Car Logo Designs

The type of car you drive says a lot about your personality, lifestyle and preferences. Transport vehicles are not just a means of communication any longer but are also a status symbol that differentiates the high class from the middle class.

But what sets these car companies apart from each other?

It's their logo designs.

Vehicle companies spend a lot of time coming up with the perfect car logos pictures that represents their company.

Some use animal attributes; some use national court of arms or other such patriotic images to set their mark apart from the rest and some simply use their corporation name to make their logo design distinctive.

Let's further look into the kinds of designs that successful companies have used for their business mark. There are basically four types of auto trademark designs

1. One that only consist of text:

A lot of famous companies have used just their company name in the business image to keep it apart from the crowd. For example, companies like Ford, Nissan and Belsize have used their corporation name in curvy or straight fonts to make their brand distinct and easily memorable.

2. One that consist of symbols:

There are a few automobile symbols that have become so popular that they can be identified by their design all over the world. Remember the symbol by Audi, BMW, Chevrolet or Infiniti? What do they have in common which makes their symbols so popular?

They can all be drawn very easily with a pencil and a piece of paper. Their simplicity is what makes them unique.

3. One that consists of company initials:

A lot of famous vehicle corporations believe in using the corporation symbol as their representation which may be a one lettered initial or two. Successful brands like Suzuki, Honda, Accura, Gillet, Hyundai, Lexus, MG and Bufori have used their trade name initials to successfully set their corporation apart from the rest.

4. One that consists of images:

Many car logo images have used intricate designs to represent their brand which consists of a deeper meaning than what meets our eye. For example the Alpha Romeo badge represents the city of Milano's court of arms and the Ferrari design is homage to the famous Italian air force pilot who gave his life for the country during World War I. Many companies have also used animal images like a bull or a big cat to associate animal attributes to their company features. Their business marks represent power; strength and grace through the animals that they have chosen to symbolize their brand.

So there you have four famous types of automobile trademarks that have contributed massively to their success and have made their designs recognizable all over the world.

The Stories Behind Car Logos

Indeed, we care about and for cars more than we care for ourselves. And often, the first thing we care about is the brand, symbolized by the logo. Some of these car logos are famous throughout the world, instantly recognizable at a moment's notice. The Mercedes Benz three-pointed star, the Ferrari prancing horse, the Chevrolet bow-tie - they represent the brand wherever there products are found. Here, we present the not-so-well-known stories behind some of these well-known logos, in no particular order. We have intentionally not included logos that are self-explanatory, such as those that include the name (or initial) of the brand - Ford, Honda, etc.

1. Mercedes Benz: Two German car manufacturers, Benz & Cie. and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, merged in 1928 giving rise to Daimler Benz Co. The famous three-starred logo was originally designed by Gottlieb Daimler in 1909, and subsequently featured on Daimler Benz cars. After Daimler's death, his partner, Wilhelm Maybach, took over the company and sold many Daimler cars to wealthy businessman Emile Jellinek, who later bankrolled development of a new line of cars named after his daughter Mercedes. Hence, the name. The logo is supposed to represent the brand's "domination of the land, the sea, and the air."

2. Ferrari: The famous Cavallino Rampante or "prancing horse" logo has its origins in a chance meeting between company founder Enzo Ferrari and Countess Paolina, mother of Count Francesco Baracca who had been an ace of the Italian air force and used to paint a horse on the side of his planes. The Countess asked Ferrari to paint a horse on his cars for luck. The black color was used to symbolize grief at Baracca's death in action while the yellow color represented his birthplace of Modena.

3. Chevrolet: The Chevrolet bow-tie logo is one of the simplest, yet most well-known corporate symbols in the world. It was first used in 1913 and there are conflicting stories on its origin. While one theory goes that it was inspired by a wallpaper pattern seen by co-founder William Durant, another says that it represents a Swiss cross in a homage to the origins of the other co-founder Louis Chevrolet. Incidentally, Durant had founded General Motors before he was forced out and established Chevrolet.

4. Dodge: The brand has a new logo since this year, but most people still identify it with the "ram's head" logo. The logo first appeared as a hood ornament in the 1930s. The ram was chosen for its ruggedness, something Dodges have always tried to portray. In fact, so popular did the logo become that Dodge trucks began to be called Rams. Today, it is still used for the spun-off Ram brand.

5. Buick: Not many know that Buick is the oldest American automobile manufacturer. Founded in 1899 by David Dunbar Buick, it was later acquired by William Durant and became the centerpiece of the General Motors conglomerate. The logo was originally a single shield representing Buick's ancestral coat of arms. In 1960, the single shield was replaced by a trio in red, white and blue representing the three cars then in the Buick stable - the LeSabre, Invicta, and Electra.

