If there's one look most car manufacturers definitely aren't going for, it's cute. To portray a sense of power and speed, countless brands have turned to the animal kingdom for inspiration, opting for the fastest and most ferocious creatures around (such as, you know, the jaguar). But what if this wasn't the case?
A delightful new design project has reimagined several famous car logos in their baby animal form, and the results are adorable. From Ferrari to Lamborghini, these once fierce designs are suddenly a lot more fun. (If you're looking for more inspiration, head over to our logo design guide.)
Lamborghini's horned bull is now a harmless calf (Image credit: LeaseFetcher)
Car lease comparison site LeaseFetcher decided to "turn back the clock on some of the world’s most recognised car logos," and suggests that the designs would look great on children's ride-on cars (great idea, we must admit). Lamborghini's gold bull logo, for example, is now a shy-looking calf (above), without a murderous horn in sight.
Meanwhile, Ferrari's prancing horse has been transformed into a tiny foal (below), complete with adorably over-sized head. According to LeaseFetcher, the original logo was designed to pay tribute to Italian First World War hero Francesco Baracca, a fighter pilot who painted the prancing horse onto fuselage of his fighter plane (for unknown reasons, unfortunately).
Ferrari's 'baby' logo is much less fierce (Image credit: LeaseFetcher)
But perhaps our favourite of the bunch is the new Peugeot logo (below), which sees the clawing lion turned into a rather petulant-looking cub. The oldest car emblem in the world (it first appeared in 1847), Peugeot's design is instantly recognisable – even in baby form.
The oldest car logo ever – now in baby form (Image credit: LeaseFetcher)
Perhaps the most impressive thing about LeaseFetcher's 3D concepts is how faithfully they maintain the essence of the original designs. Sure, it's understandable that car brands are keen to appear as ferocious as possible – but seeing as these designs all manage to retain their familiarity, perhaps future car manufacturers could take it as licence to up the cute a little? That said, we won't be holding our breath for a kitten-based car brand to roll along any time soon.
The real Lamborghini, Ferrari and Peugeot logos (left to right) (Image credit: Lamborghini/Ferrari/Peugeot/Future owns)
With everyone from BMW to KIA via Rolls-Royce, Nissan and dozens more revealing brand new logos over the past twelve months, the industry is clearly undergoing something of a design renaissance. But it's little wonder car brands are keen to stay ahead – some car logos are among the most memorable in the world. Others, meanwhile, aren't – as these car logos drawn from memory hilarious prove.
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Daniel John is Senior News Editor at Creative Bloq. He reports on the worlds of art, design, branding and lifestyle tech (which often translates to tech made by Apple). He joined in 2020 after working in copywriting and digital marketing with brands including ITV, NBC, Channel 4 and more.
