The Jaguar Symbol

The Leaping Jaguar is a well-known automotive logo, but did you know that there are two Jaguar logos? Learn more about the history of the Jaguar logo, its meaning, and much more with the team at Jaguar West Chester. Be sure to explore our new inventory and give our team a call when you’re ready to hit the West Chester road in your dream Jaguar vehicle.

The Meaning Behind the Jaguar Symbols

The Jaguar symbol was designed to meet the core values of this highly-praised performance-focused luxury brand. Many drivers in and around the Chester Springs area know that Jaguar represents “grace, elegance, performance, power, and the ambition to leap forward.”

• The Leaping Jaguar – A sleek silver jaguar cat in mid-leap with a snarl on its face. It was first introduced as a hood ornament, but it’s now a two-dimensional badge in black, metallic gray, and silver.
• The Roaring Jaguar – A circular emblem with a front-facing silver jaguar cat roaring. You will typically see it with a red background and a silver border. However, early variants included a gold jaguar with a red background and a black border.

The Jaguar colors of silver and metallic gray symbolizes sophistication and modernity, black represents integrity and performance, and the red represents the passion for the drive.

The Jaguar Symbol: How it Began

Let’s take a look at the history of the Jaguar logo:

• 1922 — The Swallow Sidecar Company was founded and manufactured sidecars for motorcycles in England. The company was renamed and rebranded as an auto manufacturer–SS Cars Limited in 1934.
• 1935 — The SS Jaguar was produced as the first vehicle featuring the name Jaguar on it. Vehicles at this time had the logo of a badge with the “Jaguar” text surrounded by the wings and tail of a bird.
• 1945 — The SS Cars Limited company was renamed to Jaguar Cars Limited to establish the company as a British brand. It was also to avoid any confusion with the Nazi SS military group that was operating during World War II.
• 1945 — The famous Leaping Jaguar logo was first introduced on hood ornaments, with its style remaining unchanged until the early 2000s.

The Decline of the Jaguar Hood Ornament

There are several events that took place over the past several decades that led to the discontinuation of hood ornaments from Jaguar and other vehicles around the world.

• 1968 — The federal seat belt law was passed that led to a huge shift in how vehicles were designed. This means flashy styles like hood ornaments and fins took a back seat in favor of aerodynamics and passenger and pedestrian safety.
• 1980s — Hood ornament theft skyrocketed because of the rising fashion trend of hood ornament necklaces worn by rappers. The high cost of replacing these parts also led to fewer cars making them.
• 2005 — The European Union initiated safety regulations for pedestrian safety, requiring hood ornaments to collapse, bend, or fold away in the event of a frontal collision. To make production easier, most luxury brands, which included Jaguar, decided to remove hood ornaments altogether.

You can still find the Leaping Jaguar on current Jaguar vehicles, as a silhouetted badge-style version of itself that you can find on the driver’s side and rear of the vehicle. The circular emblem of the Roaring Jaguar is currently front and center on the grille.

Find Your Next Luxury Ride in West Chester!

Find your next Jaguar vehicle and learn more about the Jaguar history, design, performance, and warranty coverage with the team at Jaguar West Chester. Peruse our new models for sale or quality used vehicles to find the vehicle that will enhance your daily commute around the Aston area. Contact us with any questions!