6. Maserati: This Italian luxury car manufacturer was established in 1914 by the five Maserati brothers Alfieri, Bindo, Carlo, Ettore, and Ernesto, in the town of Bologna. The trident logo was designed by an artist and is based on a sculpture in the Fontana del Nettuno (Fountain of Neptune) at Bologna. Neptune is the Roman God of the Seas and is represented with a trident in his hand.

7. Mitsubishi: The Mitsubishi brand of cars is member of a larger conglomerate that began life as a shipping firm in 1914 and is named after the Japanese words for three diamonds ("mitsu" meaning "three" and "bishi" meaning "water caltrops," also rhomboidal like diamonds). Consequently, the origin of the logo becomes clear.

8. Subaru: The name of the company is actually the Japanese translation of the Pleiades star cluster, which also means "to gather together." Subaru is a division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Fuji Heavy Industries (FHI). The name refers to the five companies that joined forces (Fuji Kogyo, Fuji Jidosha Kogyo, Omiya Fuji Kogyo, Utsunomiya Sharyo and Tokyo Fuji Sangyo) to form FHI. The logo represents the cluster.

9. Mazda: The company derives its name from the Persian God Ahura Mazda as well as the name of the founder Jujiro Matsuda. The stylized "M" logo, also known as the "owl" logo, represents Mazda stretching its wings for the future. It may also represent Ahura Mazda, who is often depicted by a flying sun-disk.

10. Audi: The company's name is based on the surname of the founder August Horch, meaning listen - which, when translated into Latin, becomes Audi. Horch had originally founded Horch Automobil-Werke, from where he was forced out before founding Audi in 1899. In 1932, Audi merged with Horch, DKW, and Wanderer, to form Auto Union. The Audi logo of four intersecting rings represents this merger. Its resemblance to the Olympic logo caused the International Olympic Committee to sue Audi in 1995.

11. Pontiac: GM may have declared its intent to phase out the Pontiac brand by the end of 2010, but its arrowhead logo continues to be highly visible on American roads. The brand was named after Native American leader Chief Pontiac who led a struggle against British occupation in the 18th century. While the earliest Pontiac logo depicted by a Native American chief's headdress, it was updated in 1957 to the currently used American Indian red arrowhead design, also known as the "Dart."

12. BMW: Rounding off this list is drivers' favorite BMW. The abbreviation stands for Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (Bavarian Motor Works). The two-layered circular BMW logo, also described as a roundel, has been interpreted to represent a spinning propeller, considering the company started as a manufacturer of aircraft engines. The white and blue colors represent the official flag of Bavaria, a state in Germany where BMW originated.

Car Logos And Their Meanings

In addition to bringing about brand identity, car company logos provide powerful visual images for auto consumers. If you are a car enthusiast and you have been wondering what different car logos mean, here is an explanation.

Alfa Romeo

The logo is a four-leafed clover on a white background. It means good luck just like what the four-leafed clover means. It first appeared on Alfa Romeo race cars during the First World War. It then appeared on Ferrari racers when Alfa shut down its racing program in the 1920s.

Bugatti

Bugatti Company uses two badges: one has the initials "EB" and the other is a red oval with the word "Bugatti" spelled out. The first emblem in 1910 only had a red oval. The initials were added later on. The two badges have the same meaning: they are a reference to Ettore Bugatti who is the founder of the Bugatti Company.

Ferrari

The emblem is a rearing horse which is often set inside a yellow rectangle. The logo first appeared in the 1920s when the company was making racing cars for Alfa Romeo.

The horse comes from a WWI flying ace who painted it on his planes as a sign of good luck. Enzo asked the manufacturing company to place the same horse on his race cars. The yellow background symbolizes Modena, Enzo's hometown.

Jaguar

Just like Bugatti, Jaguar has two hood badges: the growler which only has a cat face, and the leaper, which is a full-bodied jaguar leaping from the hood. The leaper logo was used before world war two while the flat growler was used in the 1950s. The logos symbolize the animal, jaguar.

Lotus

A yellow circle with a green, curved triangle featuring the company name is what the logo carries. Looking at the emblem, the company's name is obvious. The letters on the triangle are initials of the founder Colin Chapman. The emblem first appeared in the early 1950s when the Lotus Engineering Company was founded.

Maserati

A red three-pronged spear usually referred to as a trident is the logo. The emblem is believed to have been designed by Mario Maserati. It's deemed that Maserati based the logo on the trident that is carried by Neptune in classical mythology. The company started using the emblem in the early 1920s.

