Volkswagen of America's sales grew in February over a month ago, and the Chattanooga-made Passat showed gains as well.
But VW is still suffering from the diesel-emissions scandal that is limiting sales and hurting the company's image. Volkswagen sales last month were still well below a year ago and trailed far behind the gains made by many other major automakers last month.
Passat sales last month of 4,380 were off 30.6 percent from a year ago as the company continued its hold on the diesel version of the sedan at dealerships. But that sales figure is better than the 3,586 Passats sold in January.
VW said Tuesday its U.S. sales fell 13.1 percent in February compared with the same month a year ago.
Overall, new vehicle sales in the U.S. rose about 8.1 percent last month over last year to 1.36 million cars and trucks, according to the consulting firm LMC Automotive. With an annual selling rate of 17.7 million vehicles, last month would be the best February in 16 years.
"If the first two months of 2016 are any indicator, this will be another record year for car sales," said Karl Brauer, senior analyst for Kelley Blue Book.
Ford's sales jumped 20 percent over last February, boosted in part by higher sales to rental car fleets. Honda's sales were up 13 percent, and Fiat Chrysler's rose 12 percent. Nissan's sales climbed nearly 11 percent, and Toyota's were up 4 percent.
General Motors said its sales fell 1.5 percent, partly due to a 39 percent cut in rental sales.
The VW brand's sales struggled last month, though the 22,321 units sold was up compared to the 20,007 it delivered in January.
The German automaker's small Tiguan sport utility vehicle produced the best February results on record for VW with 3,245 of them delivered, a 78.4 percent increase over February 2015.
"We were pleased to see increased retail sales at our dealerships in February, supported by vehicles like the Tiguan," said Mark McNabb, chief operating officer of Volkswagen of America, in a statement. "Even though overall sales were down due to seasonal fleet business, we are encouraged by showroom activity this month."
VW is spending $600 million at its Chattanooga plant to produce a new midsize SUV late this year on which it's pinning hopes to grow U.S. sales.
Matthias Mueller, Volkswagen's CEO, told Automotive New Europe earlier this week that the automaker will succeed in winning back customers' trust after admitting to rigging emissions software for millions of its cars.
A U.S. federal judge last week gave VW until March 24 to present another fix for the diesel cars.
Concerning industry-wide sales last month, Brauer said February had an extra day this year and some manufacturers are relying more heavily on incentives compared to a year ago.
But, he said, the fundamental factors driving today's car market, including pent-up demand, increasing consumer confidence and easy credit, remain in place.
LMC is predicting sales of 17.8 million new vehicles this year, up from 17.46 million last year. But the growth rate is slowing from previous years, and many are expecting a plateau as U.S. demand peaks.
GM said its Chevrolet and GMC brands saw declines in February, but sales improved at Cadillac and Buick. GM's best seller, the Chevrolet Silverado pickup, had a 5 percent sales decline. GM sold 227,825 cars and trucks last month.
GM said it's trying to lower its reliance on rental sales, which are less profitable and can hurt vehicle resale values. The company said its sales to commercial and government fleets are up so far this year, but it has sold 30,000 fewer vehicles to rental fleets. Around 21 percent of the company's February sales went to fleets rather than individual buyers.
It was a different story at Ford. Its U.S. sales chief, Mark LaNeve, said Ford expects heavier fleet sales in the first four months of this year before they taper off. Thirty-six percent of Ford's U.S. sales went to fleets in February.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.