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Informist, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026

 

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--FADA: Aug total vehicle retail sales 2.42 mln units, up 17.5% on year
--FADA: Aug passenger vehicle retail sales 402,398 units, up 16.1% on yr
--FADA: Aug 2-wheeler retail sales 1.71 mln units, up 19.7% on year
--FADA: Aug CV retail sales 90,769 units, up 14.5% on year
--FADA: Aug 3-wheeler retail sales 122,281 units, up 8.6% on year
--FADA: Aug tractor retail sales 87,977 units, up 0.8% on year
--FADA: PV inventory up by 5 days from Jul-end to 38-40 days as of Aug-end
--FADA:Auto retail sales YoY growth in rural outpaced urban in all categories
--FADA: Flat tractor sales Aug clearest sign of monsoon-linked rural stress
 

 

MUMBAI – Automobile retail sales continued their year-on-year growth trajectory as all segments reported their best-ever August, barring tractors, data from the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations showed Monday. Tractor sales grew mildly on year but dwindled on month, in what the auto dealers' lobby body called "the clearest sign of monsoon-linked rural stress."

 

Dealerships sold 2.42 million automobiles in August, up 18% on year but down a little over 6% on month. The monthly moderation was due to a "monsoon lull" and a festival calendar that shifted the Hindu festival of Ganesh Chaturthi and the spillover of Onam-led buying into September, FADA President Sai Giridhar said in a press release. 

 

"We would, however, read the headline with discipline: much of the YoY (year-on-year) strength rests on a soft August 2025 base, when buyers had deferred purchases awaiting the GST 2.0 rate cut, and dealers report that the festive curtain-raiser came in below their own expectations — the true test of the season lies in showroom conversion through September to November, not in year-on-year optics," Giridhar said.

Retail sales of two-wheelers grew almost 20% on year, but down 6% on month to 1.71 million units – a record high for any August for the segment. "Dealers credited sustained GST 2.0 affordability and steady rural demand, while the powertrain shift deepened — 2W EV share reached 10.68%, crossing the 10% mark in a non-festive month for the first time, against 7.66% a year ago," Giridhar said. 

 

Passenger vehicle retail sales grew 16% on year, but fell 3% on month to 402,398 units. This was the first time dealers sold more than 400,000 units in any August. It was also the first time sales of cars with compressed natural gas, hybrid and electric powertrains combined overtook petrol in the passenger vehicle market. "A little over a year ago petrol led this contest by nearly eleven percentage points; that lead has now been erased," Giridhar said. 

 

This shift comes as consumers continue to favour running-cost economics and hesitation around the transition to E20 fuel, Giridhar said. Inventory of passenger vehicles with dealerships grew 5 days from end of July to 38-40 days at the end of August. "With festive stocking now underway, we urge PV OEMs to bill strictly to retail so that dealer capital is not locked in ageing inventory," Giridhar said.   

 

Dealerships sold 90,769 commercial vehicles in August, up almost 15% on year, but down nearly 9% on month. Sales of almost all sub-segments within commercial vehicles grew year on year. This growth can be attributed to execution of the government's infrastructure projects, mining, and e-commerce-linked logistics along with steady financing, FADA said. 

 

Tractors' retail sales grew mildly on year but tumbled 25% on month in August to 87,977 units. Sales of three-wheelers grew almost 9% on year but fell by a similar quantum on month to 122,281 units as penetration of electric variants climbed to 65%.

 

RURAL VS URBAN

The gap between automobile sales in rural and urban areas across segments continued to narrow in August, and was the narrowest since it hit a one-year high around May. Around 48% of automobiles were sold in rural India in August, up from around 44% in May.   

 

Passenger-vehicle sales in rural India grew 25%, compared to almost 11% in urban India. Similarly, retail sales of commercial vehicles grew 16% in rural India, up from 13% in urban India. For two-wheelers, which account for a significant share of automobiles sold in India, sales grew almost in line in both urban and rural India, at around 19-20% year-on-year.  

 

OUTLOOK

Indian automobile dealers hold a "constructive" sentiment for September. However, only 67% of dealers surveyed by FADA expect growth in September, down from 74% previously. "Expectations rest on the festive season proper now beginning — Ganesh Chaturthi, the Onam sales spillover and the onset of Navratri — with 43.59% of dealers reporting festive booking pipelines already building," FADA said.

 

For the next three months, around 82% of the dealers surveyed by FADA expect growth, while around 17% expect it to remain flat. "Dealers rank festive demand underdelivering versus expectations as the single biggest risk (29.06%), followed by a below-normal monsoon's impact on rural demand (17.52%) and further price hikes affecting affordability (11.11%)," FADA said.   End

 

Reported by Anand JC

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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