No one knows where idea for Chevrolet’s iconic bowtie logo came from

The design inspiration behind the iconic Chevrolet logo – known as the ‘bowtie’ – is a complete mystery. 

The cross-shaped badge that we see adorning Chevrolet vehicles was introduced back in 1913. 

Although it’s had several redesigns over the years, it has largely remained true to its original form – but where the inspiration for that original design originated is a mystery. 

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The logo is known as the ‘bowtie’

While the heritage and history of many car manufacturers are public knowledge – such as why Audi uses three rings in its logo. 

Or why Ferrari opted for a prancing horse on its badge, as well as the company’s interesting history with yellow cars. 

Automotive historians can tell you that the Chevrolet ‘bowtie’ was first seen on the H series Royal Mail and Baby Grand model and The L Series Light Six model. 

They can also tell you that Chevrolet used several different versions of the bowtie depending on the type of vehicle – such as blue for cars and gold for trucks – before it unified all vehicle models with the golden bowtie in 2004.

When it comes to where the idea for the logo actually came from, however, the world is stumped – but there are several theories on how it came to be. 

There are several theories behind the Chevrolet logo

One theory suggests that Chevrolet’s well-traveled co-founder, William C. Durant, saw a similar pattern on the wallpaper of a hotel room in Paris, France, and was mesmerized. 

The story goes, that Durant was so struck by the wallpaper that he ripped a piece off and took it back to the US, where he used the pattern as inspiration for the logo. 

However, Durant’s daughter disputes this story and says her dad hit upon the perfect logo while doodling at the dinner table one night.

Meanwhile, Durant’s widow, Catherine, shared her own theory on the logo, claiming it was heavily inspired by a logo for ‘Coalettes’  – a product made by the Southern Compressed Coal Company. 

The Chevrolet Review did a bit of digging into this theory and found that the Coalettes logo did resemble the Chevvy bowtie. 

Another theory claims the logo is simply a stylized Swiss Cross, a nod to Swiss race car driver and automotive engineer, Louis Chevrolet, and his brother, Arthur, who co-founded the company with Durant. 

All solid theories – but it seems that, when it comes to the truth, we may never know.