Peugeot

The logo has featured a lion since 1948. The metallic color of the emblem represents the brand's values which are: allure, excellence, and emotion.

Car Logo Woes

It just is not right. Car gets burgled and it is an ugly sight, scratches and crowbar marks but, only damage is; the hundred twenty-five dollar hood ornament is taken. Having a five-hundred dollar deductible car insurance carrier is really an awful deal when it comes to this kind of damage to your car. Your psyche takes a hit as well. Your brain walks through scenarios of where you can defend yourself somehow, and after a while coming up with an answer short of parking the car in the garage, and leaving it there forever, is hard to do.

This sort of scenario is not isolated though, throughout the world, car logos are a hot ticket and people go through all sorts of gyrations to possess them. If you can imagine, the main reason for the heist is to adorn themselves with the emblem on a chain or as the centerpiece for a belt buckle. It is for the sake of having jewelry, the possessing of a status symbol, a piece of high roller society that communicates self-indulgence, this has to be a motivator for more earthly delights gotten the same way. Masses being masses will follow and replicate the same for themselves causing ever more pressure to commoditize the very object that needs to be replaced on the car which only serves the manufacturer in identification and branding. I have to pay how much?

How have we come to this?

How have we come to see ourselves as needing a chain around our necks with car logos attached to them? Seriously, is there not some better way to say you made it than to take the emblem off a car and tie it to your neck? I like Jaguars and Mercedes, but taking the hood ornament and turning it into jewelry is not classy. Are you making a social statement? Get over it and make something of yourself.

Car logos, who would have thought they would be so popular? Next time you are out on the town, see how many people you find that are sporting that type of bling and remember it could be your hood ornament around their neck.

Awesome Car Logo Ideas

The message that any car business trademark wants to convey to its customers is one of speed, dependability, strength and style. Since cars are not only a means of communication anymore but also a symbol of class, style and advancing technology, the faster and stylish they are, the more popular they will be. Hence the same features of style, speed and high quality should be reflected in a car logo as well.

The brand mark of a car corporation should be simple enough to be memorable and distinct enough to be differentiated from others.

Below mentioned are some of ideas for your car business image.

1. Use animal attributes to symbolize your company features:

A car company logo should portray speed, reliability and power. The animals that are perfect to portray that message to the viewers are horses, cheetahs, bears, bulls and eagles because of their grace, strength and intimidating personality. You can use a sprinting horse to signify grace, speed and steadiness or you can use a leaping leopard to represent speed and style. You can also use an eagle's wings in your brand mark to symbolize speed and sharp sightedness or a raging bull to represent competitiveness and strength.

2. Use the corporation name within a ring like structure:

The most famous trend in car trademarks is the use of rings. The ring is a symbolization of car wheels and also adds an air of simplicity to the design which is why it is so popular. Since this shape is so flexible, it can be used in a variety of styles. For example you can use the corporation name or initial in a ring or you can put a lot of rings together or within each other creatively to symbolize your brand. You can also add symbols that signify speed and motion in your ring like structure for example; you can add a thunderbolt in the ring or wings of a hawk around the ring to depict speed. You can also use ovals or mandala like patterns to make your car logos distinct from others.

3. Use abstracts of speed and strength in the design:

Using abstracts in car firm images is another rising trend. Abstract effects give a subtle feel of the company features that makes the image interesting and eye catching. You can use abstracts of speed and style in your design for example; you can use the company initial or a car illustration with a few horizontal lines to represent speed or use a ribbon effect to symbolize style.

Hence, you can use a lot of ideas to create your car firm trademark but the only rule to remember here is to maintain the design's simplicity as that is the only factor that can signify quality and make your logo memorable.

Car Logos And Their Names

Indeed, we care about and for cars more than we care for ourselves. And often, the first thing we care about is the brand, symbolized by the logo. Some of these car logos are famous throughout the world, instantly recognizable at a moment's notice. The Mercedes Benz three-pointed star, the Ferrari prancing horse, the Chevrolet bow-tie - they represent the brand wherever there products are found. Here, we present the not-so-well-known stories behind some of these well-known logos, in no particular order. We have intentionally not included logos that are self-explanatory, such as those that include the name (or initial) of the brand - Ford, Honda, etc.

