While the fuel prices have come down and the RBI has reduced the interest rates, the consumer sentiments are yet to see an upward trend. Even Sep'15 car sales saw a single digit growth - do note that the data we share is Offtake (number of units shipped from manufacturer to authorized dealer) and considering the upcoming festive season these numbers should have been much higher.
Indian Auto Industry has now become similar to fashion industry - the customers want the latest and good-looking product in both the cases! We are seeing a shift in the consumer perspective - from value consciousness to design conscious buying behavior. Hence, again in Sep'15 the new models fueled growth and supported their respective manufacturers. Lets see how the OEM's fared -
Tata Motors saw the biggest decline - Bolt & Zest are yet not able to help Tata revive its condition in the Indian market. The biggest gainer evolved to be Honda Cars - Amaze makes to the top 10 list after long time and helps the manufacturer gain the much required growth. Hyundai posts its ever-highest sales numbers for a month in Sep'15 - Thanks to Creta, Grand i10 & Elite i20. Ford numbers now look justifying to the brand - Figo & Aspire makes its mark.
Find Model-wise sales chart here -
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| September 2015 Sales Figures - Pan India |
-- Maruti's most impressive model was Celerio; the diesel availability is helping the brand gain sufficient volumes and growth. Also not the Ciaz performance - the new Smart Hybrid car seems to get good acceptance from the customers. Ciaz also overtakes S-Cross's sales - the new cross SUV is finding difficulty to gain popularity amongst the Indian customers and is already selling on huge discounts (upto Rs.1 Lakh within 2 month of its launch!). The bread earners (Dzire, Alto, Wagon R & Swift) diligently perform. The dark horses (Omni & Eeco) still surprises us with the volumes they sell in the Indian market without any competition.
-- Hyundai sees a downward spiral for i10 & Eon - Kwid effect already? However, Grand i10 & Elite i20 numbers are impressive! Creta still maintains ~7.5 mark and is going strong month on month. Hyundai has been able to gain fancy of the premium customers and Creta has proved to be breakthrough for the Korean major.
-- Mahindra makes into the third position by a small margin and TUV 300 helps the Indian MNC in the feat. However, Bolero has lost its charm and posts below 6k figures for the third consecutive month. Hope TUV 300 doesn't end up cannibalizing its elder sibling's volumes (Bolero).
-- Honda Cars would have performed much better if the Jazz numbers would have been better. Considering the Elite i20 volumes, Honda has not been able to pose itself as a serious challenger to the segment leader. Though the brand has been able to generate a lot of interest amongst the buyers, we expect the numbers to go more stronger in the coming months. Mobilio faces degrowth in Sep'15 as well and foresees much difficult time ahead also. However, City saves the day again for the Japanese MNC and posts respectable numbers.
-- We are much disappointed and agonized by the slew of occurences related to VW. Firstly, the diesel gate scandal (international) and later hand-brake related issue with Polo (India). The negativity is going to hit very hard for the manufacturer and we are skeptical about the important festive months for the top European OEM. Hope they are able to take corrective steps on immediate basis and work on gaining customer trust back.
-- Ford is on a roll with 2 successive launches. We now hope that the OEM gives the Indian market much required attention and ensures adequate supplies as per the demand. Exports has to be given 'second' priority. Ford has pre-dominantly been a 1-product wonder. It'll be extremely positive if Ford is able to successfully sell 3 products (Figo, Aspire & Ecosport) simultaneously.
-- Renault gets the new 'Kwid' on the block. This hatchback has tremendous potential to put Renault back into the game. While Hyundai put a serious challenge to Duster through its Creta, Renault answers with Kwid (challenging Eon ofcourse!). The Kwid has already garnered >25k bookings and looks to go much stronger in future. However, Renault now needs to revive Duster's volumes and push it back to 3k units.
We have also been able to compile the Top 25 selling car brands -
