There was a time in British history when the UK was entirely dependent on German and French for Car manufacturing. However, in the late 19th century, the British automobile industry came into existence, when Richard Stephens produced his first car but he bought wheels from Starley in Coventry. So, the very first entirely British four-wheel car was founded in 1900 by Herbert Austin. At that time, his company, Wolseley Motors Limited, became the largest car manufacturer in the UK and maintain the position till 1913.
By 1922 there were 183 British car manufacturing companies and in 1932, the UK even outstrips France to become the largest car manufacturer in Europe. Till the 1950s, the UK was one of the best automobile industries and held second place in the list of largest car manufacturers in the world. After World War II, the requirement for vehicles in foreign countries was increased to a great extent and at that moment, the British automobile industry proved to be on the alert and Great Britain reached the top as the world’s biggest exporter.
However, soon after that, the British car brands began to lose ground. French, German, and Japanese car production were at their best and finally overtook the British automobile business. Since the early 1990s, some foreign countries advanced their interests in British car brands, and other acquired many British Brands. From being second in the 1950s, UK fell to 12th position in the world’s largest car manufacturers list.
Nevertheless, the UK automobile industry is still one of the best for premium and sports cars. It is also integral to and requisitely associated with engine production, car racing, and motorsport industry.
So, let’s look at some illustrious British car manufacturer brands and their logos:
JAGUAR
Founded: 1922
Founder: Sir William Lyons and William Walmsley
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Whitley, Coventry, United Kingdom
Parent Company: Jaguar Land Rover (since 2013)
Website: www.jaguar.com
This UK brand is a trademark in the area of British luxury cars and occupies the top place in the performance parameter. The brand logo, a large silver, metallic grey, or black color feline, represents the Jaguar Cars specialties i.e. Rich, Animate, Speed, Strength, and Power.
Before developing bodies for the passenger cars, Jaguar was originally making motorcycle sidecars under the Swallow Sidecars company name. In association with Standard Motor Co., the business extended to complete cars, many bearing Jaguar just as a model name. In 1945, the company’s name changed from Swallow Sidecars to Jaguar Cars. In 1990, Ford acquired Jaguar Cars and in 2000, it purchased Land Rover. However, in 2008, Ford sold both Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors. In 2013, Jaguar Cars were merged with Land Rover to form the Jaguar Land Rover consortium.
Jaguar Land Rover is combining expert knowledge from high-tech industries such as aerospace and Formula 1™ to revolutionize the way that cars are developed and deliver a level of performance and capability that simply cannot be achieved through traditional processes.
LAND ROVER
Founded: 1948
Founder: Maurice Wilks
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Whitley, Coventry, United Kingdom
Parent Company: Jaguar Land Rover
Website: www.landrover.com
This British car manufacturer company specializes in four-wheel-drive vehicles and is the only brand that challenged the most powerful American SUVs when they first came out. This British premium car manufacturer developed into a brand encompassing a range of four-wheel-drive models, including the Defender, Discovery, Freelander, Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, and Range Rover Evoque.
In 1947, Rover’s chief designer Maurice Wilks and his associates created a prototype using Jeep chassis & component and then launched the first Land Rover in next year. In 2000, it was acquired by Ford and then sold to Tata Motors. In 2013, this British car brand became the second half of the famous namesake Jaguar Land Rover consortium. Also in 1951, the Land Rover was granted a Royal Warrant by King George VI and now it is considered a British icon.
The green color of the brand logo stands for vitality and reflects the spirit of the brand while the white letters embody defines purity and dignity. In June, Land Rover announced the launch of a new project called “Cortex”, for the implementation of which about $ 5 million will be spent. The goal of this project is “to create self-propelled cars-robots that are able to independently navigate off-road in all weather conditions”.
