Sales of volt and hybrids surge

March turned out to be a big month for auto sales in the United States. Reuters reported that total vehicle sales were up 13 percent for the month, ending the best quarter in terms of total sales since 2008. The industry sees this as a sign of general economic recovery, but with high average gas prices prevailing at the pumps, hybrid cars and plug-in vehicles enjoyed a strong month, indicating fuel economy matters to many when making new car choices. So what about plug-in electric vehicles? Without doubt, the sales figures for these vehicles are small by comparison with top selling vehicles today, but they could perhaps be a barometer reading for how these cars may do in the market over the next decade. To be sure, it's not just small, fuel efficient vehicles that sold well during the month. WSJ reported the Ford F150 pickup was the best selling vehicle in the country for the month, selling 58,061 units in March — a nine percent increase over the prior month. However, the sixth best seller was the hybrid Toyota Prius at 28,711 vehicles — a 54 percent increase. Ten years ago, few would have thought that a gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle would turn out to be a mainstream product, but with this ranking, it has clearly earned this status.