Offers of huge rebates and tempting low-interest loans weren't enough to entice car buyers out of their bunkers in this economic crisis, causing U.S. auto sales in February to hover near historic lows.


Overall auto sales were down 41 percent from February 2008, but up 5 percent from January, according to Autodata Corp. and Ward's AutoInfoBank. January marked the industry's worst monthly performance since December 1981.

The increase was a good sign, but it's far less than the usual 14 percent sales bump from January to February, and it doesn't necessarily mean sales have hit the bottom, said Jesse Toprak, executive director of industry analysis for the auto Web site Edmunds.com.

"It does mean that there's some life out there," Toprak said.

Things are so bad that GM, which marked its worst February sales since 1967, is considering a program to let buyers keep their cars for a time without making payments if they lose their jobs.

The huge stock market decline helped push down sales, said Mark LaNeve, GM's North American vice president of sales, services and marketing. The Dow Jones industrial average ended the month at its lowest level in nearly 12 years.