About 83 per cent of the premium hatchback segment’s total sales were dominated by petrol variants in the last financial year
We have learned in our recent article that diesel variants are still preferred by customers despite the penetration levels getting narrower than ever, as buyers opting to go for petrol compact SUVs have increased in the last financial year. The same statistics cannot be applied for all segments though, as premium hatchbacks prove otherwise.
In FY2018-19, the sales of petrol variants utterly dominated the B2 hatchback segment. Long led by Maruti Suzuki Baleno, more than four lakh units were sold in total and of which 83 per cent accounted for petrol variants. The Baleno overtook Hyundai Elite i20 on its way to prominence and it stuck there ever since.
The best-selling Nexa model was responsible for 2,12,330 unit sales last fiscal and a whopping 89 per cent was for petrol-spec Baleno at 1,88,120 units with diesel garnering a meagre 24,210 units. Hyundai retailed 1,40,225 units of the Elite i20 in FY2018-19 and 77 per cent of the total was for petrol variants – 1,08,375 units to be exact.
| Model | Petrol | Diesel |
| Maruti Baleno | 188,120 | 24,210 |
| Hyundai I20 | 108,375 | 31,850 |
| Ford Freestyle | 12,524 | 10,351 |
| Volkswagen Polo | 14,836 | 3,310 |
| Honda Jazz | 13,479 | 1,612 |
| Total | 337,334 | 71,333 |
Volkswagen’s Polo came home third in overall sales with Honda Jazz closely finishing in fourth. The German hatchback registered 18,146 units in the period between April 2018 and March 2019. The scenario did not change here as 14,836 units were for petrol variants while the diesel trims attracted only 3,310 units – 82 per cent for petrol and 18 per cent for diesel to give a clear idea.
In a similar fashion to Maruti Suzuki Baleno, 89 per cent of total units sold was for petrol variants in the Honda Jazz. The Japanese brand delivered 13,479 units of petrol Jazz in the financial year 2018-19 as only 1,612 units attributed to diesel. The main reason for petrol engined premium hatchbacks getting more attention is the attractive price point they are being positioned in.
| Model | Petrol% | Diesel% |
| Maruti Baleno | 89% | 11% |
| Hyundai I20 | 77% | 23% |
| Ford Freestyle | 55% | 45% |
| Volkswagen Polo | 82% | 18% |
| Honda Jazz | 89% | 11% |
| Total | 83% | 17% |
Moreover, the decreased price difference between petrol and diesel fuels has enabled consumers to go with the former. The trend will more likely continue into the future as the arrival of BSVI compliant engines will increase the price tags of diesel models more than that of petrol. Maruti Suzuki introduced the existing 1.2-litre K-series petrol and the all-new 1.2-litre DualJet petrol with BSVI compliance recently.