• by Karl Greenberg , December 1, 2010

Consumers are back in auto showrooms in numbers the market hasn't seen in over a year. Attractive incentives, pent-up demand and a recovering economy drove big sales gains for automakers in November.

General Motors, which has had a salubrious month with a number of buff-book endorsements for its critical Chevrolet Volt vehicle, announced it is paying back a $1 billion loan for GM Daewoo operations, and reports strong sales across all of its divisions. The company posted a 21% increase from last November for GMC, Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac, for cars, crossovers, SUVs and pickups. The tally means GM's sales in the first 11 months are 22% better than last year.

The Detroit automaker reported that sales of the Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain and Cadillac SRX were up 56%, while combined sales for the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Chevrolet Traverse were up 38% versus last year. Combined, GM's crossovers improved 39% during the month and are up 51% year-to-date.

Sales of GM pickups across the GMC and Chevrolet brands are up 16% for November, according to the company. Sales of GM passenger cars were up 17% because of the new Chevy Cruze and Buick Regal cars.

Jesse Toprak, who heads industry analysis at TrueCar.com, says that GM's results reflect a fundamentally stronger economy driving the year to a 12.2 million-vehicle finish. If so, that will be a far better result than the 10 million -- give or take -- that many observers had predicted for 2010 last year and earlier this year. "The overall recovery in retail is fueling growth year-over-year," he says. "A lot of it is postponed purchase decisions in the last couple of years now becoming real purchases."

Toprak adds that incentives are higher than they have been, and that finance and lease offers are bringing consumers back to showrooms. According to Santa Monica, Calif.-based based TrueCar.com, the average transaction price for light vehicles in the United States was $29,136 in November -- down $735 from last year and down $435 from October with incentives at $2,712 per vehicle, on average, in November, about flat with last year and up 6.4% versus last month.

Ford reported a 24% increase over last November for its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands versus a year ago, with Mercedes-Benz reporting its best November since 2007 and Subaru reporting its best November ever.

Volkswagen of America reported a 24% increase in sales last month, and Chrysler Group, which posted a 17% increase in sales, is actually hiring. The company says it is looking to employ 1,000 engineers and technicians by the end of the first quarter next year as part of a program to expand into small and mid-sized cars. Chrysler is also adding a second shift on its production plant for the 2011 Chrysler 200 and Dodge Avenger cars, and investing $850 million in a new coatings plant.

Toprak says that October and November were also the first months in a long time in which trucks outsold cars, which is "an indication that small businesses are coming back to market." In October, he says, trucks and crossovers comprised 53% of total new-vehicle sales in the U.S.