User:Nyth83/History of Chevrolet to 1958
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| Company type | Division |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founded | 3 November 1911 |
| Founder | Louis Chevrolet William C. Durant |
| Headquarters | , |
Key people | William C. Durant Alfred P. Sloan |
| Products | Automobiles Trucks |
| Owner | General Motors Company |
| Website | GM Heritage Center |
Chevrolet /ʃɛvrəˈleɪ/, colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Division of General Motors LLC, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet and ousted General Motors founder William C. Durant started the company on November 3, 1911 [1] as the Chevrolet Motor Car Company.
1906–1919
[edit]
On November 3, 1911, Swiss race car driver and automotive engineer Louis Chevrolet co-founded the Chevrolet Motor Company in Detroit with William C. Durant and investment partners William Little (maker of the Little automobile) and Dr. Edwin R. Campbell (son-in-law of Durant) and in 1912 R. S. McLaughlin CEO of General Motors in Canada.
Durant was cast out from the management of General Motors in 1910 for five years. He took over the Flint Wagon Works, incorporating the Mason and Little companies. As head of Buick Motor Company prior to founding GM, Durant had hired Louis Chevrolet to drive Buicks in promotional races.[2] Durant planned to use Chevrolet's reputation as a racer as the foundation for his new automobile company.
Actual design work for the first Chevy, the costly Series C Classic Six, was drawn up by Etienne Planche, following instructions from Louis. The first C prototype was ready months before Chevrolet was actually incorporated. However the first actual production wasn't until the 1913 model. So in essence there were no 1911 or 1912 production models, only the 1 pre-production model was made and fine tuned throughout the early part of 1912. Then in the fall of that year the new 1913 model was introduced at the New York auto show.
Chevrolet first used the "bowtie emblem"[3] logo in 1914 on the H series models (Royal Mail and Baby Grand) and The L Series Model (Light Six). It may have been designed from wallpaper Durant once saw in a French hotel room.[4] More recent research by historian Ken Kaufmann presents a case that the logo is based on a logo of the "Coalettes" coal company.[5][6] Others claim that the design was a stylized Swiss cross, in tribute to the homeland of Chevrolet's parents.[7]
Louis Chevrolet had differences with Durant over design and in 1915 sold Durant his share in the company. By 1916, Chevrolet was profitable enough with successful sales of the cheaper Series 490 to allow Durant to repurchase a controlling interest in General Motors. After the deal was completed in 1917, Durant became president of General Motors, and Chevrolet was merged into GM as a separate division. In 1919, Chevrolet's factories were located at New York City; Tarrytown, N.Y.; Flint, Michigan; Toledo, Ohio; St. Louis, Missouri; Oakland, California; Fort Worth, Texas, and Oshawa, Ontario General Motors of Canada Limited, McLaughlin's were given GM Corporation stock for the proprietorship of their Company article Sept. 23, 1933 Finantial Post page 9.[8] In the 1918 model year, Chevrolet introduced the Series D, a V8-powered model in four-passenger roadster and five-passenger tourer models. Sales were poor and it was dropped in 1919.
1920–1940
[edit]Chevrolet continued into the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s competing with Ford, and after the Chrysler Corporation formed Plymouth in 1928, Plymouth, Ford, and Chevrolet were known as the "Low-priced three".[9] In 1933 Chevrolet launched the Standard Six, which was advertised in the United States as the cheapest six-cylinder car on sale.[10]
1941–1948
[edit]In 1957 Chevy introduced its first fuel-injected engine,[11] the Rochester Ramjet option on Corvette and passenger cars, priced at $484.[12] In
1949–1954
[edit]Chevrolet had a great influence on the American automobile market during the 1950s and 1960s. In 1953 it produced the Corvette, a two-seater sports car with a fibreglass body.
1955-1958
[edit]The basic Chevrolet small-block V8 design has remained in continuous production since its debut in 1955, longer than any other mass-produced engine in the world, although current versions share few if any parts interchangeable with the original.
