How often do you think about what this or that icon on the car means? Who invented it? What is its history? You can bet the answer is "No." However, the history of the creation of the logo and its designation are as interesting as the car itself.

For example, what do the four rings on the hood of an Audi mean?

The history of the creation of the Audi logo - what does it mean

The history of the formation of the Audi brand can be called difficult. The company was named after its founder, August Horch. You may be surprised and ask a completely logical question: “What does Audi have to do with it?”. In fact, everything is simple. "Horch" (in German Horch) means "listen". When translated into Latin, the familiar word "audi" will turn out. Why did August Horch name the company Audi if his last name means the same?

The fact is that Horch called the first automobile company - A. Horche & Cie. It was back in 1899, and ten years later the founders survived from the company. August did not despair and founded another, giving it the name Horche. This did not please the former partners, who sued. The court sided with them, and Horch had to come up with a new name for the brand.

He briefly puzzled over this issue - the son of his business partner suggested the name "Audi". The boy was learning lessons when his father and August Horch had a conversation, during which they tried to find the name of a new brand. The child tried several times to interrupt the conversation, but each time returned to the Latin lesson. Then the boy made up his mind and said that you need to look at the question from the other side, because “listen” in Latin will be “audi”. The partners liked the idea. This is how the company got its name.

A little later, a logo was invented - four rings. At first, the sign bore little resemblance to the emblem familiar to us. The rings meant the merger of four companies:

1. "Audi Werke".
2. "August Horch Automobil Werke".
3. Wanderer.

Initially, the sign was used mainly on sports models. Ordinary cars were produced under their own brand and logo. The resulting logo was overloaded with elements. They decided to get rid of them, leaving only four rings.

Reference! Interestingly, the old logo was a chain link rather than being made from one piece like on modern cars.

New Audi logo

The company logo has changed several times. The new sign has become more stylish and modern.

Reference! Many car emblems are modified over time. At Audi, the progress of changing the logo is more noticeable.

The emblem has become smaller and thinner. The usual spelling of the letters A and D is gone. In addition, a corporate font has been used for the emblem, and the name has been aligned to the left edge of the logo, which is unusual for motorists.

The rings have become more elegant, and their edges are faceted. At the same time, the emblem looks more voluminous than the previous version, although they are the same in size.

In 2017, Audi patented two new emblems. The first is two pairs of semirings linked to each other. The second is the familiar rings that do not have weaves.

The reasons for the creation of two new logos are not yet known for certain. Some experts suggest that one option will be used for cars with an electric motor. Experts say that the demand for cars of the e-tron line should grow. The second emblem will look organically on Audi luxury models. These cars are distinguished by luxury, convenience, improved specifications. Therefore, a stylish emblem will be a great addition and a hallmark of the family.

Historically, the four rings symbolize Audi, Horch, Wanderer and DKW, which became part of the Auto Union AG concern in 1932. Only Audi survived to this day, but the rings remained, although in the 90s the company came up with an alternative to them in the form of a red oval with white letters inside (today such an emblem is no longer used).

In August last year, Audi introduced a new, rather confusing, indicator of a conditional power level. This was explained by the desire to get away from the figures for the working volume of the internal combustion engine, which, in the light of the general unification and hybridization, only indirectly affects the consumer characteristics of cars.

In September, it became known that Audi is planning a luxury sub-brand that will offer the most luxurious and powerful versions of the flagship A8 sedan.

And now the QuattroWorld Internet resource, created by Canadian Audi car enthusiasts, has learned that the German company has patented two new versions of its emblem in the USA and Germany: in one, the rings completely lack central jumpers, in the other, the central jumper remains, but two there are no neighbors.

Why Audi needed new emblems is still unknown. Perhaps the empty fields freed by the jumpers will allow the inscription Audi or Horch, or both at the same time, to be placed inside the emblem. The original Horch badge looks too bulky by today's standards, so Audi is probably looking for more organic ways to integrate it.

Our Canadian colleagues also suggested that the new emblems are an attempt to highlight Audi's transition to new level technologies, namely the connection of Audi cars with each other and with road infrastructure in light of the coming era of autonomous driving. The absence of jumpers, as it were, fixes the continuity of the rings, and if now four elements are clearly visible in the emblem, then in the updated one there are two or one. At the same time, in both cases, the emblem remains 100% recognizable and is identified as Audi.

