The hatchback segment has been gaining in popularity in recent times. They are regaled by first time buyers in the country and preferred both for their compact size and value for money. The recent lot of hatchbacks also score high in terms of fuel efficiency while the convenience they offer while manoeuvring on Indian roads also works in their favour.
As we look at the top 10 hatchbacks sold in India in December 2021 we find Maruti Suzuki led the segment with 6 offerings out of 10 on the list. Tata Motors had 3 cars while Hyundai had just had 1 car in the list.
Maruti Suzuki hatchbacks took up the top 4 spots in the list. At No 1 was the WagonR, being the best seller and only hatchback to post a YoY sales growth. WagonR overtook the Swift, Baleno and Alto by a significant margin. WagonR was also best-selling passenger car in India the past month. Sales stood at 19,729 units, up 11.5 percent over 17,684 units sold in December 2020.
Next in order came the Maruti Swift with sales of 15,661 units, down 13.6 percent over 18,131 units sold in December 2020. At No. 3 was Maruti Suzuki Baleno with sales down 19.8 percent YoY. Sales which had stood at 18,030 units in December 2020, dipped to 14,458 units in the past month. This premium hatchback is due for an update, which is expected to launch next month.
Maruti Suzuki Alto hatchback was at the 4th spot inn the list with 11,170 units sold last month, down 38.4 percent over 18,140 units sold in December 2020. The new-gen Alto has also been spied on test and due for launch sometime this year. It looks larger than its current model and its new Heartect platform would make it safer, lighter and also better to drive.
The next in line was Tata’s new small car – Punch. In Dec 2021, Tata Punch was the 5th best selling hatchback with over 8k units sold. Punch has managed to break the stronghold of Maruti and Hyundai cars in the hatchback segment of India.
At No 6 was the Hyundai Grand i10 that saw a 40 percent YoY de-growth. Sales dipped to 6,151 units, down from 10,263 units sold in December 2020. Hyundai has recently hiked prices of the Grand i10 upto Rs 7,300 citing rising input costs. Hyundai i20 was no longer in the top 10 list for Dec 2021. It has registered sales de-growth of 60.3 percent to 3,170 units.
Maruti Celerio and S-Presso featured at Nos. 6 and 7 among best-selling hatchbacks in the past month with 15 percent and 24.1 percent YoY de-growth. Sales dipped to 5,656 units and 5,150 units respectively. Celerio CNG will be the sixth CNG-equipped car from Maruti, to be offered on the Celerio’s base-spec LXI and mid-spec VXI variants.
Completing the list were two hatchbacks from Tata Motors. Altroz posted a 24 percent YoY de-growth to 5,009 units, down from 6,600 units sold in December 2020 while Tiago sales dipped 39.4 percent to 3,675 units.