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Indian carmakers have kicked off the new fiscal year with an impressive 27 per cent surge in passenger vehicle sales in April, driven by favourable policy tailwinds and strong performances from leading manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, and Kia.
Photograph: Babu/Reuters
Key Points
- Indian carmakers collectively sold an estimated 4.5 lakh passenger vehicles in April, a 27 per cent increase from the previous year.
- The growth is attributed to continued tailwinds from GST 2.0, repo rate cuts, and income tax benefits.
- Maruti Suzuki India reported record domestic sales of 1,91,122 units, with small cars contributing significantly to this growth.
- Other major players like Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hyundai, and Kia also reported substantial year-on-year sales increases.
- Two-wheeler manufacturers, including Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India and Royal Enfield, also saw significant domestic sales growth in April.
Carmakers began the new fiscal on a strong note, with an estimated 4.5 lakh units of passenger vehicles sold in April in the domestic market, up 27 per cent, on the back of record sales by firms, including Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Kia.
The industry continued to benefit from the tailwinds of GST 2.0 carried forward from the second half of last fiscal, along with repo rate cut and income tax benefit, Maruti Suzuki India Senior Executive Officer, Marketing & Sales, Partho Banerjee said.
Strong Performance Across Manufacturers
Passenger vehicle (PV) sales in the domestic market were 3.54 lakh units in April last year.
Maruti Suzuki India posted a record domestic sales of 191,122 units in April compared to 142,053 units in the year-ago month. Its previous highest domestic sales were in December 2025 at 182,165 units.
“We are starting this year with a big bang. Small cars have contributed significantly to this growth,” Banerjee told PTI.
The company’s small cars, comprising Alto, S-Presso, Celerio and WagonR, grew 74.4 per cent, he said, adding it has dispelled the doubts that people had over the future of small cars.
He, however, said any hike in petrol prices could have an impact on demand.
Addressing a virtual conference, Banerjee said the overall PV industry “is expected to be around 4.45 lakh to 4.5 lakhs in April this year and last year, the industry volume (for the same month) was 3.54 lakh”.
Growth Drivers and Future Outlook
Elaborating on the growth drivers, he said, “The three tailwinds of GST 2.0, the income tax relief and the reduction in the repo rates are still going on”.
Banerjee said that for Maruti Suzuki, there is a total of 1.65 lakh pending bookings, with the waiting period for its small cars extending to a month, and the company is gradually ramping up production to meet the rising demand.
Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd said its sales in the domestic market stood at 59,000 units last month against 45,199 units in the year-ago period, a growth of 30.5 per cent.
Homegrown Mahindra & Mahindra reported domestic passenger vehicle sales of 56,331 units compared to 52,330 units in April 2025, up 8 per cent, with its CEO, Automotive Division, Nalinikanth Gollagunta, stating that the company has started the new fiscal year 2026-27 “on a positive note in April”.
Benefiting from the policy support, Hyundai Motor India Ltd reported a 17 per cent year-on-year growth in domestic sales to 51,902 units in April 2026.
It was the company’s highest ever for the month of April since its inception.
“We have opened the new financial year on a strong note, carrying forward the momentum built in recent months into April 2026,” Hyundai Motor India Ltd MD and CEO Tarun Garg said.
Similarly, Kia India also reported a 16 per cent growth in wholesales to 27,286 units in April 2026 compared to 23,623 units sold in the same month last year. It was the highest-ever sales in April.
“Our highest-ever April performance builds on the steady growth we have seen over the past several months. This momentum is being led by the new Kia Seltos, with Sonet and Carens, along with Clavis continuing to strengthen our presence across key segments through ongoing enhancements,” Kia India Senior Vice-President, Sales & Marketing, Atul Sood said.
Another carmaker, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, reported domestic sales of 30,159 units compared to 24,833 units in April 2025, up 21 per cent.
“Our sales performance in April 2026 reflects steady and sustained progress, driven by a strong focus on customer centricity, product excellence and disciplined execution across markets,” TKM Executive Vice President, Sales-Service-Used Car Business, Sabari Manohar said.
JSW MG Motor India reported a 3 per cent year-on-year growth in dispatches to dealers at 6,018 units in April 2026 compared to the same month of the previous year.
Similarly, Renault India said it has clocked an over two-fold increase in domestic wholesales at 5,413 units in April 2026 compared to 2,602 units sold in the year-ago month.
Nissan Motor India said its domestic sales stood at 3,203 units.
Two-Wheeler Segment Also Sees Growth
In the two-wheeler segment, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) said its domestic sales stood at 4.84 lakh units compared to 4.22 lakh units a year ago, a growth of 14.7 per cent.
Mid-sized motorcycle maker Royal Enfield said its domestic sales were 1,04,129 units against 76,002 units in April 2025, up 37 per cent.
