{"id":65300,"date":"2023-01-02T03:53:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-02T03:53:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businessyield.com\/?p=65300"},"modified":"2023-02-03T11:52:33","modified_gmt":"2023-02-03T11:52:33","slug":"chevrolet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businessyield.com\/brand-stories\/chevrolet\/","title":{"rendered":"CHEVROLET: History Timeline, Logo and Success Story","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chevrolet started a massive advertising campaign in 1970, focusing on its history from 1911 to the present. Customers were greeted with a General Motors brochure titled “The Chevrolet Story 1911-1970.”
The Chevrolet chronology is now a part of our automotive history. William Crapo “Billy” Durant, one of the founders of General Motors in 1908, and Swiss race car driver and engineer Louis Chevrolet were two of the early pioneers who developed Chevrolet. Chevrolet is one of the most popular and identifiable car brands in the United States, yet it’s surprising how few North Pole-area drivers are familiar with the company’s history. This post will go into detail about the history and logo of the Chevrolet car brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chevrolet History<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Man Behind Chevrolet – LOUIS CHEVROLET (1878-1941)<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

On Christmas Day 1878, in the Swiss village of La Chaux-de-Fonds in the Jura highlands, a boy was born who would forever revolutionize the world of the automobile. Louis Chevrolet was his name. The Chevrolets relocated to Beaune, France, with their five children (Alfred, Louis, Fanny, Berthe, and Arthur) at the end of 1887 when Louis was just nine years old. Gaston, the seventh child, arrived in 1892, following Marthe, the third daughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While his father Joseph worked as a clockmaker, Louis chose to become a mechanic. He got work with the Roblin haulage company, which also repaired carriages and bicycles. According to legend, Louis Chevrolet was summoned from his workshop in the spring of 1896 or 1897 to repair the car of a guest staying at the “H\u00f4tel de la Poste.” Vanderbilt, an American multi-millionaire, owned the vehicle that sparked such excitement at the time. That must have been the point at which Louis Chevrolet “fell in love” twice: once with the vehicle and again with the thought of immigrating to America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Also: Non-Owner Car Insurance: All You Need To Know<\/a><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Louis Chevrolet acquired another love in Beaune: racing. Around that time, the teenager won several of his first cycle races in the hills behind Beaune.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was his “Gladiator” cycle that prompted him to travel to Paris in early 1899. He was given a position in the workshop of car maker Darracq (who also produced Gladiator bicycles at the time), where he learned everything he could about the combustion engine. He is also reported to have collaborated with De Dion-Bouton, Hotchkiss, and Mors. But one thing was certain: Louis had succumbed to the “automobile virus.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He used the money he made in Paris to fund his journey to the American continent, which began in Canada. He worked as a driver and mechanic (which was the same thing at the time) in Montreal before moving to New York a few months later, this time with some money in his pocket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chevrolet History: Young Chevvy’s Major Achievements and Difficulties<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

He began his career in New York by working in an engineering workshop owned by William Walter, a fellow Swiss from Biel who had emigrated to Brooklyn. Louis joined the American branch of De Dion-Bouton in 1901. When he joined his first race in 1905, he made headlines. He drove his Fiat in magnificent style, winning the “Three Miles” on his first attempt and setting a new one-mile speed record. His top speed was 109.7 km\/h. The achievement catapulted him to celebrity overnight, and the following year, he shaved another second off his own world mile record. He also beat the world record for a 68-mile run. In 1906, he collaborated with Walter Christie on the development of a new racing automobile with front-wheel drive and a Darracq V8 engine. As a result, a new world record of 191.5 km\/h was set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the name Chevrolet was destined to become even more well-known: In the years that followed, Arthur and Gaston followed their now-famous brother into the world of motor racing, resulting in three Chevrolets on the starting grid for races. In most cases, however, Louis was the hero, and the Americans dubbed him “the dare-devil Frenchman.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Louis competed in many races over the next few years, driving a Buick, a Cornelian, and, above all, a Frontenac he constructed himself. Gaston and Louis competed in the “Indianapolis 500” in 1916, each in a Frontenac, but neither finished. After the First World War, the great races resumed in 1919. Despite some significant accidents in Indianapolis, the Chevrolets finished far up the field, with Louis finishing seventh and Gaston ninth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Chevrolet either French or Swiss<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The founder of Chevrolet was born in Switzerland. His name was Louis Chevrolet. End of 1887, when Louis was only nine years old, the Chevrolets relocated to Beaune, France, with their five children (Alfred, Louis, Fanny, Berthe, and Arthur), where the family continued to expand. 1 Jan 2009<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Chevrolet a car worth purchasing?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Consumer Reports’ reliability scores placed Chevrolet ahead of competitors such as GMC and Ford. Additionally, Chevrolet succeeded in the aspect of customer satisfaction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Chevrolet, a German automobile?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Chevrolet (\/vrle\/ SHEV-r-LAY; officially the Chevrolet Motor Subsidiary of General Motors Company) is an American vehicle division of the American automaker General Motors (GM).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Also: MERCEDES BENZ: The Untold Story of the World\u2019s No. 1 Car Brand<\/a><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

