February saw one of the highest sales numbers in the Indian market. All brands are enjoying a rise from last year. The Indian auto market seems to ultimately be getting out of the slump COVID-19 and the semiconductor chip shortage created. Let's see the top stories of this month.
Tata has taken away the coveted second spot in sales from Hyundai. The Indian giant saw double-digit growth of 19.6% thanks to the new facelifted Nexon and newly launched Punch EV. Tata's electric push might guarantee them this spot for a long while.
Hyundai managed a 6.8% growth but is in an interesting position. While the Creta, Venue and Exter have enjoyed the SUV trend, its original cash cows i10 and i20 have suffered. With Grand Vitara taking away Creta's top spot and Venue far from Nexon, Hyundai must act fast.
If riding the SUV wave is a sport, then Mahindra is no less than a Micheal Jordan. Its February dunk is mightier than January. They saw a 39.7% rise. Is it the new Scorpio N craze, or everyone wants to buy a Thar? We'll see that when model-wise numbers come up. One thing is for sure: the waiting times at Mahindra showrooms are going nowhere.
Toyota, or should I say rebadged Maruti Suzukis, sold well this month. So well, that it has managed 1.5x the sales of the same month last year. The 51.9% growth also can be attributed to the Innova Hycross hitting the 50k sales mark since launching in November. Its “under the table" agreement with Maruti Suzuki bears delightful fruits. Add to this the dominance of the Fortuner and Innova, and you can see why Toyota looks unstoppable in India.
Honda is on its journey back to good sales in India. Leading this charge is the Elevate SUV, competing in one of the most challenging segments of the market. The city is also doing what it has done for 20 years, giving steady sales. Combined, the models have helped Honda grow by 17% YOY.
MG had high hopes in India and did quite well with Hector initially. However, its reliability issues and supercar mileage have brought that down. MG has yet to gain much foothold in a market where Maruti Suzuki sells for the opposite reasons. They grew by 8 per cent over an already low base.
