So the MINI wings. Where did it come from? Well, the current MINI logo is a depiction of chrome wheels with stylized wings and the notorious capitalized MINI with their signature font! The trademark is the 21st interpretation of the original logo from the 90’s.
The logos roots can be traced back to the late 1940’s when Morris (AKA the British bike turned car manufacturer, Morris Motor Company) used a derivative of the coat of arms from Lord Nuffield as their logo. In the center of a winged circle there was a red ox, standing on top of three blue waves, which is the symbol of the city of Oxford.
In 1959, this image was morphed into the first trademark for the MINI classic, the Morris MINI-Minor. From 1969, British parent company British Leyland, marketed the same MINI classic as a different brand with it’s own trademark. This logo was a more modern looking emblem.
It wasn’t until 1990 that the company returned with a new logo and went back to the old Morris style. In 1996, the logo was introduced to all MINI Classic models with a modified green background and a new style of lettering. It is this logo, that has morphed into the trademark MINI logo we know and love today!
Facts borrowed from MINI - the book. Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, Munich/2006 Pg.165
January 8th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Thats really neat! I had no idea that is how the wings came to be! Does any one have pictures of the different MINI logos?
January 13th, 2009 at 8:22 am
Hey Nichole - I did find one of the old logos that can be seen here….
http://flickr.com/photos/silvery/2290210672/
January 23rd, 2009 at 3:14 pm
I like it!