You may have noticed that over the past few years, cars are becoming more futuristic and the manufacturers are almost becoming unrecognizable. Shifts in technological advancements and the pressure of becoming more modernised have led many leading car manufacturers to slightly change their logo’s appearance. So which manufacturers have recently changed their badge and what exactly does it mean?

Peugeot 

In our opinion, Peugeot has one of the most beautiful and iconic logos in the automotive industry, and it is only recently that they have decided to change it. They have always been known for their iconic lion, a symbol that represents  “ the toughness of the saw’s teeth, the flexibility of blade like the lion’s spine, the strength of the steel, and the speed of the cut, like a bounding lion.” 

As you can see above, the new logo incorporates a lion’s head within a shield. The new logo looks cleaner and more modernised and represents the company’s shift and advancement to the new electric vehicle era. The first vehicle to represent the brand new logo was the newest installment of the Peugeot 308.

Renault

The Renault diamond is one of the most recognisable shapes in the automotive industry. They are known to be affordable and reliable vehicles for drivers of all shapes and sizes. The logo has always been a simple geometric shape, with a strong, powerful identity, it really is hard to miss. Renault decided to slightly alter their logo to create a new identity for future vehicles. Gilles Vida, Renault Design Director, said that the new logo is a “balance between recognition of the brand’s heritage and entering a new era, it’s a  symbol of the future, the logo is more modern and vibrant, and aims to go beyond the notoriety now acquired. The goal? To accompany the changes currently at work and to make Renault a more open brand that creates human values.

According to Renault, “Over the course of its history, Renault has changed its visual identity several times. But there is one thing that hasn’t changed since 1925, and that is the diamond shape that serves as the basis for the logo. Immediately recognizable, it has become emblematic of the brand. With its angles, which adapted to the angled bonnets of the time, this geometric figure had imposed itself on Louis Renault. Since then, the Renault diamond has been redesigned no less than eight times! Nine, with the latest version. This shows how much the brand is keen to evolve with the times.”

BMW 

BMW’s new logo is part of an update to its brand identity. It is very similar to the previous version in that the colourway is practically the same, however like most other manufacturers, BMW has made a flatter more modernistic version. The logo was first revealed with images of the BMW i4 with the ambition of symbolising the brand’s significance and relevance for mobility and driving pleasure in the future. According to BMW, the rebrand was designed together with the Munich-based BECC Agency. 

You may have noticed that the blue and white colourway is constantly used throughout all installments of BMW’s logo. That is because the badge is a reference to the blue and white Bavarian flag, and of course, BMW in English stands for Bavarian Engine Works Company. 

Kia

As you will most likely know, Kia is a South-Korean manufacturer headquartered in the country’s capital city, Seoul. The company was founded in 1944 and had a very different logo to what is present today. The logo only adopted its red colourway in 1994 and has only been refreshed twice since that date. The new Kia logo has been made to signify the automaker’s bold transformation and all-new brand purpose. It represents Kia’s ambition to establish a leadership position in the future mobility industry by revamping and advancing all aspects of the business. 

The new logo, like other manufacturers, is much flatter and embodies a different style of font which makes it appear more modernised. Interestingly, this font is actually hand-written, “the rhythmical, unbroken line conveys Kia’s commitment to bringing moments of inspiration and rising ambitions for the brand.

Nissan

Nissan’s logo has always been incredibly interesting in that it relates very closely to Japanese culture. Nissan said “This simple, yet elegant design references the brand’s own Japanese roots as the automotive manufacturer became recognized for its large presence in Japan at the logo alluding to the land of the rising sun. On a related note, the meaning of the word Nissan is essentially an abbreviation for the original company. What’s more, it’s a combination of the Japanese characters “ni” (“sun”) and “ssan” (“product” or “birth”). Thus, Nissan is a product of Japan, the land of the rising sun!

As the logo symbolizes Nissan’s heritage, its founder Yoshisuke Aikawa attests that the logo coincides with one of the company’s core beliefs: “Shisei tenjitsu o tsuranuku”. This phrase is interpreted to mean, “If you have a strong belief, it penetrates even the sun,” reinforcing Nissan’s never-ending commitment to innovation and moving forward.”

Nissan’s logo revamp began in 2017, with the aim of making the new logo “thin, light, and flexible” and to work well with their new upcoming EV models. They wanted the new logo to shine bright with 20 LEDs and make it flatter, more simplistic, and clean. When you look at the logo you can see the resemblance to the rising sun!

VW

At the start of the 2019 International Motor Show in Frankfurt, the Volkswagen brand presented its new logo and brand design. The rebranding is said to represent a tremendous opportunity to allow customers throughout the world to experience Volkswagen as a strong new brand. The new brand would focus on digitalization and connectivity and will make customer communications more data-driven, more personalised, and much more individual. 

The new logo is essentially very similar to the historic logo, however, it is flatter, has finer edges, and is more modernised. As you can see the VW logo features a ‘V’ and ‘W’ translating to ‘Volks’, and ‘Wagen’, meaning People’s car.

Toyota

Toyota has joined other car manufacturer’s in welcoming a flat redesign of their logo with a revised visual identity. The new logo sees the automaker ditch its old 3d design and replaces it with a flatter emblem. A lot of people think that the Toyota logo looks like a bull’s head, however, the inner ovals symbolise the heart of the customer and the heart of the company as well as forming a ‘T’ shape for Toyota.