Nissan, Honda sales up in February; Toyota down

U.S. auto sales were expected to cool off slightly in February, according to most analysts. Edmunds.com forecasted a 1% decline, Kelley Blue Book projected a 3.3% decrease and TrueCar subsidiary ALG predicted a 1.4% decline. LMC Automotive projected a 0.6% increase. 

Here's how the foreign automakers fared:

Nissan

Edmunds forecast: -1%

Kelley Blue Book forecast: -2.2%

ALG forecast: -5.3%

Actual results: 3.7%

The Japanese automaker posted a surprising increase in sales for February, as sales rose to 135,740 units. Its namesake brand increased 1.2%, while its Infiniti luxury brand rose 32.5%.

Like the rest of the business, Nissan's crossovers, sport-utility vehicles and trucks led the way, rising 22%. That included a February record for the red-hot Rogue crossover, which rose 53.7% to 33,149 units.

But car sales plunged 12% for the month, including double-digit declines for the Versa and Sentra.

Discounts are giving sales a jolt. Nissan incentives per unit were $3,975 in February, up 17.1% from a earlier, according to ALG.

Toyota

Edmunds forecast:-4.4%

Kelley Blue Book forecast: -6.9%

ALG forecast: -1.6%

Actual results: -7.2%

The Japanese automaker's slump continued as its car sales plunged 17.2% amid low gasoline prices, which are nudging consumers into bigger vehicles.

Overall the company sold 174,339 vehicles in the U.S. in February. Toyota's namesake brand recorded a 5.4% decline in sales to 156,001 vehicles, while the Lexus luxury brand fell 20.6% to 18,338 units.

Honda

Edmunds forecast: -1.1%

Kelley Blue Book forecast: -0.8%

ALG forecast: 2.5%

Actual results: 2.3%

The Japanese automaker sold 121,686 vehicle in February. That included a 12.2% increase in sales of trucks, SUVs and crossovers and a 6.9% decrease in sales of cars.

Volkswagen Group

Edmunds forecast (includes only VW and Audi brands): 13.6%

Kelley Blue Book forecast: 14.4%

ALG forecast: 15.2%

Actual results: See below.

The company's namesake VW brand posted a 12.7% increase to 25,145 vehicles. The luxury Audi brand posted a 17% increase to 13,741 vehicles.

The overall sales performance, which includes the Porsche brand, was not yet available.

Follow Paste BN reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey.