Vauxhall’s another new logo
On average, Vauxhall brings us a new logo every 10 or so years. Vauxhall - for 160 years, starting in marine engineering and becoming a household name in the motor industry with an impressive post war boom.
The company’s roots are in south London’s Vauxhall area, now part of the London Borough of Lambeth. At the turn of the twentieth century, it moved to Luton in Bedfordshire and has remained there ever since.
General motors acquired the brand between the wars and divested it in 2017, Peugeot’s parent PSA picking it up and soon after being merged into the colossus that is Stellantis. What’s interesting is that the company has stuck to it’s Griffin logo throughout and I have a deep respect for a someone who steadfastly retains a significant part of their history.
The nameplate - i.e. the word Vauxhall has come and gone from the logo - and the newest version retains it. It’s angular, simplified and has fewer colours. The wording is in a new font too. My Ctrl Alt Refuel colleague Graeme Cobb says he thinks the design is cheaper to illuminate and I’m sure he’s right.
There’s a few things to note. The Griffin has it’s head turned. I’ve often wondered if some boring design committee might one day decide the logo needs to look forward. Perhaps I’m ahead of them? It has always looked back towards its wings - perhaps I’m reading too much into this!
Until now, the Griffin has always been seen holding the flag bearing a V. That’s been dropped. The big V was prominent on the grille of Vectra and that went some time ago. Graeme and I mused the idea that they might transition to the Opel logo, now that the V has gone.
I’m not going to lie, I think the idea that just changing the name of something will change it materially is marketing nonsense. British Gas are shit whether you call them Centrica or not and no-one is falling for this bullshit.
It debuts with the new Vizor grille and the announcement of Sports Tourer Experimental, which will in true Vauxhall fashion, never actually see the light of day, apart from a concept due to break cover at the Paris Motor Show. The phrase Flush Body Surfacing is being bandied about. Nope, me neither!
This new Vizor grille is actually quite nice. The worry is that it’ll be the only distinctive thing on a modern Vauxhall