New passenger car registrations in the European Union and European Free Trade Association trading block rose for the sixth consecutive month to 894,730 vehicles in February from 831,371 in the same month last year, according to data from the Association of European Carmakers (ACEA).

Europe's car industry endured a six-year slump, with auto sales falling to their lowest level in two decades as austerity-hit consumers cut back on expensive purchases, but the market has recently returned to growth.

While registrations in top car market Germany underperformed the regional trend with a 4.3 percent increase and fell by 1.4 percent in Europe's second-biggest car market France, sales grew in double digits in some states most hit by the crisis.

Sales in Spain, Portugal and Ireland grew by 17.8 percent, 40.2 percent and 20.6 percent, respectively, showing that a fragile recovery in the region was gaining momentum.

In Italy, the region's fourth-biggest market, recovering from its longest recession in 70 years, sales grew 8.6 percent.

Sales at Renault Group (>> RENAULT) jumped 11.5 percent, boosted mainly by a 33.6 percent surge in registrations of its no-frills Dacia brand. Ford (>> Ford Motor Company) sales were up 11.3 percent, Toyota Group (>> Toyota Motor Corp), the world's biggest-selling car maker, posted a 14 percent increase, while General Motors (>> General Motors Company) saw sales go up 12.3 percent, boosted by a 15.6 percent increase in registrations of its Open and Vauxhall branded vehicles.

Germany's Volkswagen group (>> Volkswagen AG), Europe's No. 1 carmaker by volume, posted a 7.2 percent rise, helped by a 21.5 increase at its value brand Skoda, a 15.7 percent jump in Seat sales and an 11.8 percent gain at its premium brand Audi. VW's performance was weighed down by a 0.8 percent decline in sales at its namesake brand.

French carmaker PSA (>> PEUGEOT) lost some market share in February. Its overall sales grew 3.5 percent, supported by an increase in registrations of its Peugeot brand, but sales of Citroen branded cars were roughly flat year-on-year.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak; editing by Isla Binnie)