HomeCar CultureVauxhall latest automaker to flatten its badge

Vauxhall latest automaker to flatten its badge

Redesign of logos seen as modern and they work better in digital applications

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It was several years ago, just as I was embarking on a business trip to Australia, that I met Flat Stanley, a hand-drawn and colored drawing of a youngster, and was asked to take him with me as I traveled and to photograph him in various locations. 

Flat Stanley was part of an effort to expand the imagination and geographic education of grade-school children as they followed his travels. My recollection is that points were awarded to children whose Stanleys ventured the farthest.

Thoughts of Flat Stanley were rekindled by a story on dezeen.com about Vauxhall becoming the latest in the series of automobile manufacturers introducing a new and “flat” logo for its brand. 

It wasn’t all that long ago that automakers made a big deal of how they were able to finally do logos that appeared to be three dimensional. But now they’re going for a simplified, minimalist, flat display, dezeen.com notes, because it better suits “digital applications.”

Vauxhall joins Audi, Citroen, Volkswagen, BMW, Mini, Toyota and Nissan in flattening its emblem.

Below is an array of emblems Vauxhall has used through its history:

“Constantly evolving and innovating, the brand continues to reinvent itself, with these most recent updates a reflection of Vauxhall’s commitment to ingenious design and modernization,” Vauxhall Motors managing director Stephen Norman is quoted in the article. 

“While retaining its most iconic elements, the contemporary, minimal aesthetic had been created to seamlessly match our forthcoming models.”

Did he really say future Vauxhall products will be minimalist, simplified, even “flat”?

In its article, dezeen.com notes, “Opting for a ‘cleaner’ and more modern design, the new logo sees the griffin’s wing, which previously swooped around from the right side of the bird, removed entirely. Alongside the griffin the flag held by the animal has been simplified down to a skewed square on the left of the emblem, which has the letter V inside.”

Your comments (see below) on this trend are welcome. 

Larry Edsall
Larry Edsall
A former daily newspaper sports editor, Larry Edsall spent a dozen years as an editor at AutoWeek magazine before making the transition to writing for the web and becoming the author of more than 15 automotive books. In addition to being founding editor at ClassicCars.com, Larry has written for The New York Times and The Detroit News and was an adjunct honors professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

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