Auto News 5

July was another torrid month of new-car sales, even if it was not quite as hot as June. The annualized sales rate receded a bit from nearly 16 million to just under 15.5 million units -- still much better than last year. In 2012, July was a bit of a trough, so the year-over-year comparisons look particularly rosy (the industry as a whole was up 14%). Of the big six carmakers, GM, Toyota, and Honda saw the biggest gains. The latter two were large enough to reorder the positions of the top carmakers. Toyota nudged ahead of Ford, and Honda passed Chrysler. Even so, all manufacturers were ahead of last year. Pickup trucks continue to power ahead, but fuel-efficient subcompacts also did well. Incentives were up slightly, as the 2013 model year winds down and carmakers begin to clear out inventory. The better news is that carmakers -- even the domestics -- did not lean heavily on fleet sales, which were a smaller percentage of the total than they have been in recent months.