and limitless opportunities of the future. In Japanese, Toyo signifies abundance, and ta means rice. In some Asian cultures, the rice represents wealth.
Founded: 1938
Headquarters: Wolfsburg, Germany
The Volkswagen logo story is simplistic. The logo contains the letters V and W: “Volks” means people and “Wagen” means car.
Founded: 1927
Headquarters: Gothenburg, Sweden
Volvo means “I go” in Latin and the circle with the arrow is a conventional sign for iron; the best known richness of Sweden. The circle represents a shield and the arrow is the arrow of Mars, another symbol for iron.
Some car logos were not invited to participate on this list. What can we say? Come up with something better and maybe we’ll create a volume II for those that failed to make the list this go around.
