In California, Prius is top seller

SACRAMENTO, Jan. 22 (UPI) -- The Toyota Prius was the No. 1-selling car in California in 2012, one sign of how different the state's auto market is compared to others, figures show.

Throughout the country, the Ford F-Series pick up truck holds steady at the top of the sales list, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.

But in California, Ford F-Series pick up trucks come in at No. 7. The No. 2 best seller around the country, the Chevrolet Silverado truck in California missed the top 10 list altogether.

In 2012, the Prius outsold the Honda Civic, California's most popular car for 2010 and 2011.

The top three sellers in the state were the Prius, the Civic and the Toyota Camry with 60,688, 57,124 and 50,250 vehicles sold, respectively.

That points to another California car market oddity: The number of hybrid Prius vehicles sold last year represents 26 percent of all the Prius model cars sold in the entire country.

"Environmental consciousness and changing trends are large contributors" to customer choices, said Peter Welch, chief executive of the California New Car Dealers Association.

"Eight years ago everyone was driving sport utilities and trucks. Now it's almost trendy to drive a fuel-efficient hybrid or plug-in," Welch said.