DETROIT - U.S. auto sales rose in October as buyers grew slightly more confident in the economy and new models drew them into dealerships.
October sales could hit a high point for 2010 and mark the best October in three years, hitting a seasonally adjusted annual rate of over 12 million once all the automakers' U.S. results are tallied.
"The trends are positive, and we are going in the right direction," said Jesse Toprak, vice president of industry trends at car pricing tracker TrueCar.com.
General Motors Co., which is preparing for an initial stock offering expected later this month, saw sales rise 3.5 percent in October.
October sales were also strong for Honda, Chrysler and Hyundai. But Toyota, which has been dealing with repercussions from its sudden acceleration recalls earlier this year, saw sales drop 4.4 percent.
Rising sales of its crossover wagons and pickups failed to overcome a double-digit drop in Toyota's car sales. The Japanese automaker has been pulling back on incentives, which rose significantly in the spring after the company recalled millions of car and trucks over safety problems.
GM's sales were driven by its SUVs and wagons, which posted increases of 36 percent for October and 64 percent year to date. Sales of GM's most popular wagons -- the Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain and Cadillac SRX -- were up 58 percent compared with last October. Truck sales also were up, with the newly launched Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra posting sales up 12 percent and 13.2 percent, respectively.
Ford Motor Co.'s sales rose 19.2 percent, led by big increases in trucks and small cars. Sales of the redesigned Edge crossover were up 24 percent, while Ford Escape sales rose 17 percent. Ford says sales of the F-Series pickup rose 24 percent, thanks in part to a month-long truck promotion.
