NEW DELHI: Auto retails surged by a strong 34% to a record 11.6 lakh units in the auspicious Navratri period as GST cuts – that came into effect from September 22 – as well as start of the festive season in north boosted demand. The same was 8.6 lakh units in the nine-day Navratri period last year, according to retail sales data released by Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). The full month of September, however, had a relatively-modest 5% growth year-on-year on total automobile retails of 18.3 lakh units (against 17.4 lakh units). The two months are seen as broadly incomparable for statistical understanding since the larger part of September this year did not see customers take deliveries as they waited for price cuts from September 22 when the lower GST rates kicked in. The Navratri growth saw record demand for passenger cars, two-wheelers, and 3-wheelers. The passenger vehicles numbers were up 35% at 2.2 lakh units against 1.6 lakh units in the Navratri period last year.For 2-wheelers, the growth was 36% on total retail of 8.3 lakh units against 6.1 lakh units in the same period last year, as per FADA.
“Navratri 2025 will go down as one of the most memorable chapters in the country’s automotive retail journey… For the first time, dealerships across the nation witnessed record-breaking footfalls and deliveries,” FADA VP Sai Giridhar said.Companies across the board had passed on the GST benefits to the market, and some had even sweetened the deal further through festive offers. Maruti, Hyundai, Tata Motors, Mercedes-Benz, TVS, HMSI and Bajaj Auto witnessed strong traction. “It reminded us what the right policy at the right time can do for a nation’s sentiment.”Three-wheelers saw a growth of 25% at 46,204 units (37,097 units) in Navratris, while commercial vehicle retails were up 15% at 33,856 units (29,481). Sales of tractors were up 19% at 21,604 units.Companies expect demand to stay strong till the Diwali period, and have seen stock out of certain models. Shailesh Chandra, MD of Tata Motors’ Passenger Vehicles division, said the surge in demand “sets a promising tone for sustained growth” in the months ahead. “Across our portfolio, customer interest remained exceptionally strong with new bookings doubling in the latter half of September following the lowering of GST rates.”Mercedes-Benz sold a record 2,500 cars in the Navratri period.“We have never seen this kind of a demand in the past. This is a record for the number of cars sold in a particular number of days,” Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Santosh Iyer said.Mahindra & Mahindra said customer purchases are at record levels. “Thanks to the impetus from GST 2.0 and the preceding weeks’ pent-up demand, we have seen robust growth in dealer-reported customer retails during the first nine days of Navratri with over 60% growth in the SUV segment when compared to the first nine days of Navratri last year,” said Nalinikanth Gollagunta, CEO of the company’s Automotive Division.
