A portrait of GM CEO Mary Barra from Time.

It was “a trying first 100 days” for General Motors CEO Mary Barra, writes one influential automotive analyst, but perhaps it’s paying off. The daughter of a GM “shop rat” who worked her way up to the top from a starting job as a co-op student has been named to the annual “Time 100” list of the world’s most influential people.

The first woman to run a major automaker, Barra was appointed to her post late last year following the unexpectedly early retirement of her predecessor, Dan Akerson.  The appointment generated a wave of positive headlines, even a tweet from the likes of celebrity singer Bette Midler.

But while Barra got off to a seemingly strong start – two GM models sweeping the North American Car and Truck of the Year awards in early January – she was quickly caught up in one of the worst scandals GM has suffered in years, the inexplicably delayed recall of 2.6 million vehicles equipped with faulty ignition switches.

Yet, unlike some top executives who try to stay out of the spotlight, Barra quickly put herself directly under it, repeatedly apologizing for GM’s mistakes and making it clear the buck stopped at her desk on the top floor of the maker’s Renaissance Center headquarters along the Detroit River.

“In a perfect world, gender shouldn’t matter. So it’s about time someone of Mary Barra’s caliber and experience was appointed to the coveted position of General Motors CEO,” wrote Lee Iacocca, the legendary Chrysler Chairman who penned the piece on Barra.

GM CEO Mary Barra during testimony in Washington before a Senate subcommittee.

Noting that the both he and the new GM CEO grew up in working-class families and developed a love of cars at an early age, Iacocca dismissed those skeptics who have warned that Barra could become a victim of the GM recall scandal. “If she remains as forthcoming as I’ve seen her on television with Congress, she will enjoy a long tenure at the helm.”

(Barra defends GM’s handling of recall investigation. Click Here for the latest.)

Barra spent two full days testifying before separate House and Senate hearings looking into the GM recall – which has been linked to 13 deaths. Photos of her time in the witness seat show her clearly growing tired but maintaining a level of cool composure not easy when facing both the nation’s top lawmakers and the TV cameras.

But it may take time for her performance to be properly graded, as even her top advisors warn that it will take at least a couple of years for the crisis to play out – and will likely cost GM billions of dollars. Barra’s first report card, as it were, was not a happy one. Hammered by the $1.3 billion the maker wrote off to cover recall-related costs, GM posted a mere $125 million in earnings for the first quarter of 2014 – and Barra’s first full quarter on the job – an 85.5% decline.

(GM stays in the black – just barely – for the first quarter. Click Herefor more.)

But barring some unexpected revelation that the CEO was involved in delaying recalls in her prior job as GM’s global product development chief, most observers expect the recall scandal will be a trial-by-fire that could actually prove the true mettle of Mary Barra.

“My mom and dad were great people. They worked hard. They taught my brother and I the value of a hard day’s work and that we could accomplish anything we wanted if we work hard enough,” Barra told Time for the article. “They also taught us the power of integrity and they continue to guide me every day.”