"Spirit of Ecstasy", "Leaping Jaguar", three-pointed star, the letter "B" with wings - it would seem that not so long ago it was impossible to imagine car hoods without these figures. And if Rolls-Royce has been piously honoring the tradition for the second century and still installs the "Spirit of Ecstasy" on its cars, albeit with a mechanism that retracts it into the body, then everyone else has somehow imperceptibly reduced this tradition to naught. Why can't you look at the three-pointed star of Mercedes through the sight from the driver's seat anymore? Let's look for the answer.
The main reason for the disappearance of the figures is safety standards. Extra elements on the hood, in the event of a car hitting a pedestrian, can cause serious injuries. In Europe, the ban on decorations rigidly fixed to the body came into force in 1974, in the USA - in 1968. This restriction could be circumvented with the help of spring mounts or mechanisms that hide the figure in the hood, as in the aforementioned Rolls-Royce. However, only manufacturers of premium brands could afford this, for whom an increase in price of several thousand dollars was not critical.
Another factor is aerodynamics. In an age when engineers are fighting for every gram and every line in a car model in the pursuit of fast acceleration, low fuel consumption and minimal emissions, violating the streamlining of a car with hood ornaments is an unaffordable luxury.
The disappearance of the figures was also influenced by new trends in car design - minimalism came into fashion, elaborate details became less interesting to the potential buyer, which designers could not ignore. Even if mascots could technically survive, they ceased to fit into the new trends in automotive design.
There are a number of other reasons, such as cheaper construction, changing consumer tastes, vandalism (such figures were very often broken and torn off), and others. As a result, the figures remained in history, arousing increased interest only among restorers of old cars or collectors.
Read more materials on the topic:
UAZ-3160: Grandfather of the modern "Patriot"
Do it yourself: how the idea of assembling a Kit Car turned into a full-fledged production?