Buyers made a beeline to passenger car showrooms ahead of the expiry of the reduced excise duty regime (in end-June) which was extended to December 31, four days before the month ended.

This has had its impact on the sales numbers with industry bellwether Maruti Suzuki India reporting total domestic sales of 100,964 units during June 2014, up 31.1 percent year on year (June 2013: 77,002). The Alto and Wagon R have posted new sales highs. While the Alto saw sales of 30,499 units, its highest since March 2012, the Wagon R sold 17,119 units racing ahead of the Swift (13,632 units) and Dzire (15,990). The Wagon R’s tally is the highest tally so far with its previous high being over 16,000 units way back in September 2012.

A Maruti spokesman attributed the good showing of the Alto and Wagon R to pent-up demand on the one hand and a return of positive sentiments in the third week of June. In June, Maruti’s retails at 107,486 were higher than the wholesale numbers of 100,964 units.

While rural demand has been pushing sales, Maruti’s urban markets have grown in the month by 15 percent aided by the company’s exchange schemes which brought in about 34,000 units.

Meanwhile, the Top 10 pecking order saw the return of the Honda Amaze with sales of 7,075 units, crossing the 7,000-mark mark for the third time in the current year. Hyundai’s Grand completed 100,000 unit sales in 10 months flat with sales of 7,901 units in June. The car’s sedan version sold 7,069 units and both seem well entrenched in the Top 10 models.