Flagship of production Russian SUVs- Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant announced the launch of a new logo.
He inherited to the maximum the connection between the history of the plant and its traditions. The texture of the logo is chrome-plated, the sign is voluminous and quite expressive. Trademark received a font that corresponds to the three-dimensional image of the sign. The sign itself has become strict and confident, the forms are clear and direct. The traditional green fund background of the sign has become more saturated, which is in line with the spirit of the times.
The brand of the company should emphasize it active position on the market, this activity should be manifested in the introduction of new innovative systems. Not only the company's trademark has undergone changes, but also its official Internet resource www.uaz.ru. Also changed appearance all corporate materials. The new company logo will appear in the dealer network no earlier than 2017, and it will be placed on the new family of UAZ PATRIOT SUVs, the production of which will be launched in the second half of this year.
History of brand development: facts and comments
About a dozen trademarks were used to identify the products of Ulyanovsk car factory. In each of these signs, the letter U appeared necessarily. Moreover, the background against which it appeared changed depending on the situation. The semantic content of the graphics was different. The developer of the sign, which existed for about forty years, Rakhmanov noted that one should put one's soul into the sign, just the letter U can mean not only the name of the city of Ulyanovsk, but also Ufa, for example. 
In the mid-50s of the last century, it was fashionable to decorate the hood of a car with various images of animals, female figures, birds, etc. This strongly resembled the construction of ships in the Middle Ages, where figures were also present, though mostly women. Our manufacturers at that time also supported fashion trends that time. From the hood of the Volga, a fast deer jumped at passers-by, and on the hoods heavy trucks The Yaroslavl Automobile Plant flaunted a bear that stood menacingly with its front paw outstretched. And today, the Belarusian bison is clearly visible on MAZ models. As for the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant, its logo was decorated with a powerful and strong elk in its calmness.
Everyone knows the logo, which included a ring with wings. There was a three-color insert in the ring. It was decided to abandon such a sign, since the technology for its manufacture is quite laborious. After the cars were exported (early 80s), there was one not too pleasant situation. The West German concern "Adam Opel AG" made claims regarding the brand of the Ulyanovsk model. Things got to the point that Germany refused to register the UAZ trademark. It followed from the official letter that if you look at the Ulyanovsk logo from an angle, it vividly resembled the sign of the Opel company. The situation was obviously losing, since everyone knew Opel, and only collectors knew UAZ. It took a lot of effort to get the mark registered. All claims were withdrawn, but the sediment remained.
Widely celebrating the 35th anniversary of the famous "goat" UAZ-469, 1 modest date remained unnoticed - the 45th anniversary of the birth of the "UAZ" gull. However, according to the assurances of the author of this trademark, this is not a seagull at all ...
Distant 1956
In 1956, Albert Rakhmanov, a graduate of the Moscow Automotive Institute, came to the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant.
The topic of his diploma was the design of a bus with a particularly small capacity. - In those years there were no printed materials, not only on this topic, but also on the design of the car in general. And here, on the UAZ, for the first time I saw what I was working on, in the form finished machine, - recalls one of the oldest design engineers, who put his own pencil, knowledge and soul into the creation of all models of UAZ cars, Albert Mikhailovich Rakhmanov. - I ended up in a design bureau, I was instructed to detail, small knots. Timing was the main thing. Everything we did with high speed, however, unfortunately, with errors. So, the door of the car opened against the movement. And the driver and passenger became absolutely clamped by the motor. We tried to go high, and chief designer shouted at us: “They pulled up the car again!”. There have been many disputes over glass. The military demanded flat glasses. Barely persuaded them to cylindrical. Sliding windows arose only when normal doors were made ...
Designer and style
But often the author himself does not know that he is a designer. So, the engineer of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant Albert Rakhmanov, using his own talent, created one of the best-selling Soviet industrial design UAZ-469. Moreover, the design of the UAZ, in addition to purely utilitarianism, also expresses the ideological orientation of aesthetics. The car of the Soviet army cannot look aggressive. Soviet army brings only freedom and goodness to the peoples of the world. Therefore, Albert Mikhailovich, in parallel with the search for a holistic harmonious image, searched a lot for the “facial expression” of the new Soviet army off-road vehicle.
Elk, lighthouse and other profiles
It must be said that Rakhmanov drew well, but when his work on the UAZ trademark was sent to the competition of the Economic Council, many at the plant were surprised. After all, this project was handled by a specialized working group. From under the stylus of the artist Pyotr Kulikov, who then worked at the plant in the body design bureau, the first UAZ badge came out - in the form of a circle with “wings”. The middle was made of plexiglass with the letters UAZ painted in crimson, blue and gold. That option turned out to be time-consuming, costly and was rejected. Anatoly Kovalev, a metalworking artist, a graduate of the Mukhinsky School, joined the work. A lot of sketches were made: from the head of an elk, symbolizing high permeability, to the lighthouse and the profile of Ilyich, without which in those years not a single great accomplishment took place.
The seagull turned out to be ... a swallow
- In my sketches, I started from the “3 whales”: from the stylized letter “U”, which was on the “loaf” performed by the artist Aryamov, the three-beam star of the Mercedes and the display V-motor which was widely used at the time. It remains only to come up with one of these things, - recalls Albert Mikhailovich. - My version of a bird inscribed in a circle was submitted to the trademark competition announced by the Economic Council. Many people call her "seagull", but I call her "swallow".
After all, a seagull should have a kink in its wings, a similar sketch arose seriously later and I like it more. And then, in 1962, a stamped badge with detailed description was declared the winner and from that moment it is considered the official sign of UAZ. But as an author’s development, my sign was not patented, therefore, to the question: “Are you the author of the famous “seagull”, I answer evasively: “Yes, and no ...”
