DETROIT - General Motors Co.'s February sales rose 11.5 percent thanks to new models and pent-up demand from fleet buyers. It was unclear how much the Detroit automaker benefited from Toyota's safety woes.

GM on Tuesday said sales of its Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac and GMC brands climbed 32 percent. GM plans to keep those four brands and is phasing out Pontiac, Saturn and Hummer. It has sold Saab.

The company said much of the sales increase was due to sales of new crossover wagons such as the Chevrolet Equinox, which jumped 133 percent, and the Cadillac SRX, which saw sales more than quadruple. Sales to rental car companies and other fleet buyers also were strong, as companies began buying again after cutbacks last year. Fleet sales generally mean lower profits to automakers than retail sales to individuals.

Retail sales for GM's four core brands edged up 7 percent. Surging crossover sales also helped Japan's Subaru, which said its U.S. February sales jumped 38 percent to 18,098 led by the Outback crossover and Legacy sedan. Both vehicles got a redesign for the 2010 model year. Sales of its Impreza sedan and Forester SUV were flat. How much GM and other automakers gained from Toyota Motor Corp.'s recalls remained a question. February was the first full month since Toyota's Jan. 26 decision to halt sales of eight popular models in the U.S. because of safety concerns. Those cars went on sale again as dealers repaired them, but Toyota's image suffered from the recall of millions of vehicles and last week's congressional hearings on its safety record. Analysts were expecting Toyota to see a double-digit drop in sales for the month.

Other automakers are reporting U.S. sales on Tuesday. Honda Motor Co., Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motor Co. and Ford grabbed the most sales from Toyota in February, according to Jesse Toprak, vice president of industry trends and analysis at TrueCar.com, an auto pricing site. Most automakers offered deals to Toyota customers who traded in their vehicles or raised incentives in February to compete for those buyers.

Source: MSNBC