January Auto Sales Yo-Yo from Brand to Brand

(Reuters) - U.S. automakers Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co. saw January auto sales plummet, missing analysts' estimates for the month. But early sales results were mixed for other companies and brands, with Chrysler Group, a unit of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and Nissan North America reporting increases and topping analysts' estimates, while Toyota Motor Sales USA missed on a year-to-year decline.

There was little consistency in the initial sales reports. GM estimated industry sales in January were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 15.3 million.

GM, Ford and Toyota, the top three U.S. sellers, all blamed bad weather for poor performances.

Ford said company sales fell 7.1 percent to 154,644. Analysts polled by Reuters had projected 157,441. Ford brand sales dropped 8.4 percent, with declines in such popular models as the Fusion mid-size sedan and the F-Series full-size pickup. But Lincoln brand sales jumped 42.5 percent, on the strength of the MKZ sedan and the MKX crossover.

GM sales dropped 11.9 percent to 171,486, compared with analysts' average projection of 187,782. All four of GM's U.S. brands saw January sales decline.

Chrysler Group's U.S. January sales rose 8 percent to 127,183, bolstered by increases at its Jeep and Ram truck brands.

Nissan said sales climbed 11.8 percent to 90,470, above analysts' consensus estimate of 88,744. Sales were driven in part by the Altima mid-size sedan, which beat the Ford Fusion and sold twice as many as the Chevrolet Malibu.

Toyota's January sales fell 7.2 percent to 146,365, missing analysts' estimate of 153,003.

Volkswagen of America saw January sales plunge 19.0 percent to 23,494, as its three top sellers - the Golf and Jetta compacts and the mid-size Passat sedan - all fell from a year earlier.

While snow and bone-chilling weather likely hurt total U.S. auto sales for the month, analysts said any dip in monthly sales shouldn't cut into the automotive industry's months' long rebound, which has been outpacing the recovery of the overall U.S. economy since the 2008-2010 downturn.

Thirty-seven economists polled by Thomson Reuters expect the industry's annual selling rate of light vehicles in January to finish at 15.7 million vehicles. The range of economists' forecasts were 15 million vehicles to 16 million vehicles.

In January 2013, the industry's annual sales rate was 15.23 million vehicles.