Volkswagen II

I got my very first car in 2012 – a good 3 or 4 years after passing my driving test, mind you. It was a Volkswagen Fox, purchased in Cornwall during my graduation week (hence the Cornish flag sticker), and has been my trusty and beloved vehicle ever since. Well, since today at least. Because today I said farewell to my lovely blue Foxy and hello to a shiny new (well, 3 years old) red Volkswagen Up.

Photograph taken at work this afternoon before our last drive together.

…and the new car!

The Up is similar in size and, obviously, still a Volkswagen but being a more modern car it has electric windows, air conditioning and remote locking – plus 4 doors where my Fox had only 2 (and massive ones at that). So, you could say that this is quite the up-grade… pun intended.

Volkswagen has got me hooked – I barely even considered getting a new car from another car manufacturer. I think I’ve always subconsciously loved VW, even before I could drive or was thinking about driving. As many young hippy-come-alternative-type girls dream of a VW Campervan or Beetle of their own, I did too. I had plenty of Campervan money boxes anyway – at least 2 – an assortment of Campervan and Beetle ornaments and one t-shirt with ‘I [heart] [picture of a campervan]’ on it. Sadly I no longer have this t-shirt.

BUT, ultimately, as a graphic designer I love their classic advertisements. I posted a few of the ads in my first Volkswagen blog post when I was ‘new to the Volkswagen club’ but I’ve dug out a some more of my favourites to share now.

And in more recent design and automotive news, Volkswagen have changed their font:

The company claims the new font is “more contemporary, less geometric and features dynamic contrast,” and that it is “inspired by VW’s distinctive vehicle design.” Whether or not the typeface, created by outside agency MetaDesign, resonates with prospective customers and increases revenue remains to be seen, but there’s certainly no risk for lack of exposure. Not only will the new font be on display in VW stationery and brochures, but it will also adorn every new VW dashboard, center stack and infotainment system. – Paste Magazine

The previous typeface, apparently called Utopia, was a very clean and rounded Futura-style font – in fact, Futura itself has been used in past VW advertising. The roundness suited the classic VW logo and the classic shape of the Beetle as well – as you’ve seen in the ads above! Then why have Volkswagen gone away from this? I’m not sure…

Before and After.

As Erik Spiekermann (notable German typographic designer) said…

I like the new VW fonts, just not for this brand. #vw #typography

— erik spiekermann (@espiekermann) May 29, 2015

Volkswagen I

I have recently joined the Volkswagen club and I am loving my new car, a VW Fox. Whilst at the garage, before buying the car, I had a browse of a classic VW advertising book. Ads that I'd first discovered whilst at college, 4 or 5 years ago, and somehow managed to forget about. Not sure why, they are absolutely brilliant.

You may wish to visit this website to read the small print.