The story dates back to 1911 when Louis Chevrolet, an automotive engineer and Swiss race car driver and William C. Durant, formed the Chevrolet Motor Company as partners. They started in Detroit, assisted by a couple of investment associates in the form of William Little. He used to be the producer of the Little automobile. Another partner was James H. Whiting, who was the owner of Buick in the past. The other partners were Dr. Edwin R Campbell, a son-in-law to Durant and R.S. McLaughlin, who was the CEO of GM in Canada at the time.

Prior to founding Chevy, William Durant established the General Motors company in 1908 but was relieved from the company in 1910. Durant had also taken over the Flint Wagon Works plus Buick situated in Flint, Michigan. He was also behind the incorporation of the Little and Mason companies. He appointed Louis Chevrolet to promote the Buick in promotional races when Durant was the head of Buick. The idea was to use Chevrolet’s reputation to establish a new automobile company.

Durant had made an adequate profit from Chevrolet Motor Company by 1916 to become a majority shareholder in General Motors. He had the privilege of managing the company he once founded. By the turn of 1917, he became the president of GM, which acquired Chevrolet Motor Company in 1918. It made Chevrolet an independent division of GM, which ended up selling the first Chevy truck that same year.

Chevrolet became the third most popular brand of motor vehicles in 1920. Although Ford and Dodge had the top positions in sales, the company was earned popularity with the introduction of new models. In 1925, they built the Chevrolet Superior, which was selling in the tune of $650. Chevrolet engineers also built the first six-cylinder engine in 1929.