GM sales fall; Ford, Fiat Chrysler rise

General Motors reported that its sales fell 3% in June compared to the same month last year, a drop due to expected lower sales to rental car fleets. But Ford Motor saw sales rise 2% and Fiat Chrysler reported a boost of 8%.

Besides Detroit's Big 3, foreign automakers saw sales increases, too. Toyota was up 4%, Honda climbed 4.2% and Nissan was up a whopping 13% despite small-car sales that continued to slump industry-wide amid low gasoline prices.

In a call with reporters, Ford said that if June's overall industry performance was maintained for the full year, the auto industry would be on track for more than 17 million new vehicle sales for the year, a level not seen since the past decade. Sales are up about 4% from a year ago.

The big increase is being seen in small SUVs, which have caught up to small-car sales with about 19% of the market. Ford analyst Erich Merkle predicts that SUV sales will reach 40% by the end of the decade, up from 32%, as Millennials start families.

The average amount paid for a new vehicle was $31,948, up 1% from a year ago, TrueCar.com reports.

•General Motors

General Motors said it actually had a terrific month on the strength of sales to individual customers, which are the most profitable. They were up 6.8% overall for the month. It was the best June for sales to individual customers since 2011, it says.

The nation's largest automaker says about a fifth of its business is now to fleets, and that it's working to offset its loss of rental-car sales by trying to create more sales to corporate and government fleets.

"We just wrapped up the U.S. auto industry's best six months in a decade, driven by strong demand for pickups and crossovers," said Kurt McNeil, GM's U.S. vice president of sales, in a statement. "People feel good about their jobs and the direction the economy as a whole is taking, so the second half of the year should be strong too."

The Chevrolet and GMC divisions led the retail increase, pointing to big sales of pickup trucks and SUVs, among the most profitable of vehicles. GM says its full-size pickups, Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, were up 18% and 21% respectively.

•Ford

Ford sales edged up slightly in June as the automaker enjoyed sales boosts from some of its newer products, like Mustang, Edge, Explorer and the F-150 pickup.

Sales were up 2% for the month, with a strong performance on sales to individuals, not just corporate and rental car fleets.

The Ford brand's average transaction prices — the amount that customers actually pay for a vehicle — increased $2,700 compared to the same month last year. That's "more than triple the industry average — while our incentives are down, showing how much customers value our investment in new vehicles with the latest technologies," says Mark LaNeve, Ford vice president, U.S. Marketing, Sales and Service.

The average amount paid for a full-size F-Series pickup truck was $44,000 in June, up $3,600 from a year ago.

LeNeve says Mustang is "smoking hot," with sales up 54% over last year. The new Mustang has seen sales double in southern California, with many of its sales coming from younger customers.

Ford's Lincoln unit did well, too, with retail sales increasing 20%.

•Fiat Chrysler

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles surged to its 63rd consecutive month of sales increases in the U.S., kicking off a day in which the flourishing auto industry is expected to report another period of growth.

The other major automakers will report their June sales later Wednesday.

Fiat Chrysler posted an 8% gain in June, compared to a year earlier, as the company's Jeep brand and the redesigned Chrysler 200 car fueled growth.

The company sold 185,035 vehicles in the U.S. for the month. That included 25% growth for Jeep, its largest brand, to 71,529 units. The Chrysler brand rose 28%, fueled by the Chrysler 200's 153% rise to 18,560 units, making it the company's third most popular vehicle for the month.

But there were a few blips for Fiat Chrysler in June. The Dodge brand fell 14%, the Fiat brand declined 30%, and sales of the Ram truck brand were relatively flat, rising only 2%.

•Toyota

The world's largest automaker posted a 4% increase for June. Toyota sold 209,913 vehicles in the U.S. for the month, powered mostly by big vehicles. The recently redesigned mid-size Tacoma pickup truck increased 26% to 15,959 units. The Highlander, 4Runner and Sequoia SUVs all enjoyed strong months, as well.

But Toyota's mainstay cars, including the Camry, Corolla and Prius, had a tough month as consumers flock to bigger vehicles with gasoline prices sagging.

•Honda

Honda reported a 4.2% sales increase in June, with higher sales of its crossovers helping to offset weaker sales in cars.

Sales of Honda's crossovers were up 18%, helped by the introduction of its newest, smallest SUV, the HR-V in a segment where it hasn't competed previously. Honda said its slightly larger CR-V has especially strong sales, up 8.5%.

The result was impressive in that Honda, like the industry, saw a dropoff in cars sales. Honda's Accord was off 15% and the Civic was down 11.1%, although the smallest Fit saw a rise of 26.3%.

Honda's luxury division, Acura, saw a huge sales rise at 38.6%. In its case, two sedans did well — ILX and TLX.

"It is exciting to see Acura sedans enjoy success in the face of a market where light trucks have been dominating," said Mike Accavitti, Acura Division's general manager.

•Nissan

The Japanese automaker's U.S. sales rose 13% for the month, bolstered by an impressive surge for the Rogue crossover.

The company sold 114,243 vehicles in June, including 23,243 units of the Rogue, up 54% compared to a year earlier.

Nissan's Altima mid-size sedan, its most popular vehicle, also had a strong month, rising 13% to 29,418 vehicles.

The company's Infiniti luxury brand, included in its overall sales performance, enjoyed a strong month. It rose 16.5% to 9,985 vehicles.

One sour note was the company's electric vehicle, the Leaf, which fell 12% to 2,074 cars.

•Volkswagen

The German automaker enjoyed a 6% increase in June to 30,436 vehicles. The company's recently overhauled Golf vehicle proved to be a bright spot. Sales of Golf-branded vehicles hit 6,145 units in June, up from 2,528 a year earlier.

•Subaru

Subaru set a new company record for June sales, experiencing a 7.2% gain in overall sales compared to last year.

Sales of Legacy models saw the largest increase month to month, jumping up by 44.6% compared to last year. The XV Crosstrek model also saw significant growth, increasing by 29.9% for the month of June.

The Forester and WRX/STI saw slight increases for June, 5.6% and 4.9% respectively. These two models, along with Outback and XV Crosstrek, experienced their best June sales in company history.

"Subaru sales continue to climb because we have the right product, the right positioning and a strong retail network," says Jeff Walters, senior vice president of sales for Subaru, in a statement.

Several models saw slight decreases over the month, as well. The BRZ dropped 1.3%, while the Impreza sank by 4% compared to last June. The Outback was hit the hardest, dropping 5.3%.

•Porsche

Strong Porsche sales this month set a new record for June sales for the company.

Porsche saw a 3% jump in total vehicle sales compared to last June, and saw an increase in sales of all models except for one.

The Cayman model line saw the largest increase, jumping 20% in June compared to the same month last year.

Among Porsche models, Boxster, 911, 918, Cayenne and Macan all saw sales increases compared to last June. The Panamera was the only model to see a decrease month to month, dropping 35% in sales.

Porsche also saw a significant increase in pre-owned vehicle sales for the month, jumping 28% from last year.

Follow USA TODAY reporters Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey and Chris Woodyard at @ChrisWoodyard