Subaru Logo and Brand Identity

Subaru Corporation

The Subaru emblem turns the Pleiades star cluster into a compact automotive signature, linking the brand name to its Japanese origin and corporate formation. Its blue oval, silver stars, and balanced asymmetry project engineering confidence, all-weather capability, and a heritage built around unity.

Official website
Live logo URL
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Subaru full

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Choose the right Subaru asset

Start with the shape that fits the slot, then tune size and format in the URL.

Full logo

Best for directories, marketplace cards, comparison pages, and any surface where the complete mark has room to breathe.

Badge

Best for compact UI: filters, tables, saved vehicles, mobile lists, and favicon-like brand slots.

Wordmark

Best when the manufacturer name needs to stay legible in headers, partner lists, and editorial pages.

Implementation

Use the Subaru logo across your stack.

Copy a real CDN URL, then keep the same asset working in markup, components, native apps, and data calls.

Use it in any stack
One keyed Motomarks URL works in plain markup, component frameworks, native image loaders, and API-backed views.
logo.html
1<img2  src="https://motomarks.io/img/subaru?token=YOUR_API_KEY"3  alt="Subaru logo"4  width="128"5  height="128"6  loading="lazy"7/>

Need more than the image?

Fetch the brand record when your UI also needs metadata, ordered colors, or attribution context.

GET https://api.motomarks.io/brands/subaru
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_SECRET_KEY
Read the API docs

Reference

More about Subaru.

Brand history, logo changes, color notes, usage examples, and common questions.

What makes this mark recognizable?

Identity cues, heritage, and visual details to keep in mind before the asset lands in your UI.

Subaru's six-star emblem is based on the Pleiades star cluster, called Subaru in Japanese. The mark was adopted for the first Subaru passenger car era in the late 1950s, reflecting the formation of Fuji Heavy Industries from five predecessor companies, with the larger star representing the new parent organization.

Over time the emblem moved from early metallic star treatments to the familiar blue oval with silver stars, then to more dimensional chrome versions and cleaner digital-era renderings. The logo has remained unusually consistent in meaning, tying the brand name, corporate origin, and Japanese cultural reference into one symbol.

First color in the reference palette

Motomarks records #013C7C as the primary Subaru reference color, with any alternate swatches listed in the color reference and API response.

How the mark got here

The identity shifts that explain the Subaru logo in use today.

Origins

Subaru traces its corporate roots to Nakajima Aircraft, a Japanese aircraft manufacturer founded in 1917. After World War II, the business was reorganized and several successor companies later came together to form Fuji Heavy Industries in 1953. Kenji Kita, the first president of Fuji Heavy Industries, wanted the company's automotive products to carry a Japanese name and selected Subaru, the Japanese name for the Pleiades star cluster.

First Subaru cars

The Subaru name appeared on early prototypes such as the Subaru 1500 and became widely associated with the Subaru 360, introduced in 1958. The 360 helped establish Subaru as a maker of compact, practical passenger cars for Japan's postwar market. The six-star badge connected these vehicles to the newly formed Fuji Heavy Industries group and its merged corporate heritage.

Engineering identity

Subaru developed a distinct identity around horizontally opposed boxer engines and, later, Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive. These engineering themes shaped the brand's reputation in markets such as Japan, North America, and Europe, especially through models such as the Leone, Legacy, Impreza, Forester, and Outback. The consistent star emblem helped link mainstream cars, rally-influenced performance models, and rugged all-weather vehicles under one visual identity.

From Fuji Heavy Industries to Subaru Corporation

In 2017, Fuji Heavy Industries officially changed its corporate name to Subaru Corporation. The change aligned the company name with its main automotive brand and the identity already recognized by customers worldwide. The six-star emblem remained central to the corporate and vehicle identity after the rename.

When the logo changed

A compact record of redesigns, visual turns, and the reasons the mark moved.