On a global scale, Audi is still losing the competition to BMW and Mercedes-Benz (in 2017, 1.8 million, 2.0 million and 2.5 million vehicles were sold, respectively). Perhaps the logo update is an attempt to restart the brand, a way to once again draw attention to it target audience. On the other hand, all firms regularly “finish” their emblems and logos, make small changes to them, visible only to connoisseurs and devoted fans of the brand. The laws of marketing require constant updates, even where they are not required, so new emblems on Audi cars can appear just like that, without any idea.

Four rings "Audi", as well as other images famous brands, envelops the history of the logo. This logo bears the name of August Horch, an engineer and founder of the Horch automobile company. The fact is that in German Horch means “listen”, while in Latin it sounds like audi. Previously, the founder of the company gave his offspring his own name "Horch".

But over time, he had to leave the company due to disagreements with shareholders and create a new automotive company. The Horch brand was already taken and the court forbade August Horch to use his last name for the name.

One day, while Horch was talking to his business partner, Franz Fikentscher, the latter's son suggested the name Audi. During the conversation, Franz's son sat in the corner of the room and studied Latin. Several times he seemed ready to say something, but still returned to his lessons. Then he said: “Father, audiatur et altera Pars (listen to the other side)… how do you like the idea of ​​calling the company Audi instead of horch?” . "höre" in German means "listen" - and in Latin it will be "Audi". Everyone immediately liked the idea - and it turned out "Audi".

In 1934, during the economic crisis, four automobile companies became part of the concern: DKW and Wanderer, Horch and Audi. This association of four car factories was called Auto Union. That is, both partners and competitors united.

A poster from 1935 illustrates the variety of wonderful convertibles and limousines produced by the four merged companies.At this time, every fourth car in Germany was produced by the union Audi.

This merger was the motive for the famous four-ring emblem, which after the war became the logo of the Audi brand only.

The new three-dimensional sign seems more detailed and realistic.

10 years have passed and the founding father of the corporation is thrown out of his own organization onto the street. After mourning for a while, he decides to create a new firm. In honor of his past brainchild, he names his second company Horch. However, dishonest former partners with the help of the court forbid the use of this name.

Like all genius, the name for the new company came about by chance. One day, when two partners and friends, August Hörch and Franz Fikentscher, were sitting and talking about various topics, including what name to choose for their company. That interesting idea filed by his son Franz, who at that time was trying to do his homework in Latin.

He said that we could try to translate the word "Horch" into Latin. When they translated, they got a beautiful word "AUDI", which they all really liked

After such a powerful update, the newly merged company urgently needed a simple and recognizable logo. First, the company's designers decided to draw four rings into which they then entered the names of the companies. After some time, this emblem was recognized as too complex and overloaded with unnecessary elements. Therefore, an attempt was made to simplify it considerably. After that, four simple rings remained on the logo. However, at first they looked like a chain, the rings were, as it were, fastened together. But then the company's management came up with the idea to draw separate rings, only superimposed on each other.

However, this was not the last rebranding of this emblem. Relatively recently, in 2009, another attempt was made to improve appearance logo. After restyling, the rings began to look noticeably thicker, although they do not differ in area and thickness from the rings from the old emblem. As a result of the work carried out by professional designers, the entire logo now looks more embossed and elegant.

The sketches of the new Audi logos were leaked from the patent office, where an application was filed for the registration of two new trademarks of the company. The logos no longer have rings, but only the contours of the current emblem: four connected incomplete circles and two interconnected contours consisting of two incomplete circles.

Both applications state that the emblems are for " Vehicle and their parts; radiator grilles. That is, the places for the traditional placement of nameplates are listed. What is not clear is the meaning of changing the logo and the reasons why it should evolve in such a drastic way.

The new badges could be for Audi's hybrid vehicles, as well as for all-electric and even autonomous vehicles, the special designation of which just makes sense.

The company does not comment on the registration of two emblems. It should be noted that the emblems of automakers are updated periodically. The font of the inscriptions changes, the contours and even the colors are adjusted. So, for example, the current Audi logo appeared only in 1985, and in 2009 the font of the Audi inscription was changed and the appearance of the rings was finalized.

• will be sold in Russia. Probably, its grille will be decorated with a new logo.
• Audi vehicles with engine internal combustion may also get a different logo. For example, about which we already know something.