Table of Contents
Hood ornaments started over a century ago as a disguise for domestic radiator caps. Once upon a time, radiator caps were placed on the outside of the car so drivers could monitor the water vapor temperature of the coolant. Those caps weren’t exactly appealing as a design feature, so automakers started getting creative by adding “car mascots.”
Early cars were not equipped with coolant temperature gauges. An enterprising company created the Moto-Meter, a radiator-mounted temperature gauge. When manufacturers started incorporating coolant temperature gauges, the Moto-Meter disappeared, but on some brands the hood ornament remained.
Today, only a few high-end manufacturers still offer this beautiful hood jewelry, such as Rolls-Royce and Bentley. What happened to these mobile works of art?
Pushed out for safety and design
According to the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum in Auburn, Indiana, safety experts began investigating hood ornaments as a potential crash hazard in the 1960s. Hood ornaments were omitted in subsequent designs of the same era; think of Mustang, Corvette, Camaro or a sleek Plymouth Superbird. As cars became faster, automakers were able to realize that anything that increased the drag coefficient and affected fuel efficiency was a risk. Unfortunately, hood ornaments like the whimsical Bugatti bear or Rolls-Royce’s Spirit of Ecstasy can certainly affect a car’s aerodynamics.
In Europe, car regulations have driven out hood ornaments because of the risk they pose to pedestrians hit by cars. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says pedestrian fatalities increased 57 percent from 4,779 to 7,522 between 2013 and 2022. In September 2024, the organization proposed a new rule that would “establish test procedures that simulate a head-to-hood impact and performance requirements to minimize the risk of head injury.” Protruding sculptures like Jaguar’s mascot ‘Leaper’ could ostensibly act as a javelin in the event of a collision with a pedestrian, I imagine, although finding statistics on actual injuries from hood decoration have been elusive.
However, not all car companies removed the mascots from their front fascias in the 1960s. Cadillac even kept its logo on the hood on some models until the early 2000s, following a law that required the part to flex upon impact. Unfortunately, Cadillac and Mercedes-Benz hood ornaments were stolen quite often, and one prominent rapper wore them as a neck ornament instead (I’m looking at you, Rick Ross). Rolls-Royce and Bentley have virtually eliminated vandalism and safety hazards with a cool trick: their mascots disappear electronically into a special compartment in front of the hood opening.
Hood ornaments from the past, into the future
One of my favorite hood ornaments from the past is Chrysler’s winged mascot, which looks quite a bit like a golden snitch from the Quidditch games of Harry Potter. I have a 1956 Buick Roadmaster hood ornament on my desk, a ridiculously heavy chrome jet. Pierce-Arrow’s Archer adorned the hoods of its pre-war cars, and it is a sculpture worthy of an art museum.
You may remember Cadillac’s three-dimensional emblem, but the American brand also created two striking hood ornaments in the 1930s featuring the iconic flying goddess and a heron. The Goddess returns in the luxury GM brand’s Celestiq as a glass-encased piece in the cabin and front fender, and it will be good to see her back. Perhaps more automakers will find ways to bring back their ornaments of the past as emblems on the side of the car or integrated into the cabin.
Fifty years ago, car bling was also presented as a useful tool before in-car cameras came into play. In the December 5, 1972 issue of the New York Timessaid writer Jerry M. Flint that Detroit automaker executives “believe [hood] ornaments give the driver a point of reference to the center of the road, potentially making the car’s handling easier and safer.” Dick Macadam, chief stylist at the Chrysler Corporation, called the hood ornament a “buoyancy aid.”
William Mitchell, vice president of styling at GM, defended the use of car mascots as a style differentiator.
“I can’t stand a range hood that looks like a turkey roaster or a bedpan,” Mitchell said. I can only imagine what Mr. Mitchell would say about some of the diamond shaped cars on the market today. The next time you wander among the rows of classic vehicles at a museum or car show, take note of the ornaments throughout history. And mourn with me their demise.
This story is part of Popular Science Ask Us Anything serieswhere we answer your most bizarre, mind-burning questions, from the common to the unusual. Do you have something you’ve always wanted to know? Ask us.
Win the holidays with PopSci’s gift guides