Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) posted a U.S. sales rise of 0.4% year-over-year in August, to 222,174 Ford and Lincoln vehicles, compared with August 2013 sales of 221,270. Sales of the company’s best-selling Fusion rose 19.5% and sales of the Escape SUV rose 8.5%. The full-size Explorer SUV saw sales rise 25.4%. Sales of the F-Series pickups slipped again in August after ticking up in July as buyers await the all-new F-Series due out by the end of this year.

Ford was expected to sell up to 217,000 vehicles in August, which would have been a drop of 1.5% year-over-year.

Sales of the Explorer SUV totaled 17,748 in August and the Escape posted its best-ever July sales of 28,966 units. The Fusion compact sold 29,452 units last month, its best-ever sales for August.

Ford truck sales have fallen 0.4% year-over-over for the first eight months of 2014 as the company prepares to introduce its widely anticipated aluminum-body F-150 Series pickup trucks in the fourth quarter. The aluminum body panels and other technology improvements have cut the weight of the trucks by about 700 pounds, which will help improve fuel economy. That improvement comes at a cost though. Prices for the new models will be higher by at least $360 and as much as $3,615. The five models in the new line will start at a base price for the low-end model of $25,420 and a base price of about double that for the high-end version.

Ford’s shares traded higher by about 0.1% Wednesday morning, at $17.70 in a 52-week range of $14.40 to $18.12.

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