New Emblem Previews Future Design Language
Bentley on Tuesday unveiled a revised version of its “Winged B” emblem. Only the fifth such redesign since Bentley’s founding, the new logo will make its first appearance on a concept car the automaker plans to unveil on July 8. That car will also preview a new design language for Bentley’s future vehicles.
The final design was chosen through an internal competition. The winner, submitted by Young Nam, part of Bentley’s interior design team, features sharper, more-angled wings and a cleaner look. The letter “B” is still prominently centered between the wings, but was restyled in order to be able to stand alone without them, according to a Bentley press release, and with details like a bevelled glass edge and chamfered metal surround inspired by watchmaking.
A Bentley Tradition
Bentley
The original “Winged B” was designed in 1919 by F. Gordon Crosby, an artist known for motorsports illustrations, and a friend of company founder W.O. Bentley. Crosby chose wings to represent motion, and gave each wing a different number of feathers to guard against forgeries.
When Bentley was purchased by Rolls-Royce in 1931, the emblem underwent its first significant change. Apparently not concerned about fraud, the powers that be at Rolls specified symmetrical wings, with 10 straightened feathers on each side. This become the longest-lasting version, only being replaced in 1996 with a more ornate version that was also more in line with Crosby’s original design.
Bentley was purchased by the Volkswagen Group in 1998, and launched the Continental GT, its first model wholly developed under VW Group ownership, in 2002. This new era brought another new emblem design, further nodding to the original version with a different number of feathers (10 for one, 11 for the other) on each wing.
Flying Into The Future
It’s a fitting time for another redesign, as Bentley is about to undergo its biggest changes since the start of the VW Group era. The upcoming concept car will point toward a new design direction for the brand, and Bentley is slowly shifting toward electric vehicles. Every current model now offers a plug-in hybrid powertrain, setting the stage for Bentley’s first EV (an SUV smaller than the Bentayga) due in 2026, and an all-electric lineup by 2035.