There are many interesting auto logo stories, including Cadillac’s recent discarding of its heraldic ducks in favor of a new version of its shield and crest. And BMW recently cleared up the history of its logo, saying that it’s based on the Bavarian flag, not a spinning propeller.

But perhaps the most intriguing story is that of the Ford logo designed by the heavyweight champion of logo designers, Paul Rand, who did those of IBM, ABC, Westinghouse, UPS, Next Computer — and Enron. In 1966, Rand was hired by Henry Ford II to rethink and modernize the familiar scripted oval Ford logo.
But Henry Ford II decided not to change the logo. “According to Rand, it was too radical a switch,” said Steve Heller, graphic design historian and the author of the book “Paul Rand.”

Ford Logo

According to Allen Hurlburt, a graphic designer writing in Communication Arts, “After extensive research and considerable design exploration, a new style was worked out, and a handsome printed and bound presentation was prepared in a limited edition for the eventual review by Henry Ford II. After some deliberation, Mr. Ford finally decided that, when it came to the family name, what was good enough for his grandfather was good enough for him.”

In 1966, the script and oval was far less established than it is now. It was not used on a Ford car until the Model A in 1928, although the radiator of the Model T was accented with the classic Ford script.
A similar script was first used in advertising at Ford around the time the company was established in 1903. Legend says it was the creation of Childe Harold Wills, an engineer and one of Ford’s first executives, who borrowed the script from his own business cards.

small ford logo

By 1906, a revised form of the Ford name was introduced with wings or tails on the F and D. The Ford script in both forms appeared on some parts of cars and on company letterhead. The Ford historian, Bob Kreipke, says that the first use of an oval — actually a shape more like a football — came in 1907 without the script.

ford logo wallpaper

Around 1910-12, Ford employed a winged triangle logo with the script and the slogan “The universal car” in its signs and advertising, rendered sometimes in blue and sometimes in orange.

ford motor company logo

Ford’s blue oval with script was also among the assets pledged as collateral in the 2006 deal that gave the company its multibillion-dollar line of credit. So Henry Ford II may have been right not to change what has become one of the most recognized logos in the world.

Black Ford Logo