MINI
Founded: 1909
Founder: Alec Issigonis
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Longbridge, England, United Kingdom
Parent Company: British Motor Corporation
Website: www.mini.com
This British mini luxury car brand has a distinctive design and is combined with the above-average performance, which eventually makes it extremely popular for people living in urban areas. The silver color of the brand logo emphasizes sophistication and grandeur while the black adds strength, elegance, and excellence.
Small in size and iconic in design, the first Mini delivered a thrill all its own. It revolutionized the small car and became the best-selling British car in history. In 1994, the Rover Group, which owned Mini, was bought by BMW, and development was started on an all-new Mini. However, in 2000, the Rover group was broken by BMW and retained ownership of the Mini name. The name though was the same, but the entire structure along with the logo had been transformed and the brand launched its take on what a Modern Mini should be.
ASTON MARTIN
Founded: 1913
Founder: Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Gaydon, Warwickshire, England, United Kingdom
Parent Company: Ford Motor Company
Website: www.astonmartin.com
This well-known British car brand specializes in luxury sports cars and grand touring cars. Since 1982, Aston Martin has owned a Royal Warrant as a purveyor of motorcars by the Prince of Wales. The sports cars of this UK brand are also regarded as a British Cultural Icon. This car brand has used its marking for various projects including speedboats, monster trucks, submarines, bicycles, clothing, and real estate development.
Throughout its history, this British car company has run into financial troubles and changed hands frequently. Aston Martin currently has several joint owners with Italian private equity fund Invest industrial as the main shareholder.
The colors of the brand logo signify the car’s characteristics such as uniqueness, elegance, prestige, and excellence. The white wing in the logo is a traditional symbol of speed, freedom, dreams, and exploring boundaries.
BENTLEY
Founded: 1919
Founder: W. O. Bentley
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Crewe, England, United Kingdom
Parent Company: Volkswagen Group
Website: www.bentleymotors.com
Bentley designs and manufactures British luxury motorcars which are largely hand-built. Additionally, it manufactures SUVs and is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG since 1998. Before owned by Volkswagen, this British automaker was a part of the Rolls Royce consortium. Today, only a small number of Bentleys are assembled at Volkswagen’s Dresden factory, with most of them assembled at the company’s Crewe factory, England.
This British car brand is the sole manufacturers of limousines for royalty in Britain and has been always known as a tag for the financially potent ones. Even people tended to believe that Bentley exclusively the privilege of the rich. Known for its lush and spacious interiors, more and more car lovers from all over the globe indulge in the pleasure of buying a Bentley.
The Brand logo consists of three main colors; white, black, and silver hues. The black color shows the excellence and elegance of the brand, the white highlights charm & purity, and the silver delineates the perfection & sophistication of the cars. In 2013, The Mulsanne luxury sedan was chosen as the “best luxury car of the year” by the public in Great Britain.
ROLLS ROYCE
Founded: 1906
Founder: Charles Rolls and Henry Royce
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Goodwood, England, United Kingdom
Parent Company: BMW
Website: www.rolls-roycemotorcars.com
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars are known for supreme quality, exquisite handcraftsmanship, and attention to the finest detail. This British Car brand built its reputation over the company’s long-lasting, richly traditional history and offers the most sophisticated luxury to the utmost perfection.
In 1998, both Rolls-Royce and Bentley were sold to Volkswagen, but the right to sell cars under the Rolls-Royce brand went to BMW. In 2002 BMW took over the remaining asset and now, this British brand is wholly owned by BMW, a German group. It was 2013 when the company started the production facility in West Sussex, England and the first product was the Rolls-Royce Phantom four-door sedan.
The Company is renowned for its two-door coupé, smaller Ghost four-door sedan, Wraith two-door coupé, extended wheelbase, as well as the convertible versions of the Phantom sedan.
MCLAREN
Founded: 1989
Founder: Bruce McLaren
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Working, Surrey, United Kingdom
Parent Company: McLaren Group
Website: www.mclaren.com
Mclaren is a British manufacturer of high-performance sports cars that are built on pioneering technology, pleasing yet purposeful design, a relentless spirit, and valiant engineering. The exalted and futuristic design combined with the captivating carbon filter interior, definitely makes it one of the most preferable sports cars to have.
