According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) 9.2 lakh SUVs were sold in 2017-18 compared to 7.6 lakh in the 2016-17
The Indian automobile market is usually known as the home of small cars. Most of the sales were coming from hatchback, but the trend of Indian customers is changing. In the last fiscal, SUV was the fast growing segment in the country as sales of SUVs grew 7 times faster than sedan or hatchback segment.
This growth is the highest in both two wheeler and four wheeler industries as the scooter segment registered a growth of 20 percent and bikes by 14 percent. The sedan and car segment registered growth of only 3 percent. The overall market share of the SUV segment increased to 30 percent in last fiscal compared to 14 percent growth recorded previously.
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According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) 9.2 lakh SUVs were sold in 2017-18 compared to 7.6 lakh in the FY2016-17. The total number of compact cars and sedans stood at 21.7 lakh units in FY2017-18 compared to 21 lakh units in FY2016-17. According to market analysts, the SUV segment will continue to grow thanks to the introduction of newer and more affordable models.
Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza and Ford EcoSport which are priced under Rs. 10 lakh are driving the growth for SUV segment in India. Hyundai India’s SUV sales grew by 20% in last fiscal compared to 10% in FY2016-17. One of the main reasons for the growth is thanks to the launch of Creta.
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Jeep Compass is one of the SUVs, which is also performing very well than expected and is the most affordable of the iconic American manufacturer’s lineup in India. Within the launch of Compass in 8 months, Jeep sold more than 20,000 units.
The company is developing Renegade which is going to be positioned below Compass in India. Another SUV, which is performing very well is Mahindra XUV 500. In the luxury SUV segment, Mercedes Benz is leading the way as 35% of its sales are coming from SUVs for the brand. Mercedes GLC and GLE are the popular SUVs for the brand.