In 1963 one out of every ten cars sold in the United States was a Chevrolet.[13]
Production
[edit]This table is for passenger vehicle production and does not include trucks or the Corvette.
| Year | Model Year |
Calendar Year |
Base Price |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1911 | 1 | $2150 | ($70,310 in 2024) | |
| 1912 | 0 | align="center" | ||
| 1913 | <6000 | $x | Combined Little and Chevrolet Production | |
| 1914 | x | x | $x | |
| 1915 | x | x | $x | |
| 1916 | 63,000 | $x | ||
| 1917 | x | x | $x | |
| 1918 | x | x | $x | |
| 1919 | x | x | $x | |
| 1920 | x | x | $x | |
| 1921 | x | x | $x | |
| 1922 | x | x | $x | |
| 1923 | x | x | $x | |
| 1924 | x | x | $x | |
| 1925 | x | x | $x | |
| 1926 | x | x | $x | |
| 1927 | x | x | $x | |
| 1928 | x | x | $x | |
| 1929 | x | x | $x | |
| 1930 | x | x | $x | |
| 1931 | x | x | $x | |
| 1932 | x | x | $x | |
| 1933 | x | x | $x | |
| 1934 | x | x | $x | |
| 1935 | x | x | $x | |
| 1936 | x | x | $x | |
| 1937 | x | x | $x | |
| 1938 | x | x | $x | |
| 1939 | x | x | $x | |
| 1940 | x | x | $x | |
| 1941 | x | x | $x | |
| 1942 | x | x | $x | |
| 1943 | 0 | $x | ||
| 1944 | 0 | 0 | $x | |
| 1945 | 0 | 0 | $x | |
| 1946 | x | x | $x | |
| 1947 | x | x | $x | |
| 1948 | x | x | $x | |
| 1949 | x | 1,109,958 | $x | |
| 1950 | x | 1,520,577 | $x | |
| 1951 | x | 1,118,096 | $x | |
| 1952 | x | 877,947 | $x | |
| 1953 | x | 1,477,587 | $x | |
| 1954 | x | 1,414,352 | $x | |
| 1955 | x | x | $x | |
| 1956 | x | x | $x | |
| 1957 | x | x | $x | |
| 1958 | x | x | $x | |
| 1959 | x | x | $x | |
| 1960 | x | x | $x |
Advertising
[edit]Photos
[edit]See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Chevrolet 1911–1996" (PDF). GM Heritage Center. 1996. p. 97. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ^ Auto Editors of Consumer Guide (August 1, 2007). "1911, 1912, 1913 Chevrolet Series C Classic Six". Auto.howstuffworks.com. Retrieved December 27, 2010.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ "Chevrolet Bowtie also found in GM archives on 1914 add for 1915 Chevrolet. History". Retrieved July 21, 2006.
- ^ "The History of Chevrolet". GearHeads. 22 May 2012. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ^ Gustin, Lawrence R. (2008). Billy Durant: Creator of General Motors. University of Michigan Press. pp. 266–267. ISBN 0-472-03302-6.
- ^ "Chevrolet Bowtie History". Chevrolet Review. VCCA club. July 1990.
- ^ McPhee, John (1994). La Place de la Concorde Suisse. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 9780374519322.
- ^ The Sun, Baltimore, January 21, 1917 and GM archives ad for 1915 Chevrolet, Part 6, Page 14.
- ^ Cobb, James G. (1997-06-15). "The Return of Detroit's 'Low Priced Three'". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
- ^ The Tuscaloosa News, March 12, 1933 pg11
- ^ Springfield Union, February 17, 1957, Page 75.
- ^ Dallas Morning News, November 22, 1956, Part 1, Page 12.
- ^ Gunnell, John, ed. (1987). The Standard Catalog of American Cars 1946–1975. Kraus Publications. pp. 134–183. ISBN 0-87341-096-3.
External links
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