Tata Motors overtook Mahindra & Mahindra and Hyundai Motor India to register the second highest car sales in March 2025 after Maruti Suzuki based on the latest retail data by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). The numbers further revealed these could be worrying times for Hyundai as it slipped to fourth position second time in a row.
Tata Motors: Number 2 after seven months
Tata Motors sold 48,462 units in March 2025 with a 13.82 market share. Based on year-on-year, the Indian car manufacturer registered 46,509 units in March 2024 and a market share of 14.10%. In terms of month-on-month, Tata Motors has seen a steady increase as it recorded 38,696 units and a market share of 12.75% in February.
After spending the last two months in third place, Tata Motors made a comeback in March 2025, storming back to the second spot in retail sales. The reason behind this is that Punch and the Nexon continue to churn some serious numbers as they are available in internal combustion engines (ICE), all-electric and CNG.
Tata Motors is gaining traction in sales from its electric vehicle (EV) lineup, maintaining a dominant 46% share with vehicles like the Nexon EV, Tiago EV, and Punch EV. However, the MG Windsor remains the best-selling EV in the country, crossing the 10,000 unit mark for the third consecutive time this year. Despite this stiff competition, Tata’s strong EV portfolio continues to drive its overall sales growth, reinforcing its leadership in the electric mobility segment.
In FY2024–25, Tata Motors reported retail sales of 524,449 passenger vehicles, marking a slight increase from 521,449 units in FY’24 and a minor growth of 0.6%. Shailesh Chandra, Managing Director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd. and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Ltd. said, “Amidst a challenging year marked by fluctuating demand, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles achieved wholesales of 5,56,263 units, including 64,726 units of EVs. We led the industry in SUV growth and outpaced it in CNG sales, recording over 50% YoY growth. Across various segments of the PV industry, Punch emerged as the top choice for private buyers to become India’s No. 1 SUV in FY25. Our latest launches and updates—Curvv, Nexon CNG, and Tiago—received an enthusiastic response, resonating strongly with customers. We achieved two key milestones in FY25, as we surpassed 6 million cumulative sales for PVs and 200,000 cumulative sales for EVs.”
Hyundai in choppy waters
Hyundai may have managed to grab the second position in wholesale, but the Korean automobile manufacturer slipped to fourth place for the second time in a row based on retail data by FADA. Hyundai sold 42,511 units with a market share of 12.13%, which is better than February 2025 with 38,156 units. Once looked at as one of the most aggressive automotive brands in the Indian market is now desperately holding on to the coattails of its competition — Tata Motors and Mahindra. While the two Indian manufacturers have been updating and launching new models, Hyundai seems to be running out of steam.
Both Tata Motors and Mahindra boast a diverse lineup of SUVs offering nearly every price bracket. Starting from the entry level, Tata Motors has the Punch then Nexon, Curvv, Harrier and Safari. Similarly, Mahindra has been launching one blockbuster after another from the Scorpio N, Thar and Thar Roxx, and the flagship XUV700.
Being the first mover in the EV sector, Tata Motors continues to be the leading brand, but now Mahindra has joined the party with two new models — the BE 6 and XEV 9E. Mahindra revealed that on day 1, both the EVs received 30,179 bookings worth Rs 8,472 crore for both the EVs.
The good news for Hyundai is that the Creta continues to be the undisputed mid-size SUV in the country and its new EV version has helped improve its sales further. The dilemma here for the company is that while the Creta is one of the most sought-after SUVs in the market, Hyundai’s competition is offering a range of options in ICE and EV segments. The time may have come for the South Korean manufacturer to step on the accelerator with bold strategies and fresh launches to reclaim its dominance.