GM Looks To The Future On Its 100th Birthday ANN ARBOR, MI (Michigan Radio) - General Motors turns 100 years old today

The birthday comes at a difficult time for the company. It's on the verge of losing its crown as the world's largest automaker.

And it's racked up tens of billions of dollars in losses in recent years.

But at an event today at GM's headquarters in Detroit, executives focused on the company's future. And they unveiled a car that will play a big role in that future: the Chevrolet Volt.

General Motors was founded the same year that Henry Ford launched the Model T. And if Ford got the auto industry started, GM made it what is today.

GM brought together what had been different auto companies, and organized them into a new company that would offer a car for every purse and purpose - small economic models for people who just needed a cheap way to get around, trucks for workers, and luxury cars for those who could afford them.

Breaking up the market into separate segments is just one of GM's innovations.

GM CEO Rick Wagoner mentioned some of those innovations at the company's big 100 year birthday bash. But he said GM has to do more than just look to the past.

"So what's our assignment for today and tomorrow?" he asked. "Above all, it's to demonstrate to the world that we are more than a 100 year old company. We're a company that's ready to lead for a hundred years to come."

Of course, that's not a given. GM is about to lose its leadership position in terms of worldwide sales. And after billions of dollars in losses over the past few years, GM is facing a cash crisis that puts the entire company at risk.

But Wagoner says GM can still lead on vehicle design and technology.

And that's where the Chevy Volt comes in.

"The Volt symbolizes GM's commitment to the future," Wagoner says. "Just the kind of technological innovation that our industry needs to respond to today's and tomorrow's energy and environmental challenges."

GM has been hyping the Volt for more than a year and a half now. The car will plug in for electric power. And thanks to a new kind of battery, the car can go 40 miles on electricity alone. After that, a small gas engine will kick in as a generator.

GM showed a concept version of the car at the Detroit auto show, and now it's showing the production version. The look has changed dramatically. Designers say that's to improve aerodynamics.

But while pictures are all over the internet, it'll be more than two years before anyone can buy the Volt. And even after it comes out, GM executives say the first generation of the Volt probably will be unprofitable, even though the car could sell for nearly $40,000.

Still, GM is counting heavily on the car.

Bob Lutz is head of product development at GM. He says GM was once considered the leader in automotive technology.

"So getting that reputation back is very important to us," Lutz says. "Because losing it has cost us a lot of sales."

But while GM tries to re-establish its reputation with the Volt, the challenges continue to pile up in the short term.

At the company's 100th birthday celebration, executives couldn't ignore the latest trouble on Wall Street, and whether it will trigger further drops in sales.

GM faced questions earlier this year about whether it could survive the current downturn. Executives have launched a plan to raise cash to make it through 2009.

The Volt is set to arrive in showrooms in late 2010. © Copyright 2009, Michigan Radio