The Reason Why Some Chevrolet Bow Tie Emblems Are Black

Chevy's bow tie emblem found front and center on each grille is probably one of the most iconic American symbols out there, along with Coca Cola, Nike, and McDonald's. Chevrolet's bow tie has become a symbol of strength, hard work, and grit, but some long-time Chevy enthusiasts have noticed that the bow tie has actually changed a bit throughout the years, worrying traditionalists who don't want to see the bow tie become unrecognizable. Why are some bow ties gold while others are now black? 

Don't worry if you love the gold look more — it's not going anywhere, at least for now. The black bow tie badge won't replace the gold bow tie completely, but Chevy fans might start seeing the black emblem more and more, especially on newer models. Does it mean anything if a car has a certain color bow tie on its grille? Not really, but Chevy might be planning to only have the black bow tie for some of its newer cars. 

Chevrolet got its first bow tie logo back in 1913, now over 100 years ago. The visionary behind the signature logo was Co-Founder William C. Durant, who may have been inspired by the Swiss flag, or even possibly a wallpaper he saw while staying at a hotel in France. Historians haven't come to an agreement on the origins of Chevrolet's bow tie emblem. No matter where the Chevrolet bow tie logo came from, it's now considered one of America's treasured symbols of endurance, found on trucks known across the country for their durability and strength.

Once Durant had the idea — however that idea came to be — it debuted on the Chevrolet H-2 Royal Mail and the H-4 Baby Grand in 1914. It started to become recognizable by 1936, found on all Chevrolet truck models. In the '50s, the bow tie received a backdrop to make it appear classier when placed on the hoods of more upscale models like the Bel Air. A purple variation was also created for the Camaro in the late '60s followed by a silver version in 1974 for the Chevy Impala. 

The gold bow tie that's more familiar with modern car lovers was introduced on the 1982 Chevrolet Blazer, but was upgraded to have a warmer version of the color in 1995, found on models like the Chevrolet Silverado. At this point, the bow tie has become recognizable as Chevrolet all over the world with its bold shape and even bolder color. However, some Chevys are now popping up on sales lots with black bow ties, another change to the nostalgic bow tie emblem.

[Featured image by Sicnag via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | CC BY 2.0]

The black version of the Chevrolet bow tie logo has no deep meaning. It doesn't symbolize a certain model or type of car, and likely won't overtake the gold version completely. Instead, the black version of the Chevrolet logo is just a new style option — one that may become standard in the future for new Chevy models. 

The 2016 Chevrolet Camaro was the first Chevy model to offer the black bow tie as a style option, followed by the Chevy Bolt EV a year later, and subsequent Chevrolet Silverado models as well. In 2022, the Chevy Bolt EV and EUV were the first Chevy models to come with the black bow tie as the standard — gold not even being an option for these two electric models. This was a choice likely inspired by consumers — GM Authority ran a poll in 2018 comparing the two colors, and the black bow tie came out on top, with 64% of Chevy fans preferring it. 

Chevrolet now offers the black bow tie logo as an accessory on its website in case Chevy owners with older models are also feeling the black over the iconic gold — setting customers back about $160 for the new emblem. As vehicles continue to lean towards more monochromatic color schemes, it's not surprising to see Chevy shifting to the black logo on top of a black grille. Just look at the black bow tie as yet another change to the symbol made over the last 100 years.