INDIA SALES: Top 10 Two-wheelers in November 2016

November saw the Indian auto industry sales hit the wall of demonetisation with the two-wheeler segment being one of the major casualties.

While Hero MotoCorp, the largest two-wheeler company, registered the sharpest drop in terms of YoY sales volumes in November, TVS Motor Co managed to avoid a decline by reporting flat growth of 0.53 percent YoY. This, interestingly, can be attributed to the spurt in the sales of its mopeds. The OEM sales trend was finely reflected in the Top 10 best-selling two-wheeler chart in November.

Despite the fall in overall sales, Hero Motocorp’s flagship motorcycle, the Splendor managed hold onto its crown of the best-selling two-wheeler in November. It was only in October that the Splendor had regained the top spot from Honda’s Activa after playing second fiddle for nine months. The Splendor series sold 201,100 units in November, while the Honda Activa managed to sell 180,811 units.

The Honda Activa’s failure to beat the Splendor can be attributed to the decline in scooter sales in India for the first time in 44 months.

Meanwhile, there was no surprise at the third place, where the Hero HF Deluxe has cemented a place for itself. The 100cc commuter bike, which sold 110,515 units in November 2016, had been at the third place in the cumulative FY2015-16 Top 10 and continues to do so every month in 2016 as well.

In the interim, mopeds were the only two-wheeler segment which reported positive sales in November 2016, up 32.07% YoY. Riding on the gush in demand for mopeds, TVS Motor Co’s XL Super occupied the fourth spot with sales of 76,381 units in November. It was only in October 2016 that the 70cc moped had climbed to the fourth spot from the seventh.

The biggest winner in November’s Top 10 best-selling two-wheelers was TVS Motor Co’s Jupiter scooter. From the ninth spot in October, the 110cc scooter managed to leapfrog to the fifth place in November with sales of 54,838 units. The success of the XL Super and the Jupiter was possible as TVS Motor Co was the only OEM from the big four to buck the trend of declining numbers in November.

The sixth place was grabbed by Hero MotoCorp’s Glamour, which managed to beat its 125cc rival Honda CB Shine. While the Hero sold 53,301 units, Honda’s CB Shine managed to sell 45,236 units in November, settling for the seventh place.

Bajaj Auto has always managed carve a place for itself in the bottom third of the table and it was the same in November as well when the Pulsar and Platina brands occupied the eighth and ninth places. While the Bajaj Pulsar series sold 42,975 units, the Platina commuter bike sold 42,395 units. It will be interesting to see how the recent introduction of the Bajaj Dominar affects sale in the coming months.

Read more: Top 10 Motorcycles in November 2016

The biggest fall in the Top 10 best-selling two-wheelers in November was registered by Hero MotoCorp’s Passion series. The model, which occupied the fifth place in October fell to the bottom of the table in November with sales of 40,272 units. The model, which sold 40,272 units in November, did not even manage to sell half of the units which it sold in October 2016 or November 2015. It is safe to say that this is the Passion series’ lowest spot in the Top 10 charts.

Also read: Top 10 Two-wheelers in October 2016

Explaining the outlook of the two-wheeler segment, Sugato Sen, deputy director general of SIAM, told Autocar Professional that the segment has been impacted by the demonetisation announcement of the Centre on November 8.  About 30-40 percent of the two-wheeler sales are through cash which is currently scarce and hence the temporary impact. However, he is bullish of sales picking up after December 30 when the negative effect of demonetisation starts wearing off as indicated by the government.

Related:

- Top 10 Passenger Vehicles in November 2016

- Top 5 Utility Vehicles in November 2016

- Top 10 Scooters in November 2016

- India Sales Analysis November 2016