BMW /Patrik Lang BMW cars keep the familiar logo
09.03.2020
I in the context of the presentation of the new BMW Concept i4, we asked BMW-i design chief Kai Langer whether the new BMW logo on the front hood and rear of the concept car had any chance of being implemented in series production. Langer could not confirm this. Now we know why: The new brand logo is not even used on cars - there are no plans for the distant future either.
A BMW spokesman told the English online magazine Motoring Research that the new clear logo with a transparent instead of a black border is more in line with the digital age. The group uses it for all online and offline communication purposes. For example, the logo will be present on trade fair stands or events in the future. The transformation process to the new communication logo should continue until May 2021.
New communication logo is partially transparent
The communication logo on the Concept i4 is two-dimensional and partially transparent. The black wide ring is missing, the blue looks stronger. The lighting effects have disappeared compared to the BMW vehicle logo introduced in 1997. With the i4 Concept, the “Frozen Light Copper” paint color shimmers through, and the rings are made of chrome.
Jens Thiemer, Senior Vice President Customer & Brand BMW underlines why BMW only uses the logo for communication purposes: “BMW becomes a relationship brand. The black ring of the previous logo has been replaced and the logo now radiates more openness and clarity. With this new, transparent variant, we want to invite our customers more than ever to become part of the world of BMW. ”
Why the BMW logo doesn't show a propeller
In addition, it is ours new brand design geared towards the challenges and possibilities of digitization for brands. With visual restraint and graphical flexibility, we are preparing for the large variety of contact points in communication at which BMW will be online and offline in the future. The new logo and brand design symbolize the importance and relevance of the brand for mobility and driving pleasure in the future. 'The appearance of the social media channels has already been changed.
The inner area of the BMW - Vehicle logos are incorrectly equated with a stylized propeller. BMW left the aircraft engine manufacturer Rapp-Motorenwerke in 1917emerged. On October 5, 1917, BMW received a new logo that was entered in the imperial trademark register. It retained the circular shape of the Rapp logo and its black ring.
BMW
The Rapp logo became the first BMW logo.
Instead of 'Rapp Motor' The BMW letters now adorned the new logo - and the familiar blue and white district quarters. These show the colors of the Free State of Bavaria. But not in white and blue. There was a very simple reason for this order: The trademark protection law forbade the use of national coats of arms and other national emblems for a trademark or logo.
BMW
The propeller design can be seen for the first time in an advertisement from 1929.
In an advertisement from 1929, however, the emblem also appears for the first time with the four colored quarters in a rotating propeller. There were also advertisements to this effect later. Since then, the assumption has been that the logo is a stylized propeller.
Also in 1942 BMW used the propeller of an airplane around its logo .
'For a long time BMW has not made any effort to straighten out the myth,' explains Fred Jakobs from BMW Group Classic. 'And if you want to continue to stick to the myth of the BMW propeller, you are not completely wrong,' says the expert. Strictly speaking, the variant with the rotor in the BMW logo is wrong. However, through constant repetition, the declaration has become commonplace. Jakobs: 'The interpretation has been common for 90 years and is therefore justified.'
