Back in 1999, Mazda gave the MX-5 a fresh look for its 10th anniversary. One subtle but important update was the appearance of the new Mazda logo. This emblem, first introduced in 1997, features a stylized “M” enclosed in a circle. The angled parts of the letter were shaped with wings in mind while the circle’s curves made up the vertical lines.
Mazda says the wings symbolize the company’s desire for continuous improvement, growth, and creativity. The design speaks to a mindset that embraces innovation with flexibility and resilience.
Recently, Mazda trademarked a slightly updated version of the logo. This new design focuses on cleaner, straighter lines for the wings and a slightly compressed circle frame. It first appeared on the Mazda Arata SUV concept in China and may become the global face of Mazda in the future.
Tracing Mazda’s roots leads us to 1920s Hiroshima. The brand started as Toyo Cork Kogyo, initially making cork products before shifting to vehicles. Early boards included Jujiro Matsuda, an engineer with a vision that turned the company toward automobiles. The Mazda name and a simple logo made their debut in the 1930s, but the first car badge originated with the 1960 Mazda 360.
Through the decades, Mazda experimented with logos. One mid-1930s design borrowed from the emblem of Hiroshima city, adapting three wavy lines symbolizing local rivers into stylized M shapes. Later logos drew inspiration from Mazda’s innovative rotary engines, whose triangular rotors influenced the “m” badge seen on the Mazda Cosmo coupe debuting in 1967.
In the early ’90s, Mazda introduced a purely graphic badge where two wings rise and meet forming a circle representing the sun. This badge marked the final years of the first-gen MX-5 and still holds appeal among fans of that era.