Tata Motors pips Mahindra in vehicle registration

With entry-level cars being preferred amid the pandemic, market leader Maruti Suzuki has strengthened its hold, along with Hyundai Motor India.

Tata Motors (TaMo) has overtaken Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) to third place in terms of vehicles registered in July over the year-ago period.

This is according to market share data (manufacturer-wise), based on new registrations, released by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (Fada).

Further, with entry-level cars being preferred amid the pandemic, market leader Maruti Suzuki has strengthened its hold, along with Hyundai Motor India.

This is the first time the auto dealer body has released market share data based on registration.

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufa­cturers (Siam) releases data based on wholesale numbers (dispatches to dealers).

Based on Monday’s numbers, TaMo’s new registrations increased to 12,753 units in July, against 12,760 in the year-ago period.

Tata Group flagship saw its share in the passenger vehicle (PV) segment rise to 8.10 per cent, from 6.07 per cent last year.

Registration of M&M vehicles dropped to 7,811 units, from 17,828 last year, while the market share dropped to 5 per cent, from 8.47 per cent.

The top two, Maruti and Hyundai, strengthened their lead in terms of market share, even as volumes saw a year-on-year drop.

Maruti’s share jumped from 47.24 per cent to 50.40 per cent, while that of Hyundai’s inched up to 18.69 per cent, from 18.33 per cent last year.

Kia Motors India, one of the latest entrants into the PV market, cornered 4.45 per cent in July. Renault India, too, showed a smart recovery - its market share rose to 3.18 per cent, from 2.04 per cent.

Most other PV makers saw a yearly drop in market share, shows the data.

The local arms of Toyota and Honda Cars saw their share drop to less than 3 per cent each, from nearly 5 per cent last year.

“Compared to M&M, TaMo has a significantly younger portfolio, which helped them.

"The market share is the ability to supply (in today’s context) and the newness of products, along with customer profile - if one is able to attract credit-worthy customers or the bargain hunters,” said Ravi Bhatia, president and director at JATO Dynamics, a global supplier of automotive business intelligence.

For the same reason (newness), Kia has been able to attract buyers, added Bhatia.

Among two-wheeler makers, with the exception of market leader Hero MotoCorp - which saw its share rise to 40.66 per cent, against 35.61 per cent - most other two-wheeler makers saw a drop in share.

Even as the overall two-wheeler and PV sales have improved from June levels, auto companies remain cautious and have adopted a calibrated approach in ramping up for the festive season.

Photograph: Hemanshi Kamani/Reuters