Pickup truck sales in the United States rose year over year for all three big U.S. automakers, but the big news appears to be coming from the long-time leader in pickup sales.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) reported sales of 71,332 F-Series pickups in August, the first time the total has risen to more than 70,000 all year. The company does not break out sales of its all-new, aluminum-bodied F-150. In August of 2014, the company sold 68,109 F-Series trucks and in July it sold 66,288 units.

A unit sales increase of more than 5,000 pulls the F-Series closer to total sales of the GMC Sierra and Chevy Silverado, both from General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM). The company sold 54,977 Silverados in August, up from 49,201 in August of last year, but down from 56,380 units sold in July. The GMC Sierra sold 21,241 units in August, up from 19,847 in 2014, and about flat with 19,808 units sold in July. Where GM sold a total of nearly 10,000 more pickups in July than did Ford, the gap closed to less than 8,000 in August.

The Ram pickups from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (NYSE: FCAU) posted sales of 45,310 in August, up from 43,775 a year ago and from 38,157 in July. Chrysler said this was the truck’s best August sales level ever.

Sales of the F-150 appear to be gaining traction. If the company’s prediction that sales will reach normalized levels by the end of the third quarter come true, September could see another big gain in F-150 sales.

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While sales are important, all the Detroit Three are currently negotiating new contracts with the United Auto Workers union. The current contract expires on September 14, and one very interesting rumor making the rounds is that Ford may bring back its compact Ranger pickup, building the truck in Detroit and selling it in the United States.

The company is moving production of its Focus compact, Focus EV and C-MAX hybrid and plug-in hybrid to Mexico in 2018. Ford has said it will not close the plant and fire the approximately 4,000 workers, but will instead pursue “future vehicle alternatives” that it will discuss with the UAW as part of the contract negotiations. Ford currently builds the Ranger for some international markets, where it competes with a non-U.S. small pickup built by Volkswagen and the Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) Tacoma.

GM reintroduced its midsize pickup, the Colorado, earlier this year after halting production of the vehicle in 2012. The new pickup has sold 55,898 in the first seven months of this year. Toyota reported Tuesday morning that its sales of light trucks totaled 93,575 units in August. In July the Tacoma sold just over 17,000 units, compared with just over 7,200 Colorados, according to a report at Torque News. In year-to-date sales, the Tacoma has outsold the Colorado by a margin of more than two-to-one. A freshly designed Tacoma is due for the 2016 model year, and that will boost sales of the pickup even higher.

It is not impossible that Ford would want to resurrect the Ranger, but with sales of the F-Series really picking up, it may make more sense for the company to build a higher margin or more expensive vehicle in Detroit, where costs are higher. While a Ford Ranger revival from Detroit is a possibility, the odds are long.

Based on a single model series, Ford’s F-Series remains the best-selling pickup in the United States, followed by Chevy Silverado, Ram and GMC Sierra.

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