Earlier this month, Buick unveiled the new Wildcat EV Concept vehicle, and with it, a new brand identity and logo, as well as details regarding Buick’s goal to transition to a fully electric vehicle portfolio by 2030. Obviously, this is a major move for Buick, especially in the historical context of one of the oldest still-active car brands in the world. As such, the new logo is reflective of that evolution, and now, we’re taking a brief look at the evolution of the Buick logo.
The Buick Motor Company brand was founded in 1903, with the first-known Buick logo featuring an image of Uncle Sam walking atop a globe. On the globe, we see text that reads “Known All Over The World,” under which it reads “The Buick Motor Company, Flint, Mich., U.S.A.”
The logo was only used for a year before it was replaced with a few different designs, some of which incorporated the Buick name as a self-encompassing frame. In 1905, the switch was made to a stylized version of the Buick name.
Following this was another new logo in 1913, with a square frame and the Buick name placed diagonally on top of it. This particular logo was a little longer-lasting than the preceding logos, sticking around until 1930 when the square border was ditched in favor of just the Buick name.
Several other logos were to follow in quick succession, each of which bore a crest as a nod to the ancient coat of arms associated with the family of the company’s founder. The crest includes a diagonal stripe with blue squares, bisecting the shield with a deer in the upper right, and a golden cross in the lower left.
This motif continued until 1960 when the familiar tri-shield logo was introduced. However, the shields were replaced with a hawk design in 1975, with two iterations of the hawk motif coming and going before the return of the tri-shield for 1980.
The tri-shield continued in various iterations for decades, with the last redesign before the current logo arriving in 2016.
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Comments
Beautiful Article, but it should have another update, because the today one, does not represent Buick very well
Indeed the most loved is the 1905 Version ! Simple & Sure | The List is much more Complete than that.
It DOES represent Buick well. It is the traditional tri-shield, with color, only modernized for Buick’s new era.
the 3 shield appeared after 60 years of company existence. it means half of 110 years was used it, but it had a pause of ten years also, using eagle. For us here is not representative. To say truly, even if you have habits with the symbol, GM never found a good symbol for the company. The Mercedes Benz 3 120° star is very representative, also the BMW aircraft propeller movement is dynamic representative because the company started with aircraft motor. But Buick, can not situate with a relation. GM should rethink the symbol. Among all GM Brands, even when all their logos are not beautiful, the Chevrolet one since invention was ever used
“David Dunbar Buick (September 17, 1854 – March 5, 1929) was a Scottish-born American Detroit-based inventor, best known for founding the Buick Motor Company. He headed this company and its predecessor from 1899–1906” …. well, Buick comes from the name of inventor of company, the founder, but what means his name, nothing was found. It seems Scottish… so please someone elucidate what the term means, maybe so i represents something, an object, or action, we could design a better logo, representative, because until now in all those 120 years, none is representative.
The name Buick can be understand as BeWick or Be Wick, missinterpreted or sound like as Buick
Berwyk, Berwick, Berwic, Berewyk, Berwyke are also variations
Early Origins of the Buick family
The surname Buick was first found in Berwickshire in Scotland and Northumberland in England, where “this surname is derived from the famous Border town of the same name. Rather curiously the surname is not uncommon at the present day in Fife. John de Berwic was rector of Renfrew in 1295, and in the year following Geoffry of Berewick, Burgess of Roxburgh, rendered homage [to King Edward I of England]. ” Further to the south in England, John de Berewyk (d. 1312), was an English judge, who “was entrusted with the charge of the vacant abbey of St. Edmund, 1278-1279, and of the see of Lincoln during the interval which elapsed between the death of Benedict, otherwise Richard, de Gravesend, 1279, and the appointment of his successor in the episcopate, Oliver Sutton, 1280-1281.” In Wiltshire, there were two early listings in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273: Sampson de Berwyk; and Philip de Berwyke. Moving further north again, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Johannes de Berwyk as holding lands there at that time.
