The Indian two-wheeler industry continues to grow at a rapid pace. India runs on two-wheelers and this age-old adage has stood the test of time. With manufacturers getting more and more aggressive with their product and pricing strategies, the Indian two-wheeler industry registered a cumulative sales of 14,13,152 units, up from 12,26,262 units sold in March 2023. As has been the case since almost forever, Hero Motocorp has led the charge, riding on the popularity of its commuter offerings. Here’s how some of the major players fared in the last month:
Hero Motocorp
Hero Motocorp might have sealed the deal again with astronomical sales figures but compared to March 2023, they fell a little short. In March 2023, the company managed to sell 519,342 units while in March 2024, the number dropped down to 490,415. Hero Motocorp might bounce back again in this regard, given the popularity that the Xtreme 125R has gained since its launch. It is also worth noting here that Vida, Hero’s electric arm, managed to sell 4,000 units of the Vida V1. This is the highest sales that it has garnered ever since its launch.
Honda
March 2024 was absolutely magical for Honda two-wheelers India as they not only came to the second spot in cumulative sales but also registered a staggering YoY growth of 81 percent! The overall sales of Honda two-wheelers stood at 3,86,455 units. In the past financial year, Honda launched a slew of products, catering to different segments. This, we believe could have been an apex factor in Honda’s sales soaring high. What’s interesting to note here is that if you factor in MoM growth, things weren’t too bright for Honda as in February 2024, the company registered 4,13,967 units sold in February 2024
TVS
TVS also managed to post strong performance in the month of March 2024 as its total sales stood at 354,592 units as compared to 317,152 units in March 2023. Domestic two-wheeler sales grew 8% from 240,780 units in March 2023 to 260,532 units is March 2024. It is interesting to note here that TVS motorcycles were a lot more popular than their scooters. TVS motorcycles saw a 22% YoY growth while scooters only posted 2% growth.
Suzuki
FY24 turned out to be stellar for Suzuki Motorcycles India as they registered 21 per cent growth against 9,38,371 units sold in FY23. The company sold 11,33,902 units in FY24 and this is the first time that Suzuki has crossed the FY24 mark. Talking about the month of March 2024 in particular, Suzuki sold a total of 1,03,669 units in March 2024. This translates to 6.2 per cent growth from 97,584 units in March 2023. In the domestic market, Suzuki posted 18 per cent growth as its sales closed at 86,164 units in March 2024 compared to 73,069 units in March 2023.
Bajaj
While all the other bike manufacturers are posting decent sales performance, Bajaj didn’t want to feel left out. And it won’t! Because in the domestic market, Bajaj sold 1,83,004 units, reflecting a 20 per cent increase compared to March 2023. The cumulative sales including exports stood at 3,13,885 units, showcasing a 27 per cent rise year-on-year. This was achieved by Bajaj’s strong presence in international markets. Bajaj’s popularity in the domestic and international market alike, is bound to increase by the launch of the upcoming NS 400.
Royal Enfield
The king of the premium segment, Royal Enfield, doesn’t have the strong backing of commuter motorcycles and gearless scooters. Yet, it keeps on setting sales charts on fire, riding on the popularity of its 350 series of motorcycles, majorly the Classic and the Hunter. In March 2024, RE sold 75,500 motorcycles, as against 72,235 motorcycles in March 2023. 90 per cent of the sales were accounted by its 350cc motorcycles. Overall international sales declined 23 per cent in March 2024 to 9,507 units. Clearly, domestic sales volumes is still Royal Enfield’s mainstay.
Electric two-wheeler sales in March 2024
March 2024 was a record-breaking month for electric two-wheelers in India as the cumulative sales stood at 1,36,559 units. It is just the second time that EV two-wheelers have crossed the 1 lakh monthly sales mark. As expected, Ola has wreaked havoc on its competitors by selling a total of 50,545 units in March. With its strong performance, Ola has become the first Indian EV maker to sell over 3 lakh units in a fiscal year.
Just like Ola, TVS wasn’t far behind either. It seems like iQube, TVS’ sole electric offering (apart from the X) has finally gained traction. TVS clocked its best-ever monthly sales in March 2024 – 26,478 units – which is far better than its previous best of 19,135 units in November 2023.
Bajaj, riding on the Chetak, sold a total of 17,933 units, its best-ever monthly numbers yet. Another important stat here to note is that Bajaj Auto is now commanding a market share of 11.27 percent, nearly tripling its 4 percent share in FY23.
Ather too, registered its highest-ever monthly sales in March 2024. Ather Energy sold a total of 17,221 units in March 2024. This number is only going to increase for Ather, as it has recently launched its family-oriented scooter Rizta.
Winners? There were many. Losers? Seems like there weren’t any.
