Maruti has increased its dominance in the top 10 list; taking 8 spots
In the month of October’20, multiple Indian OEMs saw their sales jump to their ever-highest mark, despite the ongoing pandemic. Sales numbers were strong for many brands and the industry recorded strong double digit growths, which looked far from reality in the start of the current financial year (April’20). Let’s have a look at the model-wise performance of Top-10 most sold cars, as in how each brand performed in October’20, when compared with October’19 and September’20.
Hatchbacks from Maruti take the Pole
One of India’s best selling cars for over a decade has been the Swift and it continued to maintain its lead even in the month of October’20. Maruti managed to dish out 24,859 units of the Swift last month, when compared with 19,401 units in the same month last year.
The hatchback recorded strong 28% growth over last year. When compared with performance in September’20, Swift registered a 10% increase in sales, an overall increase by 2,216 units.
Baleno, another hatch from Maruti which has established itself as the undisputed king of the hot-hatch segment recorded sales of 21,971 units in October’20. It clinched the title of being the second most sold car of the last month. The competitor to the upcoming 2020 i20 registered a commendable 35% increase in sales when compared to sales in October’19 and an increase of 13% when compared with sales in September’20.
Other hatchbacks from Maruti’s stable, namely, WagonR and Alto managed to clinch the 3rd and 4th spot in the sales tally. WagonR saw its sales jump by 30% (GOLY) and registered dealer dispatches of 18,700 units in October’20 while Alto had an almost flat month and recorded total sales of 17.851 units.
The first non-Maruti hatchback on the list is coincidentally a Maruti again. The Dzire secured the 5th spot in the best selling cars of October’20 list. Dzire’s sales degrew (GOLY) by 10% in October’20, from 19,569 units in October’19 to 17,674 units in October’20. However despite the slowdown the model managed to become the best selling sedan across the industry.
Only Non-Maruti Brands
The first non-Maruti brand on the list is the Hyundai Creta. Hyundai dispatched 14,023 units of the Creta in the month of October’20. The model recorded a stupendous 92% GOLY as the previous generation Creta was facing heavy competition from the Kia Seltos last year. The only other non-Maruti brand in the list is the Grand i10/NIOS. The small hatchback managed to secure the 7th spot for itself by registering total dealer dispatches of 14,000 units in October’20. In the same month last year, Hyundai had registered combined sales of 9,873 units for the brand.
| No | Top 10 Cars | Oct-20 | Oct-19 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swift | 24,859 | 19,401 |
| 2 | Baleno | 21,971 | 16,237 |
| 3 | WagonR | 18,700 | 14,359 |
| 4 | Alto | 17,851 | 17,903 |
| 5 | Dzire | 17,674 | 19,569 |
| 6 | Creta | 14,023 | 7,269 |
| 7 | Grand i10 / NIOS | 14,000 | 9,873 |
| 8 | EECO | 13,309 | 10,011 |
| 9 | Brezza | 12,087 | 10,227 |
| 10 | S-Presso | 10,612 | 10,634 |
| – | Total | 1,65,086 | 1,35,483 |
Brezza No 1 Sub 4m UV – Beats Venue, Sonet
The 8th, 9th and 10th best selling cars October’20 were again models with a Maruti badge. The brands were Eeco, Brezza and S-Presso, respectively. With the Hyundai Venue, Kia Sonet missing from the list, it is clear that Maruti Brezza has managed to take the number 1 spot when it comes to sub 4 meter UV sales category. Interestingly, of the 3 cars, it is only Brezza which is offered in just a single petrol engine option whereas the other two are offered with 2 petrol and 1 diesel engine option; along with multiple gearbox options and state of the art features.
Surprisingly, after a long gap, all the top-10 best selling cars of the month managed to cross the 10K units sales mark. For many months, the Indian auto industry has been hit hard by slowing demand due to the ongoing pandemic but October’20 sales figures showcase that maybe, the revival of the economy has partially started, thanks to the easing up of lockdown related restrictions and increased consumption ahead of the festive season.
Kia Pushed Out
Except for a few months, a Kia car has managed to be there in the top 10 list. Oct 2020 saw Kia register its highest ever monthly sales of over 21k units. But despite of that, none of their cars, including star performers Seltos or Sonet; managed to be in the top 10 cars list.
Analysis
Overall the Top-10 best selling cars registered a combined growth of 21.85% when compared with the performance of the same brands from October’19. When compared with sales figures of September’20, the models registered an increase in sales by 14.67%. Earlier, we used to have around 6-7 brand names from Maruti, 2-3 from Hyundai and around 1 brand from Kia/Mahindra/Tata/Renault. However, in October’20, the list includes brands from just two OEMs, Maruti (8) and Hyundai (2).
