Van Monster, the largest used van retailer in the United Kingdom, wanted to find out how well people remember famous car logos.

The company gathered 100 people (54 women and 46 men) of varying ages and told them only that they would be asked to draw 10 items. As the experiment began, participants were sat in separate booths and given the same sets of felt-tip pens, along with 10 pieces of paper with the name of each car make on the top. They were given an unlimited amount of time to draw all 10 logos.

Whilst around 80% of drawings used the right colors, and 78% of the main badge shapes were correct, people have had difficulties remembering other details.

No wonder. “Despite some of these badges remaining consistent over decades, the patterns and pictures featured are too much for many minds to recall,” Van Monster wrote in a statement. “Overall only 12% of drawings were near perfect, and 26% were good but not perfect. Generally, as expected, the simpler the logo, the more accurately participants were able to recall and draw.”

More info: vanmonster.com

BMW

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of BMW logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Audi

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Audi logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Alfa Romeo

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Alfa Romeo logo

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Ferrari

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Ferrari logo

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Ford

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Ford logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Once Van Monster had all the completed drawings, the organization had them analyzed by a group of five experts, working in design, marketing and/or data analysis. The professionals graded each picture on criteria individual to the car badge, which generally consisted of looking at shapes, colors, detailing, writing, and fonts. This grading was then used to place the pictures onto a grid in order of accuracy.

Later, Van Monster even caught up with Charlie Bell, Creative Director at Whitespace, one of Scotland’s leading creative agencies, to talk about the future of car branding. “We are witnessing a massive shift in the automotive industry,” Bell said. “Technology has infiltrated every aspect of it. Self-driving cars, interactive dashboards, GPS, smart lanes, AI traffic systems. Tesla has ripped up the rule book in terms of branding. Tesla is not just a car company, it’s a tech brand. They act more like Apple than they do Ford.”

Bell said car brands have reacted to this and we are now seeing traditional car brands refining their look to be more in line with the current trend of flat vector graphics. “Gone are the shiny chrome effects in logos for many brands. Volkswagen, Toyota, Lotus, Hyundai, Audi, and Mini are just a handful of automotive brands opting for a more minimal approach.”

“And it is telling that the logos people could recall best where the simplest yet most striking.”

Volkswagen

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Volkswagen logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Peugeot

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Peugeot logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Renault

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Renault logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Toyota

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Toyota logo

Image credits: vanmonster

Vauxhall

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Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Image credits: vanmonster

Evolution of Vauxhall logo

Image credits: vanmonster

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