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Billy Durant
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Coming soon: The spittoon that helped make GM
… were headquarters for GM founder Billy Durant 's efforts to expand from the ..... From his desk at Durant-Dort, Billy Durant plotted a dynasty. He used the ..... Durant-Dort [office building] is Billy Durant 's desk and his spittoon and all …
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GM to buy historic Durant-Dort buildings in Flint, Mich.
… horse-drawn carriages in the country. It was owned by Billy Durant -- who later became GM's founder -- and his former ..... Inside of the Durant-Dort [office building] is Billy Durant 's desk and his spittoon and all the records from carriage …
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Under Reuss, racing spurs urgency in GM product development
… by Henry Ford. Honda founder Soichiro Honda would say, "If Honda does not race, there is no Honda." GM founder Billy Durant used his association with a racecar driver named Louis-Joseph Chevrolet to create the Chevrolet Motor Car Co. in …
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After 93 years, a GM-PSA merger?
… finally get a stake in a French automaker -- a mere 93 years after it first considered doing so. In 1919, GM founder Billy Durant thought of securing a European production base for his company. Andre Citroen was interested in selling his company …
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DuPont sells half its automotive business
… industry. Pierre DuPont stepped in as chairman of General Motors in 1915-28, taking control of the company from founder Billy Durant and installing legendary CEO Alfred Sloan. At one point, the DuPont clan owned 43 percent of GM. Joe Campbell, a …
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Some days, Akerson would rather bowl
When General Motors founder Billy Durant was found, late in life, to be running a bowling alley in Flint, Mich., he supplied future generations of GM bosses with a …
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Smale did a DuPont at GM -- with different results
… and several other senior executives. It was not the first time the board had stepped in to clean house. In 1915, Billy Durant regained control of GM from Eastern financiers. DuPont was named chairman. For several years, DuPont was hands …
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COMMENTARY: Maybe it's time for a real election
… that went on during the early days of the automobile business. The company was bought and sold several times and when Billy Durant lost it for the final time, it fell under the control of DuPont. Later, Alfred Sloan created the juggernaut that …
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Small-block V-8 had huge impact
… and know-how were ubiquitous and inexpensive. Cole went racing with the small-block in 1955 for the same reason Billy Durant , who owned Buick before he founded Chevrolet, established a racing team in 1905. They knew the marketing value of …
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Where did the Chevrolet bow tie come from? Durant's newspaper, perhaps
Billy Durant , founder of Chevrolet, was not only a superb salesman and promoter. He also apparently loved to develop names and logos for …
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Chevrolet's original Classic Six was not the car Durant expected
It didn't take Billy Durant long to launch his plan to return to power at General Motors. He quickly established his own -- if more modest -- automotive …
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Audacious Durant, using Chevrolet, reacquires GM
In 1915, Billy Durant , the founder of General Motors, was in exile from the company ..... Oakland Motor Car Co., which became Pontiac, and Cadillac. In Billy Durant , Creator of General Motors, Lawrence Gustin writes that Durant had …
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Louis Chevrolet: His gift was cars, not corporations
… 3, the 100th anniversary of Chevrolet Motor Car Co.'s incorporation. The legend began on the racetrack. When Billy Durant hired Chevrolet and appropriated his lilting name for a new line of cars in 1911, Chevrolet was making do as a race …
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Corvette: A pop culture classic
… kind of car the Corvette would become and what kind of passion it would create, he might not have parted company with Billy Durant back in 1913. The Corvette -- in both street and racing forms -- became everything Louis ever dreamed of in an automobile …
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Charming visionary builds GM empire, then loses it
Today's auto industry would be no place for Billy Durant . He was a gambler, charmer, salesman and visionary. With supernatural energy, he founded and built General Motors and Chevrolet …
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100 YEARS: From 'See the USA in your Chevrolet' to 'Like a Rock,' Chevy ads run deep
1911: General Motors founder Billy Durant , right, ousted from GM in 1910, teamed up with Louis Chevrolet, a Swiss-American race car driver and engineer, to start …
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Wheeler-dealer clashes with headstrong Swiss racer
Louis Chevrolet and Billy Durant were an odd couple. In 1911, Chevrolet, 32, was a headstrong 6-foot-1, 215-pound bear of a man. Just 12 years removed …
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Racing is in Chevrolet's DNA
… Louis' racing spirit Louis Chevrolet, who left the company soon after his name and reputation were appropriated for Billy Durant 's new car, was a daredevil racer whose exploits flavored Chevy long after he was gone. It isn't well known that …
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All-American brand has made its mark on the global stage
… wanted to make Buicks in Canada, according to GM Canada's Web site. But he couldn't agree on terms with his friend Billy Durant , then a partner in Buick Motor Co. In 1907, the McLaughlin sons persuaded their skeptical father to form McLaughlin …
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Since its racing days, Chevrolet knew that sports could sell cars
Chevrolet was marketing itself through sports even before it officially became a brand. Imagine the glee of Billy Durant , General Motors' ousted creator. When he co-founded Chevrolet Motor Car Co. with Louis Chevrolet, at no extra …