Early History of the Buick family
it is only a small excerpt of our Buick research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1476, 1615, 1628, 1629 and 1728 are included under the topic Early Buick History in a PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
So Be Wick > Wick most often refers to: Capillary action (“wicking”). Candle wick, the cord used in a … Candle wick, the cord used in a candle or oil lamp
the best would be the logo as a Candle
YES! KEEP THE “NAIL CLIPPER” design RED, WHITE AND BLUE COLORS WHILE WE STILL HAVE THEM IN THIS CLUNTRY!🙏🙏🙏🙏
YES! Keep the “nail clipper design” RED, WHITE and BLUE colors while we still have them in this country!🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
The 1st Logo says “The Buick Manufacturing Co., Detroit, MICH, USA” but the article says “The Buick Motor Company, Flint, Mich., U.S.A.” Flint, Mich is over an hour away from Detroit.
The Article is incorrect (WRONG !) It’s DETROIT not Flint Michigan. I hate when writers take Liberties when writing an Article ! And they put the WRONG INFORMATION in the Articles
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The last and today’s logo is Best.
If Buick wants a “brand new identity and logo ” then why are they using the Wildcat name that has been used by them since the 50’s and used as a production car from 1963 to 1970?
What a boring article
Another waste of corporate money where it could have been used for better quality control !
With Buick sales falling in China GM is trying to grab attention while making the brand more attractive to young upwardly mobile professionals.
New logo looks more modern and polished and is befitting of a technologically advanced premium brand doing battle with the likes of VW as well as both Toyota and Lexus: Buick price points are all over the place in China making it’s pedigree hard to pin down with Encore being GEM and Envision being a Audi/Lexus competiter. The addition of premium styled Kia products like Telluride and native Chinese brands and GM is in a world of hurt.
With the wide spectrum covered by Buick no wonder Chevrolet is weak in China already being outsold by Boajun. Even me, a GM fan, doesn’t like most of what GM has for sale: Cadillac is overpriced and only CT4 is interesting, Buick Envision is Chine made, Malibu is nice but Regal was superior.
If you are using the past two years (Covid era with lockdowns and now chip shortages) to base Buick sales in China as down, you will need to take a look at other brands in comparison. Then come back with the % comparison between Buick and the other brands.
Anyone using sales from the past two years to make a point isn’t getting the point.
My buddy bought a new Buick last year, I asked him when he started collection on his pension and if it had enough trunk space for his walker. (He’s 28)
Apparently he didn’t find that overly amusing
Well, can’t say I blame him.
You’re missing the change to colorless which happened sometime in the early 2000s.
Personally, I like the 1990 the best and feel it’s still relevant today. However, this new one is growing on me more. I’m really glad they kept the three colors.
The Cadillac is where I feel like GM and the people making decision missed the mark. Oh well, everything in this business is cyclical. Give it enough time and things will come back around.
For me the Best Logo of GM ever had .. is still the 2004 Pontiac one, symmetric, simple, like the good Toyota is
think this shaver of Buick could easier comes a pointer of Pontiac… would prefer
however instead of colour red, would put white or all chrome
It dosent matter what the logo is. Buick is now a China Auto. I use to drive the buick. Loved it, until they decided to build it in China. I no longer will buy it…Buick totally destroyed the auto!
… sure Diane, another point the 3 Shields in USA colours is even more not Representative. Buick C. is 70 % Chinese, 30 % north-american, so the logo should be rethink to represent this. If I were in China and wanting buying a Chinese Buick, would like as patriotic in having my car China relation, not an USA one, even when we know China x USA Customs became a fight in some past few years. So, for 2023 do a Logo as a Candle !
I did a Design but unfortunate can not upload here
So much attention to logos. So little attention to re-establishing Buick in the American market building desirable automobiles.
Lots of changes. Other times, a company logo can be timeless. General Electric, formerly a manufacturer of everything from gas turbines to locomotives to generators to TVs to appliances, has had the same logo since its founding.
Another company that had only two logos in its lifetime (that I know of) was Radio Corporation of America. Like GE, its art deco letters with the lightning stroke, was known throughout the world. They changed to something that was dated within a few years, then went down the drain after some very poor business decisions.
Sadly, the new insignia means not much more than a bought logo on a foreign car. Most buicks come from china and Mexico now….