Unveiling the Secrets of Car Logos
Logos are symbols or badges that represent the brand image of a company or a product. The term ‘logo’ is derived from the Greek word 'logos' that means 'word'.
Today, the global car market is flooded with a huge fleet of cars belonging to different brands. Car logos mark a clear distinction between brands in the crowded car market. Every car manufacturer has thoughtfully designed a unique visual mark that reflects the individuality of the brand. These logos have ingrained deep into the minds of people all over the world. With this, all the high-end, exotic, luxurious, and inspiring cars on road are recognized by the identity displayed by their logos.
Here we have revealed small secrets hidden behind the logos of some of the popular car brands in India:
Audi
The magical 'Four Rings' of Audi represent the amalgamation of four independent auto manufacturers. These four manufacturers are the Audi, DKW, Horch and the Wanderer and they later joined the NSU brand which gave birth to the present day Audi AG. The name 'Audi' comes from a Latin word that means 'hear'.
BMW
BMW stands for Bayerische Motoren Werke or Bavarian Motor Company that was established in 1913 in Munich, Germany. The BMW logo comprises four quadrants of alternating white and blue colour. This symbol clearly represents an airplane propeller spinning against the clear blue sky. The design of the logo actually originates from the founders of BMW who were manufacturers of military aircraft engines. Furthermore, the white and blue colours used in the logo are considered to traditional colours of Bavaria.
Chevrolet
The Chevrolet logo was inspired from a wallpaper hanged on the wall of a French hotel. Once the founder of the company had visited the hotel and saw the appealing pattern on the wallpaper that looked like marching off into infinity. Later, the Chevrolet brand used the same pattern into its logo. However, there is a speculation that the logo was inspired from a Virginia newspaper.
Ford
The Ford logo was designed by Henry Ford's right-hand-man, Harold Wills. Wills printed business cards when he was a teen and when he was asked to design a logo for Ford, he just pulled an expressive font that he used on his business card. Later, the oval shape was added to that expressive font in 1912 and the dark blue background in 1927. This finally made the present day Ford logo that is representing its unique and powerful identity.
Fiat
The FIAT stands for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (Italian Car Factory of Turin), founded in 1899. The current Fiat logo features the alphabets 'F-I-A-T' written with a silver line between each of them. Earlier the logo was only a text symbol but later on the company's chief designer, Mario Maioli, added the silver lines. The idea of incorporating the silver lines came into his mind one while driving when he noticed the sky that reflected some spaces between the alphabets of the company's name. He then decided to highlight these spaces with silver linings and thus the final logo was created.
Hyundai
The Hyundai logo is an oval shaped 'H' that symbolises the company's aspiration. The oval shape indicates the company's will to expand and the slanted and stylized 'H' represents the integrity of company and customer association. The slanted 'H' is actually a symbolic of two people shaking hands and the two people are emblematic of the company and the customer.
Mercedes-Benz
The three pointed star logo of the Mercedes-Benz symbolises their domination on land, sea, and air. This logo was first used for Daimler in 1909 and later in 1926 a laurel wreath was added to signify its union with Benz. In1937, the logo was again revised and changed into the original 'three-pointed' logo that is seen on every Mercedes-Benz car today.
Mahindra & Mahindra
Mahindra has always laid focus on quality, speed, and effective change. The same is being reflected in its logo. At present the logo has three strokes that are connected to each other at the upper end. The three strokes are titled to the right to symbolise direction, tapered upwards to represent motion, and combined at the top like an apex to convey focus.
Maruti Suzuki
Maruti Udyog is believed to be an undisputed king of the Indian car market since its birth in India. It has a simple and elegant logo that is clubbed with the Suzuki's logo. It represents the collaboration between Maruti Udyog and Suzuki.
Mitsubishi
The Mitsubishi logo is designed by Yataro Iwasaki in 1870. It represents an integration of two family logos displaying three water chestnuts. It has taken the design from a three-layer chestnut family crest of Yataro Iwasaki, founder of Tsukumo Shokai, and the three-leaved oak family crest of the Yamanouchi family, from the Tosa Clan. Even the name is taken from Japanese words 'Mitsu' and 'Hishi' that means 'three' and 'water chestnut', respectively.
Porsche
The Porsche logo was designed based on the coat of arms of Free People's State of Württemberg of former Weimar Germany. Porsche cars are built in Stuttgart (the capital city of Weimar Germany), a city that was built on the site of a stud farm (animal husbandry). Therefore, the symbol also represents a horse in the coat of arms along with antlers and red and black stripes that are an integral part of the Kingdom of Wurttemberg.
Skoda
The Skoda logo is a green coloured winged arrow. The arrow signifies progressive production methods and the eye in between the arrow indicates technical expertise or range of vision. The green colour is symbolic to its environmental production. The logo also features a black surrounding that gives the Skoda a greater degree of originality and symbolises the hundred-year tradition.
Tata Motors
The Tata logo was designed by the Wolff Olins consultancy and it simply represents the letter 'T' that stands for 'Tata'. The logo signifies fluidity or a fountain of knowledge or a tree of trust under which people feel safe.
Toyota
The Toyota logo features three ellipses representing the three interlocking aspects of the company's culture - freedom, team spirit, and progress. The name is taken from the Japanese word 'Toyo' that means 'an abundance of' and 'ta' that means 'rice'. In some Asian cultures people believe that those who have abundance of rice have great wealth.
Volvo
Volvo is taken from a Latin word 'Volvere' that means 'to roll'. The logo has a circle with an arrow pointed diagonally upward to the right. The arrow symbolizes iron and reflects the brand characteristics of safety, quality, and durability. The iron logo also indicates modern and exciting design holding strong emotional connection with the customers.
Volkswagen
The Volkswagen logo was designed in 1938 by Franz Xaver Reimspiess, who was an employee of Porsche. He designed this logo during an office logo design competition and had won a price award of about Rs 20,000. The term is taken from a German word that means 'People’s Car'.
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