Often, behind a seemingly simple design, there is a rich narrative, a tribute to the origins or even a whole brand philosophy encapsulated in a few traces.
Have you ever wondered what symbols mean in the most famous car brands, such as Toyota or BMW? Let’s decipher some of the most iconic and unravel the secrets they carry, transforming their perception of these amazing machines.
Toyota
Probably recognizes Toyota’s three interconnected oval forms – one of the most viewed logos on the roads around the world – even if you see the car in the distance. But what do they mean? The explanation is deeper and more intelligent than it seems.
The two interior oval, willing perpendicularly, represent the relationship of mutual confidence between the customer’s heart and the heart of the product (the company).
The larger oval that involves the other two symbolizes o World to embrace Toyotaas well as technological progress and unlimited opportunities.
Some enthusiasts also identify the stylized image of a steering wheelestablishing a direct connection to the driving experience.
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke’s famous blue and white circle (BMW) is a mix of myth and reality.
For decades, the most publicized story was that the BMW logo represents a plane propeller spinning against a blue sky – a tribute to its roots in the production of aircraft engines. But is it really?
In fact, blue and white are the official colors of Bavaria’s free state, the company’s origin region in Germany. German legislation of the time prohibited the use of national or state symbols in trade brands, so BMW reversed colors (white and blue rather than blue and white as on the flag) and arranged the quadrant elements.
Circular design and BMW letters come from the Rapp Motorenwerke logo, one of the companies that was in the BMW genesis.
The association with propeller actually emerged from a 1929 advertising piece, which showed the BMW emblem overlapping a moving airplane propeller. The image was so striking that this interpretation gained strength – and BMW itself sometimes embraced this poetic narrative.
Although the history of the propeller is more romantic, the true origin, linked to Bavaria, does not remove power and prestige to the emblem.
Mercedes, Audi and other giants
Many other brands hide interesting meanings in their emblems, turning them into true visual statements.
- Mercedes-Benz: The three -pointed star symbolizes Daimler’s ambition to motorize the world by land, water and air. Simple and powerful.
- Audi: The four intertwined rings represent the union of four German car manufacturers who formed Auto Union in 1932: Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer.
- Mitsubishi: The name can be translated as “three diamonds” (“mitsu” = three, “Hyshi” = water chestnut, a term used to describe a diamond or diamond form). The logo reflects this, combining the coats of arms of the Iwasaki (founder) and Tosa families.
- Subaru: The six stars in the Subaru logo represent the Pleiades’ star cluster (known in Japan as “Subaru”), and a larger star symbolizes Fuji Heavy Industries and the five smaller ones represent the companies that found themselves to create it.
