March’21 was yet another good month for the mid-sized SUV segment in India
Thanks to a low-base effect, the segment grew by 138% over last year same month and 8% over Feb’21. Addition of new products like the Hector Plus and Tata Safari have further helped the segment to post incremental volumes.
South Korean Duo Continue to Dominate
Considering the trends of past few months, it is very easy to predict the best seller in the segment – The Hyundai Creta. Even in Mar’21, Creta has been able to maintain its lead over the rivals and managed to grow by 88% YOY and 2% over last month.
It was in March’20 that Hyundai had brought in the new generation Creta. However, thanks to the lockdown, sales numbers were on the lower side. For past few months, Creta has been clocking sales of ~12K+ units per month. Interestingly, despite these numbers, many trims of Creta have a waiting period of 6+ months.
On the sales chart, the Creta was followed by the Seltos which grew by 41% on a YOY basis. The model also posted 27% growth over Feb’21. Up until the launch of the new gen Creta, Seltos had become the undisputed King of the category. However, post the launch of the 2020 Creta, Seltos slipped to the second spot and has been there consistently.
Hector Plus boosts sales
MG had posted its best ever sales in India in Mar’21. Unsurprisingly, the major contributor was the Hector, which grew by a stupendous 237% YOY. Even in comparison with Feb’21, Hector brand registered a 29% growth. Addition of the Hector Plus in MG’s line-up has further helped the Hector brand to post incremental sales.
Maruti’s S-Cross, which was not on sale in Mar’20 has bagged the 4th spot in the sales chart. Last year, Maruti was busy with bringing in the petrol version of the S-Cross and hence had taken the S-Cross off the showrooms for a brief period. In Mar’21, the model clocked total dealer dispatches of 2,535 units and managed to grow by 1% over Feb’21.
Mahindra’s Scorpio recorded a 5728% increase YOY, by clocking sales of 2,331 units. However, the model has de-grown in terms of sales, when compared with Feb’21. Most customers are currently waiting for the next generation Scorpio and the same is visible in the sales numbers as well.
Harrier and Safari Duo
Tata Motors had a Marvelous March’21. Both, the Harrier and Safari posted healthy growths over last year and even last month. Harrier recorded a 261% increase YOY, while Safari didn’t have a base to compare it with. When compared with Feb’21,Harrier grew by 13% while the Safari grew by 26%. However, when compared with the Hector Twins, the Tata duo came at the second spot. This would be interesting, how this rivalry proceeds in the future.
Jeep’s Compass recorded total dealer dispatches of 1,360 units and grabbed the 8th spot in the list. The current generation Mahindra XUV 500 is clearly at the end of its life-cycle and national sales of just 603 units in Mar’21 reflect the same. Mahindra has confirmed that the next generation XUV will launch by Sep 2021, which is when the brand should see some revival. Duster is another product which has aged and needs a replacement. Sales of 252 units in Mar’21 is a clear testimony to the same.
