Car logo redesigns: the good, the bad and the ugly

car logo rebrands
(Image credit: BMW / Citroen / Aston Martin / Kia / Audi)

Car logo rebrands have come in thick and fast over the last couple of years with almost every major manufacturer jumping on the flat design trend. In almost every case, the car logos were made simpler and flatter for a more modern look, but also to make them easier to render in smaller digital applications.

When the main application of a car logo was the badge on the front of the vehicle, 3D designs with bevels, shadows and fussy details worked fine. That's not so much the case when car manufacturers now have apps and in-audio media systems that require the use of the logo. But recent car logo rebrands have not always been received the way the companies might have hoped. While some manage to modernise while maintaining brand heritage, others are illegible or just plain ugly.

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Joe Foley

Joe is a regular freelance journalist and editor at Creative Bloq. He writes news, features and buying guides and keeps track of the best equipment and software for creatives, from video editing programs to monitors and accessories. A veteran news writer and photographer, he now works as a project manager at the London and Buenos Aires-based design, production and branding agency Hermana Creatives. There he manages a team of designers, photographers and video editors who specialise in producing visual content and design assets for the hospitality sector. He also dances Argentine tango.

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