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| 1909 William Durant, a successful buggy manufacturer from Flint, Michigan, asked Louis Chevrolet, a well known race car driver, to help design a car for introduction to the public. He had not yet formed a company to manufacture it. 1911 The Chevrolet Motor Car Company enters the turbulent automobile market on November 3. Durant envisions his new company as an inexpensive competitor to the Ford Model T. He chose to name the company after its designer, Louis Chevrolet, because he liked the sound of the name and because Chevrolet was a prominent name in motor sports. 1912 Chevrolet hits the streets of Detroit with the "Classic Six" -- a large, 5-passenger touring sedan with a long list of standard features, including four doors, electric lights and a folding top, plus a windshield and its own tool box. Its 299-cubic-inch, 6-cylinder engine could reach a top speed of 65 miles per hour. 1914 The Chevy "bowtie" logo appears for the first time. Legend maintains that the bowtie shape was inspired by a pattern of wallpaper in a Paris hotel room. In 1908, William Durant reportedly detached a small piece and kept it in his wallet, waiting for the day he’d put it to use. The bowtie became an advertising icon, and is still the marque of today's Chevrolet. 1915 Chevy’s first challenge to the Ford Model T, the "490" is introduced ($490). 1917 Success of 490 pushes Chevy unit sales to the 100,000 mark. 1918 First Chevy truck sold. Chevy joins GM Corporation. 1924 Chevy offers first radio option. 1927 Chevrolet outsells Ford by topping 1 million units for the first time. In all but four of the next 55 years, Chevrolet is the top-selling American nameplate. |
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| The Early Years |
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