1958

Early six-star Subaru badge

The early Subaru emblem used six stars to reference the Pleiades cluster and the corporate formation of Fuji Heavy Industries. The arrangement typically featured one larger star with five smaller stars, establishing the core symbolism still used today.

Reason for redesign: The mark was created to give the new automotive brand a Japanese identity tied directly to the Subaru name and the company's merged origins.

1970s

Blue oval star emblem

Subaru moved toward the familiar oval badge format, using a blue field behind metallic stars. The oval created a more durable vehicle badge shape and gave the emblem stronger visibility on grilles, steering wheels, and marketing materials.

Reason for redesign: The redesign supported broader vehicle branding and a more standardized automotive badge for expanding markets.

2003

Dimensional chrome and blue badge

The logo adopted a more polished three-dimensional look with chrome edging, silver stars, and a deeper blue background. This treatment matched early 2000s automotive branding trends and translated well to physical vehicle emblems.

Reason for redesign: The update modernized the badge for a more premium vehicle presentation and more consistent global brand use.

2019

Cleaner digital-era rendering

Subaru's identity has been increasingly rendered with cleaner surfaces, simpler contrast, and more adaptable digital reproduction while retaining the six stars in the oval. The mark continues to preserve the core blue-and-silver composition.

Reason for redesign: The refinement supports clearer display across websites, apps, vehicle interfaces, and compact digital placements.

What to preserve in production

Shape, color, and type cues that keep Subaru recognizable at app scale.

Composition

The Subaru logo is built around a horizontal oval containing six stars arranged asymmetrically. One larger star sits to the left, while five smaller stars cluster to the right, creating movement across the badge rather than a rigid geometric layout.

Symbol

The six stars refer to the Pleiades cluster, known in Japanese as Subaru. The larger star is commonly interpreted as Fuji Heavy Industries, while the five smaller stars represent the five companies that came together to form it.

Lettering

Subaru's wordmark is usually set in a strong, clean sans serif style with wide letter spacing. The typography supports the badge by feeling technical, stable, and modern without competing with the star symbol.

Color

Deep blue provides the night-sky association needed for the star cluster theme, while silver or chrome stars give the mark a metallic automotive finish. The contrast between blue and silver makes the badge highly legible on vehicle bodies and digital surfaces.

Shape

The oval shape contains the star field in a compact, grille-friendly form. Its horizontal orientation suits automotive badge placement and gives the symbol a stable, aerodynamic feel.

Heritage

Unlike many automotive marks that shifted meaning over time, Subaru's emblem has maintained a direct link to the brand name and corporate origin. The continuity of the six stars gives the identity strong historical consistency from the postwar Fuji Heavy Industries period to the current Subaru Corporation era.

Market context

The name Subaru is a native Japanese term for the Pleiades, and it also carries the idea of gathering together or uniting. This gives the logo both an astronomical reference and a corporate formation story rooted in Japanese language and culture.

Design logic

Subaru's logo philosophy is based on continuity, clarity, and symbolic efficiency. Rather than using abstract speed or luxury cues, the badge communicates unity, origin, and dependable engineering through a simple celestial metaphor.

Where teams place it

Common product surfaces where Subaru assets need to stay clear, consistent, and fast.

Vehicle badges

Vehicle owners

The six-star oval appears on grilles, tailgates, wheels, steering wheels, and key fobs, usually as a blue and silver physical emblem.

Dealer websites

Dealers

Retailers use the Subaru name and emblem to identify authorized sales, service, model inventory, finance offers, and certified pre-owned programs.

Motorsport and performance branding

Enthusiasts

Subaru performance models and rally-related communications have historically used the star emblem alongside model identities such as WRX and STI.

Digital product interfaces

Product teams

Automotive apps, marketplaces, comparison tools, and connected-car experiences use the Subaru mark to help users quickly identify make, model, and ownership context.

Answers before you ship

Format, usage, attribution, and history notes for the Subaru logo.

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