Top five car manufacturers in October 2014

There was a lot of build up to the festive season this year as sales had been rolling in the positive after a long time. But it turned out to be an average run for carmakers as sales didn’t rise as expected. Nevertheless, several new launches in the past couple of months which includes cars like the Ciaz, Elite i20 and the new Scorpio, and just this week, the Maruti Alto K10 will help maintain momentum in the coming months. We expect sales to dip in the last two months of the year though as end of year sales tend to drop with buyers waiting to purchase 2015 models. Meanwhile, here are the top five car manufacturers this month and how they fared – 

1. Maruti Suzuki

Maruti sales grew by a miniscule one percent last month selling 97,069 units compared to 96,062 units in the same period last year. Sale of popular cars like the Swift, Swift Dzire and Celerio cumulatively dipped in October. That’s mainly due to the fact that the Swift was due for a facelift, which happened last week and the Dzire will receive one this month or next. Sales were bolstered by the excellent response received for the Ciaz. Maruti sold 6,345 units of the Ciaz last month making it the best selling sedan in its segment in the month of October, ousting the Honda City at the sales charts. Exports dipped 23.5 percent.

2. Hyundai 

Hyundai’s sales went up 5.6 percent to the corresponding period in 2013 clocking 38,010 units, 2,008 units more compared to October 2013. Riding on the wave of momentum brought around by the Elite i20, Hyundai could offset the dip in sales of the Verna. The Verna is getting an update early next year so Hyundai is all set to pounce back at the C-segment with a vengeance. Meanwhile, the Santro is going to see the end of road soon as Hyundai plans to discontinue this old workhorse. With that, the entry level hatchback segment will only have the Eon. Hyundai’s exports grew by 26.7 percent in October.

3. Mahindra

The festive season brings in a lot of traditional customers who believe in an auspicious day, and going by Mahindra’s tier-2 and tier-3 city network, there was little doubt that the month of October should usher in a fresh boost. But it didn’t despite the launch of the new Scorpio. Sales dipped compared to September marginally and by a large margin to the corresponding period last year. Mahindra sold 19,254 units last month, compared to 22,924 units in October 2013. Exports dropped by 10 percent as well.

4. Honda

Honda sales have dipped in the past few months as the company gets up to speed with the new plant in Tapukara and gears up for fresh competition. The Maruti Ciaz has an edge over the City being a new launch but only time will tell if Maruti can sustain this sales momentum. Honda sold 13,242 units in October 2014 compared to 11,214 units in the corresponding period last year. That’s an 18 percent growth. With the Jazz expected early next year, expect this number to grow further in 2015. Honda isn’t a large exporter of cars from India, shipping out 357 units last month.

5. Toyota

Toyota sits right on the heels of Honda as sales stood at 12,556 units in October 2014 as against 13,162 units in the corresponding period last year. This amounts to a 4.6 percent drop. With the Mobilio entering the MPV market, the Innova has tougher competition to fend off. Also, the Innova is due for a replacement sometime next year so the old workhorse is set to face a tough few months ahead. The revival of the Etios series and its exports has helped Toyota maintain momentum this year. Toyota exported 1,160 units last month.

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