U.S. consumer demand for new vehicles began to thaw in March, especially for luxury cars and big trucks, but not every carmaker participated in the uptick. New-vehicle sales rose 0.6 percent from a year ago, to 1,545,802 vehicles, industry consultant Autodata Corp said. Among the strong performers were Toyota Motor Corp , Hyundai Motor Co , Kia Motors Corp and Audi (VOWG_p.DE). Last month’s sales were driven in part by German and Japanese luxury brands, as well as by a strong appetite for big trucks and SUVs from Detroit manufacturers.