The automotive industry has seen its sales see-saw in the past couple of years, and in the United States in particular the trade conflicts instigated by the White House have created a climate of uncertainty that continues to dog automakers. Japanese manufacturers are particular vulnerable to trade headwinds, as negotiations for a new trade agreement continue between the governments of the U.S. and Japan.

Not all automakers are being affected equally, however. Two in particular have continued to benefit from the patronage of large numbers of customers. In the month of August, both Subaru and Honda beat sales records for the month. The two models most responsible for that are the Honda CR-V and the Subaru Crosstrek. Both of the models enjoyed their best sales month ever.

Our review of the 2019 Subaru Crosstrek

For Subaru, August 2019 was its best month ever in North America, plus it was the 93rd consecutive month the company saw sales increase year-over-year. The automaker sold 70,039 units in August, eclipsing its previous record of 64,541 units, set in December 2018. Leading the way were the Outback (17,110), Forester (17,076) and Crosstrek (15,860). For its part, the new Ascent SUV saw its sales jump by 73% to 7,319 units.

Honda and Acura, meanwhile, moved 173,993 vehicle in all during the month of August. Last year the company sold 147,093 vehicle in the same period. The CR-V led the way with 44,235 units sold – a new record. Behind it came the Civic (34,808), Accord (30,558), Pilot (14,381) and Odyssey (10,190). At Acura, 5,976 MDX and 5,459 RDX models found buyers.

Since the start of the 2019 year, Honda has sold 1,093,284 vehicles in North America, for a 1.7% increase in comparison with last year (1,074, 329).

Subaru has moved 473,670 units to date in 2019, versus 445,374 during the same period last year, for a gain of 6.4%.

Overall, the industry has seen sales drop by 0.6% since the start of this year compared to the same period in 2018.