PORTLAND — The Jamison family was hoping that Monday might be the day they went home with another car.

For Kevin and Tammy Jamison, the Presidents Day holiday seemed like a good time to help their son, also named Kevin, get his own transportation so they so they could get use of their car back. The family made their second — and possibly final — stop of the day at Berlin City Toyota/Lexus, where they were about to test drive a Toyota Corolla.

“Most of our cars have been Toyotas. They’ve never let us down,” the elder Kevin Jamison said.

A sale to the Jamisons would contribute to the strong sales seen by Berlin City Auto Group this weekend — the traditional kick-off to the car-buying season and a time that shoppers seek out deals. Sales are expected to be up about 40 percent from last years’s Presidents Day weekend — with Toyota leading the 17 makes Berlin City sells, according to CEO Yegor Malinovskii.

“It’s unexpected and it’s phenomenal. What it creates is hope,” Malinovskii said Monday afternoon.

There was good news for the auto industry before the holiday weekend. January sales of cars and light trucks rose 17 percent from the previous year to 819,895. That’s not as many as the 1 million sold in January 2008, but better than the previous two years when sales didn’t reach 700,000.

GM and Chrysler Group LLC led January sales with increases of 23 percent. Toyota Motor Corp. saw sales rise 17 percent, though the company’s quarterly sales were down 39 percent.

Since January sales figures were released, the federal government has said that electronic flaws were not to blame for incidents of unintended acceleration that led to the recall of more than 12 million Toyota vehicles worldwide. The investigation led by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administation concluded the problems could have stemmed from mechanical problems like gas pedals getting trapped under floor mats or drivers stepping on the wrong pedal. Toyota has put brake override systems on new vehicles since the recalls.

At Pape Chevrolet in South Portland, trucks, crossovers and the Cruze compact sedan were getting shoppers’ attention, according to sales manager Steve Tsujiura.

He said he was optimistic about the holiday weekend, even though Saturday traffic started slow before picking up in the afternoon and a similar pattern appeared to be in play Monday.

Tsujiura expects sales will be up between 25 and 35 percent for the year ending February. Bankers have been telling the dealership that more loans are going out and construction-related businesses that have been waiting to buy new vehicles are expecting more work, he said.

“Everything is in place,” he said.

In the office of salesman Benjamin Welch, Kathleen Sangillo and Steven Sawyer had decided on a black Avalanche. The Waterboro couple already knew they wanted that vehicle — they had racked up 120,000 miles on their 2003 model — and had been shopping around and keeping an eye open for good rebates in recent days.

“We’ve been looking all over,” Sawyer said. “There’s a lot of people out.”

Since he was free Monday, Derek White of South Portland was in Pape to check out trucks and the types of features that were available. He’s open about the possibilities but is interested in four-wheel drive and a feature that can turn off some of the cylinders in certain driving conditions to conserve fuel.

White hasn’t been holding back because of the economy but because he’s finishing his schooling. He’s be getting his doctorate from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts.

“I’ve wanted to get myself a truck. I’ve been waiting to get a truck for awhile,” White said.

At Bill Dodge BMW in Westbrook, sales manager Paris Thomas said consumers have been more hesitant over the past two years, but he projects sales will be up 20 percent this year. Updates to several series are giving BMW a fresh look that is adding to the appeal, he said.

Thomas said the dealership was busier this holiday weekend than last year’s, but doesn’t think luxury car buyers are necessarily holding out for deal.

“I think just having that extra day to shop creates opportunity,” he said.

Staff Writer Ann S. Kim can be contacted at 791-6383 or at: akim@pressherald.com

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.