DETROIT, MI - With 178,351 vehicles sold, Ford Motor Co. posted a 15 percent rise in U.S. sales last month, marking its best January since 2004.

Both Ford- and Lincoln-brand vehicle sales were up by double-digits, with Ford-brand vehicle sales up 16 percent to 171,732 units, and sales of Lincoln vehicles increasing 11 percent to 6,619 units.

"Customer demand is strong for our newest vehicles, driving retail sales gains across our lineup in January," Erich Merkle, Ford's U.S. sales analyst, said in a release. "Momentum is especially strong for our F-Series pickup, with the all-new F-150 the hottest product on our dealer lots in January."

(Related: GM's January sales rise 18% on strong demand for trucks and crossovers)

(Related: FCA US has best January since 2007 with 14% sales bump)

The F-Series has been the best-selling truck in an all-important U.S. segment for 38 years running.

Last month, sales of F-Series trucks grew 17 percent to 54,370 units, marking the best January for the model since 2004, which was a record year for the F-Series. It was also last month that Ford's all-new, aluminum-bodied 2015 F-150 began arriving at U.S. dealerships.

Ford's total truck sales in January increased 20 percent on an annual basis to 68,657 units.

For utilities, sales gains were led by the Escape and Explorer models, with Escape sales up 3 percent to 20,054 units, and Explorer sales increasing 28 percent to 14,995 units. That offset a decline of 19 percent for the Edge, which sold 7,581 units. Ford's total utility sales rose 7 percent to 48,589 units.

Sales of the Focus led for Ford's car models, posting a 54 percent jump to 18,478 units. That offset slumping sales for the Fusion, which fell 5 percent to 19,694 units.

(Related: Ford unveils AWD Focus RS with 315 horsepower)

For Lincoln, car sales dropped 10 percent to 2,475 units, including 14 percent drop for the MKZ to 1,830 units. Sales of the MKS were up 2 percent to 645 units. Lincoln utility sales rose 29 percent thanks mainly to sales of the MKC, which was not sold in January 2014. Sales of the MKX dropped 45 percent to 1,358 units.

David Muller is the automotive and business reporter for MLive Media Group in Detroit. Email him at dmuller@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter