Ferrari and Lamborghini have been the frontrunners of supercar engineering for the last few decades. Both companies are associated with speed, luxury, and of course, masterful engineering. Not only do they have a long history within the wonderful world of motoring but they also have a long and somewhat unruly history with one another.
The fragmented relationship has gone on for what seems like forever, with founders Enzo Ferrari and Ferruccio Lamborghini often at loggerheads. However, this frenemy relationship also helped inspire both Ferrari and Lamborghini, especially when one manufacturer was doing better than the other. Yes, without it, we probably wouldn't have half the supercars we have today. The similarities and differences go a long way, even as far back as their iconic logos.
Here are 10 surprising facts about the Ferrari logo and 10 about Lamborghini's.
20
Francesco Baracca's Prancing Horse
Most people don't know that the prancing horse was in use a long time before Ferarri got their hands on it, with pilot Francesco Baracca painting the horse on the fuselage of his fighter plane during the first world war. Sadly, Baracca perished during the war, resulting in Enzo Ferrari calling in on his parents to give his regards. It was here where Baracca's mother, countess Paulina Baracca, suggested to Ferrari that he put her son's prancing horse on his cars. As they say, the rest is now history.
19
Enzo Ferrari Believed It Was Lucky
The prancing horse is now almost as famous as the Ferrari automobiles themselves, since Enzo Ferrari made sure to highlight just how important the Ferrari logo is to the brand. Ferrari believed the horse to be a symbol of high performance and luck. This idea came from the origins of the prancing horse which was originally painted on the back of the successful pilot's Francesco Baracca fighter plane.
18
The Prancing Horse Featured On The Alfa Romeo
In the early days of Enzo Ferrari's working career, he joined the racing department of Alfa Romeo as a driver. In 1923, Ferrari won his first Grand Prix, going on to win three more times the following season. After the birth of his son, Ferrari decided to quit racing for good and instead focus on the engineering aspect of Alfa Romeo's motor vehicles. In 1932, the Ferrari logo first appeared on the Alfa Romeo cars of the Scuderia racing team at the Grand Prix of Spa.
17
Patriotic Colors
Italians can be very patriotic, and for good reason, especially when it comes to their vehicles. The famous prancing horse could only be complete once it had adorned the Italian national colors, of red, white and green above the iconic black stallion. The colors are often unseen, due to the simplicity of how the national colors are painted, thus making it all the more stylish. Classic Italians!
16
Modena And The Color Yellow
Enzo Ferrari chose his colors wisely, especially with regards to his logo. For instance, the yellow background was chosen due to the connections that the brightly lit color had with his home town of Modena, Italy. Yes, canary yellow is the color of Modena, with a number of emblems, flags and Modena specialties all displaying their love for the shade. Yellow also features heavily in the Ferrari brand, with the pigment just one of a few colors that Ferrari will allow on their cars.
15
What is S & F?
The words "S" and "F" can often be seen next to the legendary prancing horse on the Ferrari logo. So what do they mean? The letters stand for, "Scuderia Ferrari" which has connections to the old German city of Stuttgart. That's right, the city, which was once named the old German word, "Gestut" initially had the prancing horse as its emblem. Furthermore, "Gestut" translated into Italian means "Scuderia" (stud farms, or a stable for racing horses). Hence the "S" and "F" lettering.
14
Porsche's prancing horse
German car manufacturer, Porsche, is one of just a few rivals to really compete with the luxurious beauty of Ferrari and Lamborghini. To make things complicated, Porsche also uses the prancing horse logo, only with the horse slanted at a different angle. So, why do they use it? The prancing horse is the original emblem of the old German city of Stuttgart, thus the German car manufacturer using the German symbol as its logo.
1
Ducati's prancing horse
Italian motorbike manufacturers, Ducati, have also been known to don the prancing horse, with the logo appearing on their bikes for a number of years. Yes, back in the day, Ducati chief designer and engineer, Fabio Taglioni, used the prancing horse as a symbol of luck. However, after much prodding from Enzo Ferrari, Taglioni eventually discontinued the logo as a sign of respect. Ferrari quickly trademarked the horse not long after.
12
The mourning black horse
Every single detail of the prancing horse was designed systematically, with Enzo Ferrari choosing the colors, angles, and fonts for a reason. Ferrari is often associated with the color red, with their cars and merchandise often following the red aesthetic. However, Ferrari avoided painting the logo red and instead chose the color black to represent the horse. The dark shade was chosen as it represented the color of mourning and grief, in relation to the death of Francesco Baracca and those who perished during the war.
