Key facts
- Years active
- 1945–2003
- Founded by
- Jean-Luc Lagardère, Marcel Chassagny
- Country
-
France - Headquarters
- Romorantin-Lanthenay, France
- Parent company
- Lagardère Group
- Famous models
- Murena, Bagheera, 530, Djet, MS120, MS630
The Matra logo is a blue rectangular bar with the name MATRA in bold white capitals and a round white swirl mark at the right end. Matra was a French industrial conglomerate whose car division, Matra Automobiles, built sports and racing cars until the company went bankrupt in 2003.
Matra Logo
The Matra symbol is the name set in wide, rounded white capitals on a solid blue field. At the right-hand end of the bar a circular mark with curved white lines gives the design a sense of motion. The palette is two colours, blue and white, and the swirl is the only graphic element next to the lettering.
The same Matra emblem stood for a group that ranged from aerospace and defence to telecommunications, so the Matra badge is the corporate mark and the Matra car logo is not a separate design. It is a simple, iconic block of colour and lettering. The page offers the Matra logo PNG with a transparent background.
What the Matra logo means
The Matra logo meaning comes from the name, an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction, which points to the group’s roots in mechanics, aviation and traction. The lettering represents that name as one bold word.
Matra Logo History
One design runs through the Matra logo history: the blue bar with white lettering and the round swirl, which carried the company name across its different businesses.
Matra History
Matra was a large French industrial group whose business covered aerospace, defence, automotive, motorsports, transport and telecommunications. After it took over the vehicle maker Automobiles René Bonnet, it founded Matra Automobiles in the 1960s, which produced a limited range of racing and sports cars. Models include the Djet, the 530, the Bagheera and the Murena, and the Matra-Simca MS630 and MS120 raced under the same name.
The car division worked closely with other manufacturers, most of all Renault. Jean-Luc Lagardère was chief executive for much of the company’s existence. Matra was privatised in 1988, became a subsidiary of the Lagardère Group in 1994, and in 1999 its aerospace, defence and telecommunications arm merged with Aérospatiale to form Aérospatiale-Matra, now Airbus.
The car business was sold in the early 2000s and Matra went bankrupt in 2003. Some former assets still operate under the Lagardère name.
Matra Logo PNG and Colors
The download button at the top of this page saves the last Matra logo as a PNG file, 266 × 60 pixels.
| Colors | Blue, White |
|---|---|
| File | PNG, 266 × 60 px |
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Matra?
Matra was founded in 1945 by Jean-Luc Lagardère and Marcel Chassagny.
What does the Matra logo mean?
The name is an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction, the mechanics, aviation and traction roots of the group, and the logo shows it as one bold white word on blue.
What does the name Matra mean?
Matra is an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction.
What country is Matra from?
Matra was a French car brand, based in Romorantin-Lanthenay, France.
Does Matra still exist?
No. Matra was active from 1945 to 2003. It belonged to Lagardère Group.
What color is the Matra logo?
The last Matra logo is blue and white.
What cars did Matra make?
The best-known Matra models were the Murena, Bagheera, 530, Djet and MS120.
