SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — U.S. car makers reported a surprisingly strong month of sales on Thursday, with trucks boosting General Motors and Chrysler enjoying its best November since 2007.

Ford Motor Co. F, +0.90% , Toyota Motor Corp. TM, -1.34% and Nissan Motors NSANY, -2.63% also fared well, while Honda Motor Co. HMC, +1.36% took another hit.

Overall, the industry reported a SAAR (seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales) of 13.6 million units, according to Autodata, up from 12.28 million in November 2010. Total deliveries rose 13.9% from a year earlier.

GM GM, +2.95% , still the biggest of the group in the U.S., said it sold 180,402 cars and trucks, paced by a 34% increase in sales of the Chevy Silverado and a 22% rise in sales of the GMC Sierra.

A surge on the more-profitable truck side bodes well for GM as does a move away from the lower margin business of selling vehicles to rental car companies and other bulk buyers.

Retail sales rose 15% while fleet sales dropped 14%.

Among compact cars, the Chevrolet Cruze posted a 54% sales increase. Buick sales fell 7.2% for the month compared to November 2010, while Cadillac sales slipped 5.6%.

“We are seeing a broad spectrum of customers return to the market,” said Don Johnson, GM’s head of U.S. sales operations. “Truck sales showed a very solid increase, as we expected, but the momentum building behind our most fuel-efficient vehicles was even stronger.”

GM shares were sucked lower with the broader market, off 1.6% to finish at $20/96. For the year, the stock is down 43%.

Double digits for Ford, Chrysler

Ford handed in a 13.3% rise to 166,865 cars and trucks. The improvement was helped by a 20% gain in retail sales. Ford said the increase helped bring its retail market share to an average of 15% over the past three months, its highest level in five years.

Ford also raised its first-quarter production forecast by 3% to 675,000 vehicles.

“The industry sales rate has exceeded 13 million in each of the last three months,” said Ken Czubay, head of Ford’s U.S. sales division. “This suggests the current momentum is not an aberration. We believe replacement demand will continue to support stronger levels in 2012, and Ford is ready to meet that demand with high-quality, fuel-efficient cars, utilities and trucks.”

Chrysler Group LLC was the big winner early, posting a 45% surge in sales to 107,172 cars and trucks. That marks the 20th consecutive month of year-over-year improvements and also the best November since 2007.

The rebounding car maker, controlled by Italy’s Fiat (F), has now posted six months in a row of vehicle sales gains of at least 20%.

Strong numbers from Toyota and Nissan, too

Toyota reported a 6.7% rise to 137,960 cars and trucks, it’s first year-over-year sales gain this year. The car side fared better than trucks, with the Prius hybrid sedan showing a 43% improvement.

“As the automotive retail market continues to improve, we believe we’re in an excellent position,” said Bob Carter, head of Toyota’s U.S. sales division. “In addition to the four new models we have already introduced this year, we’ll benefit from the biggest influx of new and updated products in our history during 2012.”

Nissan, which wasn’t hurt as badly as its home-country peers in the wake of the massive earthquake earlier this year, reported a 19% jump in sales, while Honda sat out the festivities with a 6.4% drop.

“Looks like production was a bigger issue for Honda in November than we thought,” Edmunds.com analyst Jessica Caldwell said. “The less than compelling Civic could have been the company’s bright spot in an awful year, with customers clamoring for it despite shortages, but it doesn’t look like that is happening.”