A chevy chase is a hunt and noisy and/or confused. My dictionary says the term comes from the Ballad of Chevy Chase, which derives in turn from Cheviot chase (hunt).

Now of course, it's a town name and the name of an actor. I've often wondered how the actor came by that name.

You can hear a good MIDI of Eubie Blake's Chevy Chase here:

http://www.trachtman.org/ragtime/

Eubie Blake probably never heard the pipe tune. (How many people have?) But he went to school, had a passport, put on a Broadway show, supported himself by music for many years, and appeared on the Tonight Show. We have no reason to suppose he thought Northumbria was a sports car.