Toyota sales roll again

DETROIT — Toyota Motor Corp. trounced the domestic automakers in the U.S. marketplace last month, posting a 25 percent year-over-year sales increase. General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG each saw their sales slip by a few percentage points, while Ford Motor Co.’s sales gained 4.7 percent.

GM’s sales fell 3.1 percent last month, but the nation’s largest automaker put a positive spin on the decline, attributing it to a reduction in low-margin sales to rental companies. The company’s car sales fell 6.4 percent, while trucks, including pickups and sport utility vehicles, were down 0.7 percent. The numbers include the European Saab brand.

DaimlerChrysler said its overall decrease of 2.3 percent mostly stemmed from its U.S. subsidiary, Chrysler Group, where sales fell 3.8 percent. Sales of Mercedes-Benz vehicles rose 13.2 percent.

At Chrysler, car sales plunged 26.6 percent, while trucks rose 4.3 percent.

Ford’s increase over the same month last year was fueled largely by car sales, which rose 26.2 percent, while its truck sales fell 5.5 percent. The figures are for all Ford brands, including Jaguar, Volvo and Land Rover.

Toyota’s car sales rose 18.4 percent, while truck sales soared 34.9 percent, the Japanese automaker reported Tuesday.

“While crossovers, hybrids and small cars continue to show strength, our SUVs and full-size trucks also posted solid gains,” Jim Lentz, executive vice president of Toyota Motor Sales, said in a statement.

“It’s the breadth of our lineup that enables us to satisfy today’s buyers,” he said.

Sales of the Tundra pickup soared 74 percent, though at 12,609 units, they were still far below the Ford F-Series, with 70,822 units sold, and the Chevrolet Silverado, with 51,964.

Toyota spokesman Xavier Dominicis said Tundra sales were in part fueled by fall incentives aimed at making room for the 2007 model, which goes on sale in February. The offers vary by region, he said.

Honda Motor Co. reported a sales decrease of 4.1 percent, with cars falling 13 percent. But, like Toyota, it had good news in the truck segment, with sales rising 11.6 percent.

Nissan Motor Co., which is currently in talks with GM about teaming up in an alliance, said its sales slipped 5.6 percent.