What is common between "UAZ" and "Opel"
In 1981, the plant received a message from Munich, in which the Opel company made claims to UAZ that the Ulyanovsk "seagull" looked like a German emblem, which is why it is unrealistic to use it on the territory of those states and countries where Opel emblem registered. Recognizing the fact that the German concern cannot impose any economic sanctions, at the same time proposed to change trademark"UAZA". The reason was unexpected - in case of accidents, when the sign is deformed, 2 Opel beams can converge into the "Ulyanovsk bird", and onlookers passing by may think that the German iron horse was injured in the accident.
Ulyanovsk designers replied that "there are many differences between UAZ" and "Opel". However, they were forced to develop other versions of the sign with a special letter. Thus, a real seagull with curved wings arose, inscribed not in a circle, but in a pentagon - as a sign that the Volga flows into 5 seas.
UAZ developed new logo for their cars, but will completely switch to it only in 2017, including the design dealer centers. So far, new nameplates will appear only on the updated UAZ Patriot family, the launch of which is scheduled for the second half of 2016.
It is worth noting that this is not a completely new logo, but only an updated one - the writing of the UAZ abbreviation has become more elegant. In general, the style of the image has not changed much.
The font used to write the name trademark, brought in line with the graphics of the three-dimensional sign: clear forms, straight lines, confidence and rigor.
Slightly modified and branded green color logo - it has become deeper and richer.
In connection with the change in the logo, the uaz.ru website will also receive an update, as well as a new corporate identity is expected for the brand's dealer network. Renovation of trading platforms is planned for 2017.
In the history of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant, there were more than 10 different logos. At the same time, a stylized letter “U” was placed at the base of each, which in each era was interpreted with different semantic content and graphics.
So, for example, on the very first logo there was a clearly visible letter "U", which does not carry any meaning, except as the initial letter of the word - the name of the city where the plant was located.
Until the mid-50s, many cars were “decorated” with graceful stylized three-dimensional images of animals, birds, and female figures, just as ancient sailors decorated their ships with carved sculptures. And domestic automakers of those years were no exception. So, from the hoods cars Gorky Automobile Plant a deer “flew” in a graceful jump, heavy trucks of the Yaroslavl Automobile Plant were decorated with a bear, MAZ trucks - an impressive bison frozen in tension in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, and cars of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant - an imperturbable elk.
One of the most striking logos in the history of the plant was the sign, which is a ring, and on both sides - stylized wings. Inside the ring was an insert with three colored fields. But this sign did not last long - it was abandoned because of the laboriousness of manufacturing.
In the early 80s, the logo of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant began to be registered in many foreign countries where UAZ cars were exported. An incidental situation occurred in 1981, when an official refusal to register our mark came from the German Patent Office on the basis of a protest automotive company Adam Opel AG. It was noted that with a cursory examination of the sign, it could well be mistaken for the Opel badge. However, it was possible to prove the inconsistency of these claims, and the logo was registered.
- Recently, UAZ launched a new workshop for welding Patriot car bodies - it is expected that now they will become stronger.
- Next year, the Patriot will undergo another update - airbags will appear in the equipment list, a system exchange rate stability, new steering column with adjustable tilt and much more.
The new logo is generally based on old version, inheriting a connection with the traditions and history of UAZ, but at the same time he received modern features and elements of dynamics. The font used to write the brand name was brought into line with the graphics of the three-dimensional mark: clear forms, straight lines, confidence and rigor. The new corporate color has remained traditionally green.
Along with the new logo, the uaz.ru website and all corporate materials will receive a new visual representation, however, the transition to a new corporate identity in the dealer network is scheduled for 2017 only. The first "bearer" of the new logo will be updated family UAZ "Patriot" cars, the launch of which is scheduled for the second half of 2016.
Interesting facts from the history of the development of UAZ logos
Over the entire history of the existence of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant, there were more than 10 different logos. At the same time, a stylized letter “U” was placed at the base of each, which in each era was interpreted with different semantic content and graphics. So, for example, on the very first logo there was a clearly visible letter "U", which does not carry any meaning, except as the initial letter of the word - the name of the city where the plant was located. But both Ussuriysk and Ufa could be such a city.
Until the mid-50s, many cars were "decorated" with mascots - stylized images of animals, birds, female figures. From the hoods of passenger cars of the Gorky Automobile Plant, a deer “flew” in a graceful jump, on the hoods of heavy trucks of the Yaroslavl Automobile Plant there was a figure of a bear, carefully leaning forward with a raised front paw, on trucks Minsk Automobile Plant - ?? the imposing bison frozen in tension in the Belovezhskaya Pushcha of Belarus, and on the cars of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant - a calm and powerful elk.
One of the most striking logos in the history of the plant was a sign representing a ring, and stylized wings on both sides. Inside the ring there was an insert with three colored fields: extreme - dark blue, central - red, with gold letters UAZ. Decision to refuse use this logo was adopted due to the complexity of manufacturing the sign.
In the early 80s, the logo of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant began to be registered in many foreign countries where UAZ cars were exported. An incidental situation occurred in 1981, when an official refusal to register our mark came from the German patent office on the basis of a protest from the automobile company Adam Opel AG. Protest justifications are given from the official letter: “At a cursory glance at the trademark, as well as when considering it under acute angle An interested person may well come to the conclusion that he is dealing with a graphic image of the Opel brand known to him, especially since the opposed trademark is quite well known in the circles of car drivers. Some time was spent trying to prove the groundlessness of the claims, and in the end the logo was registered.