11
125 S Was The First Ferrari To Wear The Logo
The Ferrari 125 S has the honor of being the first official Ferrari to wear the prancing horse logo. The car boasted a 1.5 L V12 engine which went on to win six races, including the Grand Prix of Rome in 1947. Sadly, both of the two cars built were dismantled, with the parts used for the production of the later models.
10
The First Lamborghini Logo Was A Plain Old Triangle
Back in the day, Ferruccio Lamborghini made the best tractors in the world. Much like the Lamborghini automobile brand that we can see today, the tractors focused on strength and power, resulting in positive reviews from across the globe. However, back then, the company hadn't quite mastered the luxury side of things, and instead put zero effort into their marketing and aesthetics, hence the basic triangle logo with the letters, "FL C" (Ferruccio Lamborghini Cento).
9
The lamborghini black and gold
In much the same way as Enzo Ferrari, Ferruccio Lamborghini wanted to specifically choose colors that best represented his brand. As a result, he chose to blacken the background with a deep black to further enhance the golden shades of the bull and the outer ring. The color scheme of black and gold not only represents strength but it also represents wealth and luxury, something that the Lamborghini brand adheres too.
8
Ferruccio Lamborghini Enjoyed Bullfighting
Ferruccio Lamborghini was known to be a huge fan of bullfighting and often traveled to Spain to watch the then adored Spanish sport. The act of bullfighting became a common theme in Lamborghini's work and style, with many of the cars named after famous bulls, along with the iconic and strenuous bull in the center of the logo.
7Ferruccio Lamborghini's Zodiac Inspiration
Believe it or not, Lamborghini founder Ferruccio Lamborghini was a keen zodiac enthusiast, so much so, he even incorporated his star sign into his work. Lamborghini was born on the 28th of April 1916, thus identifying as a Taurus, in other words, a bull. Lamborghini liked the image of a bull, regarding it as strong and powerful. As a result, he used the animal as the main focus of the eventual Lamborghini logo.
6Ferruccio Lamborghini Was Inspired By Enzo Ferrari
Enzo Ferrari and Ferruccio Lamborghini had a patchy relationship. It all started when Lamborghini criticized Ferrari while referring to his cars. Ferrari wasn't pleased and famously told Lamborghini, "You are a tractor driver, you are a farmer. You shouldn't complain driving my cars because they're the best cars in the world." This infuriated Lamborghini who decided to take a break with the tractor business and focus on cars to get back at him. Some say that Lamborghini's bull logo was created to annoy Ferrari even more, with its extreme similarities to the Ferrari horse.
5
The Bull Logo Influenced The Names Of The Cars
Ferruccio Lamborghini made sure to let his customers know that his cars were strong, strenuous and sturdy in design. To do so, he used the iconic image of the bull to lament this image, with the bull often influencing many of the Lamborghini car names. For instance, the "Miura" was named after Eduardo Miura, a Spanish bullfighting expert, and breeder from Seville. Another car was named the Lamborghini Islero, named after a specific bull that ended up killing a star matador. Lamborghini was seemingly obsessed with the bull image, using it for his logo and the names of his cars.
4
The Bull Was Said To Be Influenced By Zeus
There are many different theories when it comes to the role of the bull in the Lamborghini logo, with some of them making complete sense, while others seem rather farfetched. However, although the Zeus theory might sound strange, it seems rather legitimate when explained. According to Lamborghini employees, the bull was chosen to represent both the sign of the zodiac as well as the famed Greek God, Zeus. Legend has it that Zeus was in the image of a bull when he "stole" Europe, thus representing Lamborghini in the process of taking over Europe with his magnificent cars.
3The Name Of The Font Is Called "La Macchina"
The font on the logo is completely different from the font that you can see on the company signs. The most common font is the swirly writing that you can see on the cars and the Lamborghini trademark. However, on the logo, the writing is a bold, capitalized version of a sans serif font. This was done to match the empowering and blunt bull, with the swirly regular font deemed too soft for the logo.
2
The Lamborghini Logo Used To Be Red
Back in the early '60s, the Lamborghini logo used to have a red background instead of the black color that we know today. It has been suggested that the color was used as another way to annoy rival, Enzo Ferrari, whose company had been linked to red ever since its inception.
1
Lamborghini Chose Not To Incorporate The Italian Colors
The shape of the Lamborghini symbol is again not too dissimilar to the shield that Enzo Ferrari created. Both logos bear the coat of arms along with a strong and powerful animal. However, unlike Ferrari, Ferruccio Lamborghini decided not to use the Italian colors in his work, something that was considered rather unusual for an Italian at the time. Lamborghini instead wanted to focus on the symbol of the bull and the bull only, encouraging customers to associate his cars with strength rather than nationality.