This British sports car company carries the name of the fabled Bruce McLaren, who devoted his entire life to car racing and building the fastest accelerating cars in the world. Tragically, he died while testing the McLaren M8D in 1970 but in 1981, the company merged with Ron Dennis’ Project 4 Racing team and introduced Mclaren F1 in 1992.
Walking through the years of success, this UK car brand has created some of the most historic and exhilarating road cars the world has ever seen.
VAUXHALL
Founder: Alexander Wilson
Founded: 1903
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Bedfordshire, England, United Kingdom
Parent Company: Opel
Website: www.vauxhall.co.uk
Vauxhall, the Mass-Market car manufactures of the UK, works on a basic principle of building vehicles that are relevant for all. This British car company has been the second-largest car selling brand in the UK for more than two decades and popular for passenger cars as well as light commercial vehicles. In the past, Vauxhall has also sold trucks and buses under the Bedford brand.
Vauxhall was founded as a pump and marine engine manufacturer but the company built its first car in 1903. The car was a five-horsepower single-cylinder model steered using a tiller, with two forward gears and no reverse gear. In 1925, the brand was purchased by General Motors and after 92 years it was sold to Groupe PSA of France in 2017.
From the compact Corsa, through the award-winning Astra to the range-topping Insignia Grand Sport, Vauxhall Motors has a car for every need. The brand logo is based on a creature Griffin, which symbolizes divine power and a guardian of the divine.
LOTUS
Founded: 1952
Founder: Colin Chapman
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: Hethel, Norfolk, England, United Kingdom
Parent Company: Zhejiang Geely Holding Group
Website: www.lotuscars.com
Known for its sports and racing car, Lotus stands alone as a brand dedicated to delivering a pure driving experience. Over the last seven decades, this British brand is designing and manufacturing vehicles that are extremely lightweight and possessing legendary handling characteristics. Alongside the benchmark Evora 400, the Elise, the Exige, and the hypercar humbling 3-Eleven, Lotus had motor racing success with Team Lotus in Formula One.
The brand logo is considered as one of the most iconic car logos as it contains the initials of the company’s founders, Anthony Colin & Bruce Chapman, placed inside a triangle along with the brand name. The yellow color in the logo represents joy and energy while the green color exemplifies speed and passion.
LAGONDA
Founded: 1906
Founder: Wilbur Gunn
Current Status: Running
Headquarters: United Kingdom
Founder/Parent Company: Aston Martin
Website: www.astonmartin.com/lagonda
This British car brand aims to be the world’s first zero-emission luxury car brand that is known for technological sophistication, zero emissions, high performance, and the purest luxury. Established in 1906, Lagonda has been owned by Aston Martin since 1947.
The introduction of the Lagonda V8 was a turning point for the brand. The makers fuse the very best technologies and electronics with the most opulent luxury to produce a phenomenally striking and balanced grand tourer.
Apart from all these well-known car brands, the UK has more than 30 car manufacturers and some of them are still giving tough competition to the above popular car brands, such as
• Briggs Automotive Company (2009-present)
Website: www.bac-mono.com
• Caterham Cars (1973-present)
Website: www.caterhamcars.com
• Ginetta (1958-present)
Website: www.ginetta.com
• Ariel (1870-present)
Website: www.arielmotor.co.uk
• MG (1924-present)
Website: www.mg.co.uk
• Noble (1999-present)
Website: www.noblecars.com
• AC Cars Ltd (1901-present)
Website: www.ac-automotive.com
• Ascari Cars Ltd (1995-present)
Website: http://www.ascari.net/
The British automobile industry is a vital part of the country’s economy, accounting for more than £77.5 billion turnovers and £18.9 billion value-added. I hope you get ample knowledge about British car brands and their respective logos.