US carmaker Ford on Friday reported a 46-per- cent surge in car sales in September, while its larger rival General Motors said sales climbed 10.5 per cent compared to the same month last year. The sharp gains this September in part reflected a poor month last year. Dealer inventories were depleted after a summer of government incentives known as "Cash for Clunkers" that caused a spike in demand, according to dpa. GM, the largest US carmaker, has been pulling its way out from a damaging bankruptcy last year. Don Johnson, vice president of US sales, said the September figures were "a continuation of positive momentum" for the company. GM sold 173,155 cars in September. Its sales have been skewed as it continues to wind down four loss-making brands: Hummer, Pontiac, Saturn and Saab. Sales of its four remaining core brands - Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC - climbed 22.1 per cent in September. Ford managed to avoid bankruptcy last year, the only US automaker to do so despite a damaging US recession, and has been steadily gaining market share on GM over the past year. It sold 160,873 cars in September. Other carmakers were to release their sales figures for September later Friday.
