Jeep leads Chrysler's 20 percent US sales increase in August

Chrysler says its U.S. sales last month rose 20 percent over a year ago for its best August in 12 years.

The numbers are a sign of a strong month as dealers sell off 2014 models to make room for new ones.

Chrysler sold just over 198,000 vehicles last month, led once again by the Jeep brand with sales up 49 percent. Jeeps are in a sweet spot as buyers shift from cars to crossover SUVs. Jeep's hottest-selling vehicle was the new Cherokee midsize SUV with nearly 19,000 sales. Ram pickup sales rose 33 percent.

Chrysler's car sales fell 3 percent, but truck sales were up 28 percent.

Industry analysts are expecting August sales to increase only slightly from a year ago. But last August was a strong month.