FORD: Utilities, trucks boost volume 7.1%

Ford Motor Co.'s U.S. light-vehicle sales rose 7.1 percent in January, driven by gains for the Lincoln brand as well as its pickups and utilities.

The Ford brand sold 164,048 vehicles last month, a 6.5 percent increase from January 2018, while Lincoln sales jumped 20 percent, according to the Automotive News Data Center.

Ford's truck and van sales rose 5.7 percent, and utility sales rose 14 percent, while car sales fell 1.7 percent.

The automaker sold 2,153 Rangers in the midsize pickup's first month on sale. Kumar Galhotra, Ford's president of North America, this week said the automaker would need "massive overtime" at its Michigan Assembly Plant to accommodate Ranger demand.

Brands: Ford up 6.5%; Lincoln up 20%

Notable nameplates: Ford F series up 5.2%; Ford Mustang up 15%; Ford Fusion down 3.3%; Ford Explorer up 7.3%; Ford Edge up 4%; Ford Escape down 6.9%; Ford Focus up 11%; Lincoln Continental down 28%; Lincoln Nautilus up 39%; Lincoln MKZ up 3.6%; Lincoln Navigator up 11%

Incentives: $4,515 per vehicle, up 6.8% from a year earlier, according to ALG.

Average transaction price: $38,901, up 2.4% from a year earlier, ALG said.

Did you know? January broke a streak of four consecutive monthly declines for Ford Motor. It was the company's largest year-over-year increase since September 2017.