Founded in Turin in 1906 by racing driver Vincenzo Lancia, the brand has carried a steering wheel, a flag and a lance on its badge since 1922, and a blue shield since 1929.
- Country
-
Italy - Active
- Since 1906
- Founded by
- Vincenzo Lancia, Claudio Fogolin
- Website
- Official website ↗
A racing driver starts his own company
Lancia is one of the few car brands named after a man who was famous before the badge existed. Vincenzo Lancia was already a winning racing driver at the wheel of Fiat cars when he and his colleague Claudio Fogolin, both Fiat employees, founded their own company in Turin on 27 November 1906.
The first model, the Lancia 12 HP, arrived in 1908. According to Stellantis, it had a low, lightweight chassis and a cardan shaft instead of chains, and more than 100 were built. From 1919 Vincenzo gave his cars Greek letter names, starting with the Kappa, and the earlier cars were renamed to match, so the 12 HP became the Alpha. In the 1930s he switched to ancient Roman place names such as Augusta and Aprilia as a tribute to Italy. After the Second World War, under his son Gianni Lancia, the cars took the names of Roman consular roads: Aurelia, Appia, Flaminia, Flavia and Fulvia.
Independence ended in the autumn of 1969, when the Fiat Group bought Lancia. Today the brand belongs to Stellantis.
Five sketches by a Count
The first logo, from 1907, was simple: the Lancia name in white capitals on a dark rectangle, with an enlarged L. A softer version in gold italic script appeared the same year.
In 1911 Vincenzo Lancia asked Count Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia for something more distinctive. The Count produced five hand-painted sketches, and Lancia chose the one he felt best represented the brand’s philosophy. It brought together a four-spoke steering wheel, a rectangular flag and a lance-shaped rod. Lancia is also the Italian word for lance, which makes the choice feel obvious, though the brand’s own logo history simply describes the object. The new logo entered use in 1922.
Steering wheel, flag, lance and shield
Lancia has published the full line of its emblems, and the brand counts seven in its first 116 years. The elements have stayed remarkably stable. In 1929 a triangular shield appeared around the steering wheel, in blue, white and gold, and Lancia describes the shield as a stylistic element that remains to this day.
In 1957 the Flaminia brought a leaner logo with it, in two-tone blue and silver: cleaner and more geometric than before. After the Fiat purchase the original rectangular wordmark was revived, and the first car to carry it was the 1972 Beta. In 1981 the designer Massimo Vignelli went back to the elements of the earlier badges, took the 1929 version as his starting point, limited the colours to blue and white and resized the L to match the other letters. The 2007 badge was the biggest visual break. The shield was contoured, the blue became darker and glossier, and the steering wheel was reduced to a minimalist form.
What do the flag and lance stand for? Lancia’s own material describes the objects but doesn’t attach a meaning to them. Readings you see elsewhere, such as the lance as a symbol of a warrior spirit, are interpretations, not the maker’s explanation.
The 2022 badge: brushed like a watch dial
On 28 November 2022, at the Reggia di Venaria near Turin, Lancia held its Design Day and unveiled a new logo. Chief executive Luca Napolitano put it bluntly: “Today Lancia is reborn with a new logo and a clear design vision.”
The Lancia design team studied all seven previous logos before drawing this one, and the 1957 Flaminia badge was the main inspiration. The steering wheel, flag, shield, lance and lettering are all still there, simplified and rebalanced, with the lance placed asymmetrically. The badge is made of aluminium with circular brushing, a finish borrowed from watch dials, and the wordmark uses a new typeface inspired by Italian fashion. Lancia calls the style “Progressive Classic” and ties the badge to its move into electric cars. It made its production debut on the new Ypsilon.
Why the badge is blue
Blue has been the Lancia colour since the shield arrived in 1929, when it was paired with white and gold. The 1957 version switched to blue and silver, Vignelli’s 1981 design kept only blue and white, and in 2007 the blue got darker and glossier. Lancia doesn’t give a reason for the choice in its logo history, so we won’t invent one.
Cars that wore the shield
Lancia built its reputation on engineering firsts and, later, on rally stages. A few of its cars changed what the rest of the industry thought was possible.
Landmark Lancias, decade by decade
- 1908: 12 HP. The first Lancia, later renamed Alpha, with a low, lightweight chassis and shaft drive instead of chains.
- 1922: Lambda. Presented at the Paris Motor Show in October 1922. Stellantis Heritage calls it the first car built without a conventional rigid chassis, and it also introduced independent front suspension and a narrow-angle V4 engine.
- 1950: Aurelia. Described by Lancia as the first production car in the world with a V6 engine. Its racing success led Gianni Lancia to set up Scuderia Lancia.
- 1957: Flaminia. Launched alongside the cleaner 1957 logo. In 1961 Pinin Farina built the long-wheelbase presidential convertible used by the President of the Italian Republic.
- 1974: Stratos HF. Wedge body by Marcello Gandini at Bertone, six-cylinder engine from Ferrari behind the seats. It won on its World Championship debut at the San Remo Rally in October 1974 and took the manufacturers’ title in 1974, 1975 and 1976.
- 1985: Y10. Debuted at the Geneva Motor Show and started the small-car line that became the Ypsilon.
- 1987: Delta HF Integrale. Six consecutive World Rally Championship manufacturers’ titles, from 1987 to 1992.
Lancia has been part of the Fiat family since 1969 and now sits inside Stellantis alongside Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Abarth. For more on how badges like these are put together, see how car logos are designed.
Frequently asked questions
What is in the Lancia logo?
A four-spoke steering wheel, a rectangular flag and a lance, set inside a shield with the Lancia wordmark. The wheel, flag and lance were drawn by Count Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia in 1911, and the shield was added in 1929.
Why is there a lance in the Lancia logo?
The brand is named after its founder, Vincenzo Lancia, and lancia is the Italian word for lance. The lance-shaped rod has been part of the emblem since Count Biscaretti di Ruffia’s 1911 design, although Lancia’s own logo history describes it without giving a meaning.
When did Lancia change its logo?
The current badge was unveiled at the Lancia Design Day on 28 November 2022. It keeps the historic elements, is made of brushed aluminium and was inspired mainly by the 1957 logo first seen on the Flaminia.
Who owns Lancia?
The Fiat Group bought Lancia in the autumn of 1969. The brand is now part of Stellantis.
Lancia: the shield in brief
- Founded
- 1906
- Founder
- Vincenzo Lancia, Claudio Fogolin
- Country
- Italy
- Headquarters
- Turin, Italy
- Parent company
- Stellantis
- Current emblem
- A brushed aluminium shield with steering wheel, flag and lance, unveiled in November 2022
- Known for
- Engineering firsts and rally dominance with the Stratos and Delta
- Website
- Official website ↗
