First look at how the new Mazda logo will be like

The Mazda logo will again undergo a change after over 26 years in its current form. Though not officially announced, it has been learnt that the automaker had submitted a trademark application in Japan which showed a new logo.

The new logo continues with the previous design of v-shaped wings within a ring. The original design was introduced in 1997 and has undergone two changes since then.

Where the previous logos have been 3-dimensional in appearance, the new one is rather ‘flat’. This follows a trend which can be seen in some other automakers’ logos that have changed in recent years. The change gives a 1-dimensional look that is supposedly more modern and also more suited to the digital age.

Mazda has not indicated when it will launch the new logo but now that it is known, the company would probably do so as soon as the legal processes are completed.

Meanwhile, we take a look back at how its logo has evolved since the company began as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Company in 1920 in Hiroshima, Japan. When the company ventured into making automobiles in 1931, it used ‘Mazda’ as a brand name which first appeared in 3-wheel trucks.

It was only in 1984 that the company changed to Mazda Motor Corporation, which made things easier in the global business world. As Nissan had learnt earlier, having the original Japanese company name different from the brand name on products could create confusion, especially if the brand name became more well known outside Japan.

There is a story that when Nissan’s directors went to Europe in the 1970s to expand their overseas operations, they initially ran into difficulties when approaching banks. They introduced themselves as being from Nissan Motor Company and at that time, Nissan was relatively unknown outside Japan. Then when they said that their company made the Datsun cars, there was immediate recognition. In later years, the company would switch from having Datsun as the brand to Nissan, thereby having the same corporate and brand name.

As to why Mazda is again making a change, it’s probably something that has to take place periodically to ‘keep with the times’. A new logo will provide a fresh new image that can be useful as the company has ambitions of moving more into the premium class with a new generation of models.

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Meanwhile, let’s take a look at how the Mazda logo has evolved over the 100 years…

Mazda began as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Company in 1920 and used the logo on the left. The Mazda name appeared in 1931 (right) as a brand name for its motorised vehicles. The presence of the Mitsubishi 3 diamonds is because at that time, the Mazda-Go trucks (as they were known) were marketed through the Mitsubishi network in Japan.
The Mitsubishi diamonds were removed in 1934 and just the Mazda name was used up till the end of 1935 (left). Then came a major change to a more abstract logo (right) from 1936 which had three parallel lines and what appeared to be ‘M’ (for Mazda) in the middle. Depending on which source your refer to, the ‘M’ in the middle represents either the flow of the river of Mazda’s home city of Hiroshima or the mountains around it. There is also reference to the Latin alphabet letter for ‘M”
which is duplicated three times for ‘Mazda Motor Manufacturer’. The long side extensions represent wings for agility,
speed, and ability to soar to new heights.
From 1936 till the end of the 1950s, there were some variations of the Mazda logo in the domestic market. The company had begun making cars in 1940 and in 1959, it adopted a unique logo which had a ‘m’ within a circle as well as the Mazda name below it (left). Between 1975 and 1990, only the brand name was used (right). From 1954 till 1959, the Mazda logo was registered in 21 countries.
Many may not be familiar with these two logos that were used as corporate logos in the 1990s (up till 1997). The circle was intended to represent the sun, with a flame within. The one on the left was used for just one year (1991) and the change to the one on the right was said to be partly to avoid being like the Renault logo. It was also representative of the rotary engine, which Mazda was closely associated with.
The current logo appeared in 1997 and has gone through two changes, retaining its overall 3-dimensional appearance with subtle alterations being made in 2015 and 2018.The V-shaped wings are suggestive of Mazda’s flexible thinking, creativity, vitality, kindness and resilience, according to the official description.

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