It sure looks good at first glance: Automakers reported a big increase in U.S. sales in November, with the annualized selling rate climbing to its highest level since August of 2009, when the government's Cash for Clunkers program peaked. While Ford ( NYS: F ) posted solid results -- overall sales were up 13% year over year for the Blue Oval, a bit ahead of strong analyst expectations -- it fell a bit short of the industry-average 13.9% pace. But there's some good news hidden behind the headline numbers and some interesting trends among Ford's key competitors. Ford's numbers: Better than they look Here's the number that Ford's PR folks emphasized when results were released on Thursday, with (I think) good reason: 20%. That was Ford's year-over-year increase in retail sales, its largest such increase in nine months. Ford's retail market share in the U.S. stands at about 15%, company officials said, its highest level in five years.