Myth: GM is Picked-On; Fact: GM Needs Thicker Skin

(MoneyWatch)  General Motors launched a "Facts and Fiction" web site on Sept. 5, to clear up "many misconceptions people may have about GM." The style is like this: MYTH: GM still doesn't make cars that people want to buy. FACT: "GM cars and trucks have improved significantly over the past decade, and critics and customers are taking note."

This is followed by a bunch of facts and figures, like the big sales success of the Chevrolet Malibu. As far is it goes, I don't have a problem with that one. In fact, I'd like to contribute a few of my own:

1. MYTH: You would think that as the world's largest automaker, GM would have developed a thicker skin by now. FACT: First of all, according to Automotive News, Toyota is now the world's largest automaker, having overtaken GM. Second, GM is pretty touchy. To be fair, so is Toyota, and just about every other automaker.

2. MYTH: GM has cut way back on fleet sales, which it used to keep factories rolling, even though fleet sales are less profitable than retail sales, or even unprofitable. FACT: GM fleet sales were 25 percent of retail volume in the first half of 2007, versus 26.1 percent a year ago. That's not much of a cut.

3. MYTH: GM is so big, they must employ, what, about a million people? FACT: GM North American Operations had 152,000 employees at the end of 2007, versus 133,000 at the end of June, according to company reports.

4. MYTH: GM doesn't get enough credit for the things it's doing right. The usually upbeat Mark LaNeve, vice president, GM North America vehicle sales, service and marketing, complained about this on Sept. 4, in the 2008 Credit Suisse Global Automotive Conference in New York. FACT: The automotive press has fallen over itself to praise the Chevy Malibu, the Cadillac CTS, GM crossover models, and many more. GM probably does deserve more credit for keeping inventories lean, despite the sales downturn. In August, the company said it had only about 736,000 vehicles in stock, the lowest August level since 1998.

Overall, I agree with a comment in a Bloomberg story on this topic, that said GM's new web site runs the risk of validating, instead of dispelling, the contrived, quote-unquote "myths."