Motorists shifting from trucks to cars

Passenger cars outsold light trucks last month for the first time in at least two decades as soaring gasoline prices sent consumers scrambling to more fuel-efficient vehicles.

That dealt a major blow to Detroit's Big Three automakers, which are still heavily dependent on sales of trucks and SUVs.

Demand for passenger cars rose 5.2 percent to 655,432 units last month from 622,873 units in April 2007, according to figures provided by Autodata Corp. Sales of light trucks, which include crossovers, minivans, sport utility vehicles and pickups, dropped 17.4 percent, falling from 715,730 to 591,122.

.


Read More