General Motors' milestone 100th anniversary will likely be remembered as much for what's ahead than what has come before. That's saying a lot, considering that GM has produced more than 450 million cars since 1908. The highlight: GM used its Centennial event to pull the wraps off the production version of the highly anticipated Chevrolet Volt electric car. The 2011 Volt is scheduled to go into production in late 2010, driving the world's second largest automaker into its second century of operation.

Green Car has followed the amazing Volt story closely since it was introduced as a concept car at the 2007 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The Volt concept was an immediate hit, but the clincher was GM's promise to actually build the futuristic range extending electric car. To date, General Motors has met critical developmental deadlines as it races toward the promised 2010 product launch, pouring considerable effort and resources into the project. Volt utilizes GM's E-Flex platform, which can accept various powertrain changes depending on the intended market.

The revolutionary Volt is a plug-in electric car that has a 40 mile zero-emission range on all-electric operation. This 40 mile electric capability fits the needs of many commutes and nearly all errand-running missions. Once the advanced 16 kWh lithium-ion battery pack is depleted, the Volt uses a small internal combustion engine-generator as a range extender to add 300 more miles to the Volt's total driving range. The internal combustion engine, which is FlexFuel capable and can run on gasoline, E85 ethanol, or any combination of the two fuels, doesn't power the wheels directly, but rather provides electric power as a generator. All propulsion drive is through the electric drive motor.