Auto production rose 1.7 percent in August from a year earlier to 706,613 units, the first increase in eight months, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said Wednesday.
Car output rose 1.3 percent to 575,295 units and output of trucks climbed 3.1 percent to 126,488 units, both higher for the first time in eight months. Production of buses rose 8.2 percent to 4,830 units, up for the fifth straight month.
Output of cars with engines larger than 2,000cc rose 12.8 percent to 267,937 units; production of cars with engines between 661cc and 2,000cc dipped 6.4 percent to 225,912.
Production of minivehicles, which have engines up to 661 cc, fell 8.4 percent to 81,410.
Four of the nation's 11 automakers -- Honda Motor Co., Mitsubishi Motors Corp., Isuzu Motors Ltd., and Daihatsu Motor Co. -- reported production falls in the month.
Toyota Motor Corp. made 246,828 units last month, up 6.6 percent from a year earlier. Nissan Motor Co. placed second with 89,664 units, up 1.3 percent, edging Honda, which turned out 89,631 units, down 2.4 percent.
Suzuki Motor Corp.'s production rose 4.4 percent to 61,498 units, while output from Mazda Motor Corp. went up 7.2 percent to 57,702.
Mitsubishi Motors saw a 12.7 percent fall to 56,110 units.