Ford March 2013 US Sales: Up 6 Percent Led By Record Performance Of Fusion, Escape; Detroit-based Auto Giant Sold 11 Percent More Units In First Quarter

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) said Tuesday it sold 236,160 vehicles last month, a 6 percent increase from a year ago and its best month since May 2007.

“Customers are buying our all-new Fusion and Escape in record numbers,” said Ken Czubay, head of U.S. sales, marketing and service for the Dearborn, Mich., company.

Following a monthly sales record in February, the Fusion had its best-ever sales month in March and a record quarter for the mid-sized sedan that debuted in 2005. It sold over 30,000 units last month and 80,558 for the first three months of the year.

The Ford Escape compact crossover that debuted in 2001 also had its best month ever with a 28 percent sales bump from last year and edged past its previous record in the third quarter of 2012. Ford said it sold 73,983 Escapes in the first quarter of 2013.

Total SUV sales, including the Explorer – which saw a 33 percent rise in sales last month compared to the previous year -- and the Expedition, grew 13.6 percent.

Ford has said it will build 800,000 vehicles in the second quarter, up 9 percent from a year earlier. It added that first-quarter production is in line to meet the 770,000-unit target.

Here’s how Ford fared in the first quarter of the year:

Total unit sales for the first quarter of 2013: 598,483
Total unit sales for the first quarter of 2012: 539,247
Percentage change: up 11 percent.

March 2013 total sales: 236,160
March 2012 total sales: 223,418
Year-over-year increase: 12,742 or 5.7 percent

MARCH BEST SELLERS:
F Series pickup truck (67,513), Fusion (30,284) and Escape (28,934)
MARCH WORST SELLERS*:
Flex (2,167), Lincoln MKX (2,354), and Lincoln MKZ (2,360)

February 2013 total sales: 195,822
February 2012 total sales: 179,119
Year-over-year increase: 16,703 or 9.1 percent

FEBRUARY BEST SELLERS:
F Series pickup truck (54,489), Fusion (27,875) and Escape (24,110)
FEBRUARY WORST SELLERS*:
Flex (1,662), Lincoln MKX (1,883), and C-MAX (3,183)

January 2013 total sales: 166,501
January 2012 total sales: 136,710
Year-over-year increase: 29,791 or 21.8 percent

JANUARY BEST SELLERS:
F Series pickup truck (46,841), Fusion (22,399) and Escape (19,939)
JANUARY WORST SELLERS*:
Flex (1,615), Lincoln MKX (1,829) and C-MAX (2,725)

* “Worst Sellers” does not include model unit sales below 1,000 to exclude most discontinued models, exotic marques and vehicles more likely used for commercial purposes, like cargo vans.