(August 1, 1014) DETROIT — General Motors dealers delivered 256,160 vehicles in the United States in July, for the company’s highest July sales since 2007. Total sales were up 9 percent compared with a year ago. Retail sales — those to individual customers — were up 4 percent. Commercial deliveries were up 69 percent and all other fleet deliveries were up 21 percent.

Sales of crossovers and trucks, which include pickups, vans and SUVs, surged by double-digits, pushing combined sales to 1,048,114 through July. GM was the first automaker to pass the million-unit milestone in both 2014 and 2013.

“Sales of utility vehicles soared in July because American families feel better about the economy than they have in a long time, and they are finding an incredible variety of redesigned and all-new models in our showrooms,” said Kurt McNeil, U.S. vice president of Sales Operations. “Small, compact, medium, large – sales were strong across the board.”

During July, GM sold 100,122 crossovers and SUVs, bringing the calendar-year-to-date total to 587,250 units — the best month for utility vehicle sales since August 2007. Compared with 2013, crossover deliveries increased 26 percent in July and they are up 5 percent year to date. Large non-luxury SUVs were up 25 percent in July, and they are up 15 percent year to date. Including the Cadillac Escalade, SUV sales are up 32 percent.

Highlights:

    • The Buick Encore, one of the industry’s first small crossovers, saw a 28 percent sales increase compared with July 2013.

    • GM’s medium-sized Chevrolet, GMC and Buick crossovers, which were redesigned for the 2014 model year, were up 14 percent compared with last July, led by a 25 percent increase in Chevrolet Traverse deliveries.

    • Combined sales of Chevrolet and GMC large SUVs, which are all new for the 2015 model year, were up 25 percent compared with a year ago. GM’s estimated share of the large SUV segment is 77 percent on a retail basis.

    • Cadillac Escalade deliveries nearly doubled and Cadillac’s estimated share of the large luxury SUV segment is now about 37 percent on a retail basis.

“GM and the U.S. economy left July carrying good momentum,” McNeil said. “The economy has bounced back strongly from the harsh winter, consumer confidence has reached a post-recession high, energy prices remain moderate and job growth continues. The stage is set for strong sales through the balance of the year.

“In particular, there is a lot of pent-up demand for our new large SUVs and we expect pickup deliveries to be strong, as they usually are in the second half of the year.”