One year later, seven Frontenacs (four of them under the name Monroe) qualified for Indianapolis, but the race turned out to be a dramatic experience: Louis Chevrolet, always eager to use the most recent materials, chose at the last minute to add some track rods made of vanadium. Unfortunately, the vanadium had not been adequately hardened. As a result, one automobile after another had to pull out. Only Gaston Chevrolet completed the famed race, winning with an average speed of 141 km\/h.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The boys’ racing careers, though, took their toll. Louis Chevrolet spent three years in the hospital after a series of mishaps between 1905 and 1920. His brother Gaston was killed during racing in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, on November 25, 1920. Louis Chevrolet never competed in another race after that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chevrolet History: Chevrolet’s Creation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Louis Chevrolet and William C. Durant, the founder of General Motors, crossed paths multiple times through his engagement with Buick as a racing driver. On November 3, 1911, “Billy” Durant noticed Louis Chevrolet’s great abilities and joined forces with him to form the “Chevrolet Motor Car Company.” The first Classic Six models departed the Detroit factory in early 1912.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Louis Chevrolet had always aimed to make high-quality automobiles, but Durant noticed the “people’s car” trend early on. His goal was to make cars as cheaply as possible. Because none of the two protagonists would budge, Louis Chevrolet threw in the towel and quit his own firm in 1913. He did, however, leave his name behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The worst failure of William Crapo Durant resulted in the development of Chevrolet. A year after founding General Motors, he set his sights on Henry Ford’s third and most successful automobile firm. According to Lawrence R. Gustin’s biography of Durant, Ford was concerned about Selden’s patent suit claiming the creation of the automobile and was willing to sell it to GM in exchange for the rights to motorized farm implements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GM agreed to pay Ford $2 million in cash plus $4 million in interest over three years. Gustin states in “Billy Durant, Creator of General Motors” that on October 26, 1909, GM’s board “granted Durant power to purchase Ford if funding could be arranged.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Banks were wary of the fledgling, fly-by-night auto sector and rejected Durant a $2 million downpayment loan. During a financial crisis in 1910, GM’s board of directors fired Durant and allowed bankers to take over his company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Also: BUYING A RENTAL CAR: Pros and Cons<\/a><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Durant began working on his comeback in early 1911 when he established his own Detroit shop with retired Buick racer Louis Chevrolet. Durant went to Flint, Michigan, where he had founded GM in the early 1900s, and purchased the bankrupt Flint Wagon Works assets. He then enlisted the help of former Buick engine manufacturer Arthur C. Mason to launch a new venture, while Durant established the Little Motor Car Company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On November 3, 1911, Durant established the Chevrolet Motor Company. Although Louis Chevrolet was not an executive, he experimented with huge luxury automobiles while Chevrolet Motor Company’s Little brand marketed lower-priced cars to compete with Ford. The enormous, $2500 Classic Six of 1912 was the first “production” Chevrolet, but the first Chevys as we know them were the 1914 Royal Mail roadster ($750) and Baby Grand touring car ($875-$1475). Louis Chevrolet resigned from his name-brand firm to return to racing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Durant’s 1916 Chevrolet Four-Ninety ($490) was a direct competitor to the Ford Model T. Chevy was booming by this point, with plants in cities like Flint and New York City. Its success provided Durant with the means to purchase GM stock with the assistance of the DuPont family and a New York bank president, Louis J. Kaufman. Durant conducted a revolution and regained control of GM on September 16, 1915, the company’s seventh anniversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Gustin, on December 23, 1915, Chevrolet stockholders boosted capitalization from $20 million to $80 million and used the $60 million to purchase GM stock. Chevrolet purchased General Motors. It didn’t work the other way around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Also: KOREAN CAR BRANDS: Best 19+ North & South Korean Car Brands in USA<\/a><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

However, Louis Chevrolet desired to continue designing. In 1926, he and his brother Arthur formed a firm called “Chevrolair 333” and began designing a light aircraft engine. When he had a falling out with his brother, the company came to an end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Louis promptly established the “Chevrolet Air Car Company” in Indianapolis, but it was forced to close during the subsequent economic downturn. His final significant “engineering coup” was a 10-cylinder radial engine for which he submitted for a patent in 1932. But by the time the invention was eventually registered on February 19, 1935, Louis was too weak to rebuild the company. Instead, he worked as a mechanic, as he had done at the start of his professional career. His employer was the Chevrolet assembly facility in Detroit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Louis Chevrolet grew unwell and had a stroke in 1934. Charles, his 27-year-old son, died the same year. Alfred, his second son, resided in Detroit until 1971 when he died at the age of 59.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Louis Chevrolet died on June 6, 1941, at the age of 63, in Lakewood, Michigan, east of Detroit. He left a legacy of millions of cars carrying his name. An American journalist once questioned him if he was famous because of the Chevrolet brand or the other way around. Chevrolet responded cheerfully: “It had a little of everything.” But one thing is certain: I was the first to arrive\u2026”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why is the name Silverado used?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The origin of the word “Silverado.” The phrase “Silverado” is a combination of the English word “silver” and the Spanish word “El Dorado.” It is open to interpretation, but one plausible explanation is that it alludes to “a place of silver” or simply “the silver.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which automobile is superior, Toyota or Chevrolet?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Toyota: Reliability. In the J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS), Toyota has continuously ranked in the top five, although Chevrolet has never achieved such a lofty position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Chevrolet superior to Ford?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When comparing the reliability ratings of Ford and Chevrolet automobiles, Chevrolet tends to rank higher on average. The brand’s pickups, sedans, and SUVs are among the most reliable on the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Important Dates in Chevrolet’s Evolution and Success Story<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

William S. Knudsen, Ford’s head of manufacturing, leaves to become Chevrolet’s production chief and, eventually, vice president of operations. In ’24, he aims to match Ford’s sales “one for one.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n