Daewoo is Korean for great universe, and the company behind it started out trading textiles in 1967. Its car badge disappeared from South Korean roads in 2011, replaced by the Chevrolet bowtie.
- Country
-
South Korea - Active
- 1983 to 2011
- Founded by
- Kim Woo-choong (Daewoo Group)
A textile trader buys a car factory
Daewoo began with fabric, not cars. Kim Woo-choong started the business in March 1967 as a small textile trading company. It soon branched out into heavy industry, and cars became part of that push.
The car factory it took over was older than the group itself. Its roots go back to National Motor, set up in 1937, which became Saenara Motor in 1962. In 1965 Shinjin Industrial bought it, renamed it Shinjin Motor and worked with Toyota. In 1971 General Motors stepped in as partner, and the company later traded as Saehan Motor. In 1983 it took the name Daewoo Motor.
GM and Daewoo split in 1992, when GM sold its half of the venture to Daewoo. Kim took direct control and pushed hard into Eastern Europe and other emerging markets. In the late 1990s Daewoo even took over SsangYong. Then the Asian financial crisis hit, and the group collapsed.
The car business got a second life. In October 2002 GM Daewoo Auto & Technology opened for business in Bupyeong, Incheon, owned by General Motors, the old creditors, Suzuki and SAIC. Its slogan was “New Ways, Always.”
A great universe on the grille
The name is the best-documented part of the badge. Daewoo is Korean for “great universe,” a fittingly big name for a company that wanted to be everywhere. The Korean daily Dailian gives a more personal origin: according to its account, the name was built from part of the name of Daedo Textile, run by co-founder Do Jae-hwan, and part of Kim Woo-choong’s own name.
The symbol itself is harder to pin down. Korean press has described the Daewoo Group’s corporate mark as fountain-shaped, and by the end the cars carried a silver Daewoo badge. We could not find an official explanation of what the shape was meant to represent, so we won’t guess. You may see it called a seashell or a flower online, but those are readings, not company statements.
What we do know is how the story ended. After the group’s collapse, the Daewoo name and its distinctive emblem were reportedly judged inside the company to carry the image of a bankrupt business. In 2004 GM announced that the European Daewoo range would be rebadged as Chevrolet. At home, GM announced on 20 January 2011 that the silver badge would give way to the Chevrolet bowtie, and in March 2011 the company became GM Korea. Thousands of owners didn’t wait for a new car. They paid to swap the old emblem on the one they had.
Small cars, big ambitions
Daewoo built its name on affordable cars, often styled by famous Italian studios.
Landmark Daewoos, from LeMans to Matiz
- 1986: LeMans. Built on an Opel design and sold in the United States as the Pontiac LeMans. It stayed in production until February 1997.
- 1990: Espero. A saloon styled by the Italian studio Bertone, with much of its engineering from General Motors.
- 1997: Leganza. Designed by Italdesign as part of a range of cars fully developed in Korea, joining the Lanos.
- 1998: Matiz. Grew out of Italdesign’s Lucciola prototype, which the Daewoo chairman spotted and backed. It became a long seller over a ten-year life.
The LeMans was based on an Opel design, and later GM Daewoo models reached Australia wearing Holden badges. At home, its big rivals were Hyundai and Kia. For more on how badges like this are made, see how car logos are designed.
Daewoo questions, answered
What does the name Daewoo mean?
Daewoo is Korean for “great universe.” The Korean daily Dailian also reports that the name combined parts of the names of Daedo Textile and founder Kim Woo-choong.
What does the Daewoo logo represent?
No official explanation of the symbol’s shape has come to light. Korean press described the group mark as fountain-shaped, but the company’s own meaning for it isn’t documented in the sources we found.
Why did Daewoo cars become Chevrolets?
GM bought the car business in 2002 after the Daewoo Group collapsed. The name and emblem were seen as linked to a bankrupt company, so GM announced in 2004 that the European range would become Chevrolet, and made the same switch in South Korea in 2011.
When did the Daewoo brand disappear in South Korea?
In 2011. GM announced the change on 20 January 2011, and in March the company was renamed GM Korea and its cars switched to the Chevrolet bowtie.
Daewoo at a glance
- Founded
- 1983
- Founder
- Kim Woo-choong (Daewoo Group)
- Country
- South Korea
- Headquarters
- Incheon, South Korea
- Parent company
- General Motors (from 2002)
- Current emblem
- A silver Daewoo badge, replaced by the Chevrolet bowtie in South Korea in 2011
- Known for
- Affordable small cars like the Matiz, LeMans and Lanos
- Status
- Defunct
