Brezza dominates again, Bolero re-enters the Top 5.
19 Oct 2016 | 5899 Views | By Shourya Harwani
Carrying on the strong momentum seen this year, UV sales in the country grew for yet another month in September. Driving growth for the overall passenger vehicle industry, the segment notched up near-38% YoY growth in sales, largely driven by the consumer shift in demand from regular hatchbacks and sedans to feature-laden compact SUVs.
Total UV sales reported in September 2016 were 66,851 units against 48,467 units sold in the same period last year. For a third consecutive month, Maruti Suzuki India’s Vitara Brezza dominated the sales charts and with 9,375 units in September it was the country’s most sold UV.
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.
The much-in-demand compact SUV has not only been acting as a buffer to slowing sales of the Alto, Wagon-R and Swift hatchbacks, but also commands a waiting period of around 6 months, which is likely to come down in the near future. 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 Creta, Hyundai Motor India’s urban SUV, takes the second spot with sales of 8,835 units in September. The Creta is Hyundai’s third most sold vehicle in India after the hatchback duo of Grand i10 and the Elite i20. It has been a large volume driver for the Korean carmaker and continues to notch good sales consistently even now.
Toyota’s Innova Crysta took the next spot with sales of 7,300 units in September. The Crysta has been a big success for the company, thus carrying on the legacy of the previous generation of the Innova. Commenting on the strong sales for the model, N Raja, director and senior VP (sales & marketing), said: "The recently launched Innova Crysta has received an overwhelming response from the market including the Delhi and NCR region. The lifting of the ban has opened the order flow for Innova Crysta diesel vehicles in Delhi, resulting in an average waiting period of 1.5 to 2 months. We are trying our best to bring the waiting period down."
Also read: Top 10 Passenger Vehicles in September 2016
The Maruti Ertiga is at fourth spot on the list with 6,438 units. The carmaker has crafted its own niche in the MPV segment with the Ertiga and has managed to crack the segment with robust demand from both private and fleet owners alike. With multiple choices and variants of the Ertiga on offer, the Maruti has made it really difficult for other entrants to challenge its position in the tough-to-crack segment. As a result, players such as Hyundai Motor India and GM India, which were earlier looking to launch their own Ertiga rivals have shelved their plans for now.
The Ertiga is also closing on the 300,000 sales milestone in India and with demand unlikely to slow down given the upcoming festive season, it is likely to achieve the landmark in 2016 itself.
Mahindra & Mahindra makes a comeback into the Top 5 list after several months, but with its old workhorse Bolero. The UV maker despatched 5,744 units of the Bolero during the month, as demand gained traction after the launch of the sub-four-metre version called the Power Plus last month. With the new variant being 5 percent more fuel efficient than its elder sibling and also Rs 60,000 cheaper, the Bolero found more takers in September despite its ageing design.
Read more: Top 5 Utility Vehicles in August 2016
UVs are likely to continue driving PV sales in the coming months with recent launches expected to see strong demand for some more time to come. Additionally a strong line-up of new launches, which include the Tata Hexa, the Hyundai Tucson and the next-generation Toyota Fortuner, will help in expanding the overall segment as well. Stay tuned for India sales updates.
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