1. Mercedes Benz: Two German car manufacturers, Benz & Cie. and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, merged in 1928 giving rise to Daimler Benz Co. The famous three-starred logo was originally designed by Gottlieb Daimler in 1909, and subsequently featured on Daimler Benz cars. After Daimler's death, his partner, Wilhelm Maybach, took over the company and sold many Daimler cars to wealthy businessman Emile Jellinek, who later bankrolled development of a new line of cars named after his daughter Mercedes. Hence, the name. The logo is supposed to represent the brand's "domination of the land, the sea, and the air."

2. Ferrari: The famous Cavallino Rampante or "prancing horse" logo has its origins in a chance meeting between company founder Enzo Ferrari and Countess Paolina, mother of Count Francesco Baracca who had been an ace of the Italian air force and used to paint a horse on the side of his planes. The Countess asked Ferrari to paint a horse on his cars for luck. The black color was used to symbolize grief at Baracca's death in action while the yellow color represented his birthplace of Modena.

3. Chevrolet: The Chevrolet bow-tie logo is one of the simplest, yet most well-known corporate symbols in the world. It was first used in 1913 and there are conflicting stories on its origin. While one theory goes that it was inspired by a wallpaper pattern seen by co-founder William Durant, another says that it represents a Swiss cross in a homage to the origins of the other co-founder Louis Chevrolet. Incidentally, Durant had founded General Motors before he was forced out and established Chevrolet.

4. Dodge: The brand has a new logo since this year, but most people still identify it with the "ram's head" logo. The logo first appeared as a hood ornament in the 1930s. The ram was chosen for its ruggedness, something Dodges have always tried to portray. In fact, so popular did the logo become that Dodge trucks began to be called Rams. Today, it is still used for the spun-off Ram brand.

5. Buick: Not many know that Buick is the oldest American automobile manufacturer. Founded in 1899 by David Dunbar Buick, it was later acquired by William Durant and became the centerpiece of the General Motors conglomerate. The logo was originally a single shield representing Buick's ancestral coat of arms. In 1960, the single shield was replaced by a trio in red, white and blue representing the three cars then in the Buick stable - the LeSabre, Invicta, and Electra.

6. Maserati: This Italian luxury car manufacturer was established in 1914 by the five Maserati brothers Alfieri, Bindo, Carlo, Ettore, and Ernesto, in the town of Bologna. The trident logo was designed by an artist and is based on a sculpture in the Fontana del Nettuno (Fountain of Neptune) at Bologna. Neptune is the Roman God of the Seas and is represented with a trident in his hand.

7. Mitsubishi: The Mitsubishi brand of cars is member of a larger conglomerate that began life as a shipping firm in 1914 and is named after the Japanese words for three diamonds ("mitsu" meaning "three" and "bishi" meaning "water caltrops," also rhomboidal like diamonds). Consequently, the origin of the logo becomes clear.

8. Subaru: The name of the company is actually the Japanese translation of the Pleiades star cluster, which also means "to gather together." Subaru is a division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Fuji Heavy Industries (FHI). The name refers to the five companies that joined forces (Fuji Kogyo, Fuji Jidosha Kogyo, Omiya Fuji Kogyo, Utsunomiya Sharyo and Tokyo Fuji Sangyo) to form FHI. The logo represents the cluster.

9. Mazda: The company derives its name from the Persian God Ahura Mazda as well as the name of the founder Jujiro Matsuda. The stylized "M" logo, also known as the "owl" logo, represents Mazda stretching its wings for the future. It may also represent Ahura Mazda, who is often depicted by a flying sun-disk.

10. Audi: The company's name is based on the surname of the founder August Horch, meaning listen - which, when translated into Latin, becomes Audi. Horch had originally founded Horch Automobil-Werke, from where he was forced out before founding Audi in 1899. In 1932, Audi merged with Horch, DKW, and Wanderer, to form Auto Union. The Audi logo of four intersecting rings represents this merger. Its resemblance to the Olympic logo caused the International Olympic Committee to sue Audi in 1995.

11. Pontiac: GM may have declared its intent to phase out the Pontiac brand by the end of 2010, but its arrowhead logo continues to be highly visible on American roads. The brand was named after Native American leader Chief Pontiac who led a struggle against British occupation in the 18th century. While the earliest Pontiac logo depicted by a Native American chief's headdress, it was updated in 1957 to the currently used American Indian red arrowhead design, also known as the "Dart."

12. BMW: Rounding off this list is drivers' favorite BMW. The abbreviation stands for Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (Bavarian Motor Works). The two-layered circular BMW logo, also described as a roundel, has been interpreted to represent a spinning propeller, considering the company started as a manufacturer of aircraft engines. The white and blue colors represent the official flag of Bavaria, a state in Germany where BMW originated.