Ferrari and Porsche both have a celebrated history of making some of the most incredible sports cars for the road and track. While Porsche and Ferrari have no manufacturing relationship, their emblems could lead you to believe otherwise. Out of all the major carmakers, Porsche and Ferrari are the only two that have horses on their logos. Today's post highlights how they got their insignias and what inspired the horse themes.
From Fighter Planes to Sports Cars
Enzo Ferrari was the founder of Ferrari and had a history of racing with Alfa Romeo before splitting off to start his own auto brand. In 1932, Enzo Ferrari put his first horse insignia onto a car. The idea of the prancing horse actually came from Count Francesco Baracca who was an accomplished Italian Air Force fighter pilot. Baracca used to paint a strutting horse emblem on the sides of his plane before going into battle. He won over 30 battles in World War I and he became a national hero. Baracca’s mother was the one who suggested Enzo Ferrari add the strutting stallion to his autos because she said it would bring him good luck. Enzo eventually added the logo and won the next race. (Moms always have good ideas, right?) From then on it became permanent. The Ferrari symbol has become a famous symbol of a prestigious racing brand.
City Pride
The Porsche symbol, while very similar visually, has a different origin story. Porsche is a high-end German automaker based in the city of Stuttgart. Stuttgart was founded in 950 around stud horse farms. Ferdinand Porsche wanted the insignia to honor his city's heritage. Stuttgart has had an official city crest since the 13th Century that includes a prancing horse. This is where Ferdinand Porsche got the idea of adopting both the stallion and the shape of a crest. He also used Stuttgart’s city colors of red and black in the insignia and, for good measure, also added deer antlers that came from the Coat of Arms of the Free People’s State of Wurttemburg-Baden (the region's former designation).
We hope you have enjoyed today's post about two celebrated auto emblems. The team at I-86 Truck & Auto Repair wishes you safe travels and invites you to rely on us to offer full-service automotive repair in Falconer. Call 716-665-2501 to schedule an appointment.
Sources:
https://porsche
https://ferrari.com
https://stocklogos.com/topic/history-ferrari-logo