Americans found plenty of reasons to buy new cars in September, and that made auto sales a bright spot in the economy for yet another month.

Sales rose for most automakers, led by gains of more than 30 percent for Toyota and Volkswagen.

Sales of cars and trucks made by Honda Motor Co., which has extensive automaking operations in Ohio, were up 31 percent in September compared with a year earlier, when inventories were hurt by the earthquake. Honda said sales of the Civic and Accord sedans rose 57 percent.

Buyers needed to replace aging cars, banks offered cheap loans, and auto companies rolled out a promising lineup of fuel-efficient models. Beneath that, buyers felt more confident about the jobs market, a key factor influencing car sales.

Toyota sales rose 42 percent from a year earlier, while Volkswagen jumped 34 percent from September 2011. Detroit didn’t fare as well. Chrysler reported a 12 percent increase, but General Motors and Ford sales were either up slightly or flat. Nissan, which has been hurt as Toyota and Honda recover from last year’s earthquake in Japan, saw sales fall 1.1 percent.

Total U.S. sales are expected to rise to more than 1.1 million vehicles, up 11 percent from September of 2011. Most analysts expect an annual rate around 14.5 million.

Auto sales have stayed robust this year, even as other parts of the economy weakened. They’ve maintained an annual pace of at least 14 million most months. And on Tuesday, Chrysler’s U.S. sales chief, Reid Bigland, said that September sales for the industry could reach an annualized rate of nearly 15 million, making it the best month since March of 2008.

Chrysler reported its best September since 2007. Ford’s sales, however, were flat compared with a year earlier, and General Motors reported only a 1.5 percent increase.

Uncertainty about the broader economy is keeping sales from rising even faster. Some Americans are holding back on major purchases until they see how the budget battle shakes out in Washington, whether Europe can fix its economy and who wins the U.S. presidential election, said Jeff Schuster, senior vice president of forecasting for LMC Automotive, an industry consulting firm.

Schuster expects September sales at an annual rate of 14.5 million, perhaps more if automakers finished the month stronger than expected. Bargain interest rates are largely fueling sales, he said. Some banks and credit unions offer 2 percent financing to people with good credit. That’s almost as good as subsidized loans from the automakers’ finance companies.