Maruti Baleno edges past Hyundai Elite i20 in the premium hatchback segment.
19 Oct 2016 | 8318 Views | By Shourya Harwani
As the Indian automotive industry thrived in September on the back of sufficient monsoons, pre-festive demand and sops from the Seventh Pay Commission, the passenger vehicle (PV) industry was the biggest benefactor and sales surged by nearly 20 percent during the month.
With record despatches of over 137,000 units in the month, the country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki led the PV segment growth and also dominated the Top 10 sales list. Bucking the trend of declining sales, the small car segment leader, the Alto topped the list yet again and recorded its highest monthly sales this year at 27,750 units. The company ramped up the despatches of the entry-level hatchback anticipating strong demand from rural and semi-urban areas. Despite being the market leader, Alto sales had been constantly declining this year due to rising competition in the segment and the trend of more buyers opting for feature-laden premium hatchbacks over entry-level cars.
The Dzire (18,961 units), Swift (16,746 units) and the Wagon R (16,645 units) completed the sweep of the top 4 spots for Maruti in September. Steady at the fifth place was the Hyundai Grand i10 with sales of 12,212 units. The hatchback, with its sporty image, sees large demand from the first-time car buyers looking for an alternative to the Swift.
Edging past the Elite i20 in the premium hatchback segment, the Maruti Suzuki Baleno captured the sixth spot on the list. Despite three price hikes since its launch a year ago, demand for the car has only grown with a waiting period of a minimum of three months. Another testament to its success is the fact that the hatchback also crossed the coveted 100,000 units mark within a year since its launch.
The Elite i20 fell behind but only marginally with 10,254 units to grab the eighth place, but the entry-level Renault Kwid with sales of 10,558 units kept its seventh spot.
Also read: Top 5 Utility Vehicles in September 2016
The penultimate spot was taken by another Maruti, the Vitara Brezza which was also the most sold UV in the month. With despatches of 9,375 units, the sub-four metre SUV has helped the carmaker crack the premium segment for good. The company has also sold more than 50,000 units of the vehicle since its launch in March this year. Maruti’s first crack at the sub-four-metre segment has proved to be among its most successful launches in the recent past, with hordes of customers queuing up at Maruti dealerships and waiting periods of even up to nine months for certain variants of the Brezza.
Given the surging sales for the Brezza, Maruti has already cashed in and hiked prices of the Brezza by Rs 20,000 in August. The manufacturer has also ramped up production of the Brezza to reduce the long waiting periods.
The last spot was taken by the Hyundai Creta which clocked sales of 8,835 units. The Korean carmaker’s SUV offering has seen strong demand both in domestic and export markets, though it now has to settle behind the Vitara Brezza as the second-most sold UV in the country.
Read more: Top 10 Passenger Vehicles in August 2016
With a robust new model pipeline for the festive season, most carmakers would be vying for a spot in the Top 10 in the coming months. However, dethroning the current players would be no cakewalk. Stay tuned for all the updates on the sales front.
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