What Is the Toyota Logo?
The Toyota logo is three overlapping ellipses: two inner ellipses that together form a T, set inside a larger outer one. It belongs to Toyota Motor Corporation, the carmaker based in Toyota City, Japan, which was established as Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. in 1937.
Toyota's luxury brand Lexus has a mark of its own, which came before the Toyota emblem in 1989. The emblem with the TOYOTA wordmark is available as the Toyota logo SVG.
Toyota Logo Facts
| Introduced | 1989 |
| Symbol | Three ellipses, the inner two forming a T |
| Logo type | Combination mark: emblem and wordmark |
| Earlier mark | The name Toyota in Japanese characters inside a circle, chosen in 1936 |
| Owner | Toyota Motor Corporation |
What the Toyota Logo Means
When it announced the emblem, Toyota explained it through geometry: an ellipse has two central points, and in each of its ellipses one point stands for the heart of the customer and the other for the heart of the product. The two inner ellipses overlap to show trust between customer and company, and where they cross they form the T of Toyota, which also suggests a steering wheel. The outer ellipse stands for the world embracing Toyota, and the empty space around the ellipses for Toyota's technical progress and the opportunities ahead.
Toyota Logo History
Toyota's first cars were built by the car department of Toyoda Automatic Loom Works and sold under the founding family's name, Toyoda. The front emblem of the Model AA, the first passenger car, combined wings for speed with the Japanese characters for Toyoda.
In July 1936 the department held a public competition for a new logo and received about 27,000 entries. The winner, picked on 25 September, wrote Toyota rather than Toyoda inside a circle. Toyota gives three reasons for the switch: the characters looked simpler, the name sounded better, and it takes eight strokes to write, a number linked with good fortune. The mark was registered in April 1937, and Toyota Motor Co. was founded on 28 August that year.
The three-ellipse emblem was announced on 2 October 1989 to mark the company's 50th anniversary, after about five years of development. It made its debut that month on the Celsior luxury saloon and went on all new Toyota cars from 1990.
In July 2020 Toyota Motor Europe introduced a flat, two-dimensional version of the emblem without the wordmark, designed by the agency The&Partnership. It was made for communications; Toyota's cars kept their existing badge.
Toyota Beside Honda and BMW
Toyota and its Japanese neighbour Honda both turned an initial into a badge: Honda framed an H in 1963, and Toyota hid a T in its ellipses in 1989 (compare the Honda logo). Toyota's flat 2020 emblem followed BMW, which had flattened its roundel in March that year (compare the BMW logo).
For more brands like Toyota, browse our car logos.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do the three ovals in the Toyota logo mean?
The two inner ovals stand for the heart of the customer and the heart of the product, and together form a T. The outer oval stands for the world embracing Toyota.
Why is the company called Toyota and not Toyoda?
After a 1936 logo competition, the family name Toyoda was changed to Toyota because it looked simpler, sounded better and takes eight strokes to write, a lucky number.
When did Toyota introduce the oval logo?
It was announced on 2 October 1989 and first appeared on the Celsior that month.
Why does the Toyota logo sometimes appear without the name?
In July 2020 Toyota Motor Europe introduced a flat emblem without the wordmark for its communications.