STERLING HEIGHTS (WWJ) – A big celebration at Buff Whelan Chevrolet in Sterling Heights Friday, as the first Chevy Volt was picked up by its new owner.

A Mariachi band played as the Volt’s new owner, chairman and CEO of Ideal Group in southwest Detroit Frank Venegas, drove it out of the showroom.

“I work for General Motors and I’m proud of it. Watching the rebirth of what we are doing in Detroit, with General Motors and building an electric car first, I’m so proud of GM and Ideal and the city of Detroit,” Venegas says.

Venegas, the grandson of Mexican immigrants and the son of an autoworker, is also an inventor and is excited about the technology of the Volt.