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Car Retail Sales May 2025: Cross-Border Tensions Cause Big Decline
In May 2025, car retail sales in India experienced a notable decline both year-on-year (YoY) and month-on-month (MoM). However, the overall auto sector showed modest growth with total retail sales across all segments increasing by 5% YoY.
According to the Federation of Automotive Dealers Association (FADA), passenger vehicle (PV) sales declined 13.6% MoM and 3.1% YoY, respectively as cross-border tensions saw demand across affected northern states drop significantly.
Speaking about the May 2025 retail car sales results, FADA President Mr. C S Vigneshwar said: "Passenger-vehicle retails contracted by 13.6% MoM and 3.1% YoY, while inventory days-which had hovered around 50-have edged up to approximately 52-53 days. Entry-level models were hardest hit as constrained financing and subdued consumer sentiment compounded the slowdown. Heightened war related tensions for border tensions like Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat further prompted buyers to delay purchases. Although bookings remained fairly healthy, retail conversions lagged on margin-money challenges and deferred decisions. OEMs must adopt a cautious, ground-reality-aligned approach to production planning and channel incentives so that dealers are not burdened by rising carrying costs or forced into excessive discounting."
Car Retail Sales Performance
In May 2025, a total of 3,02,214 units were sold in the car segment. This represented a decrease of 9,694 units compared to May 2024's figure of 3,11,908 units. Furthermore, it marked a MoM decline of 38,031 from April 2025's sales of 3,49,939 units.
Several leading carmakers experienced a reduction in sales figures. Maruti Suzuki maintained its position as India's top carmaker. However, its retail sales fell to 1,16,899 units from May 2024's total of 1,23,295 units. Mahindra secured the second spot with sales of 43,560 units in May 2025. This was a significant increase from the previous year's figure of 34,517 units sold in May.
Performance of Other Major Brands
Hyundai and Tata Motors followed closely behind Mahindra in the sales charts. Hyundai recorded sales of 38,189 units but saw a notable YoY decrease compared to May 2024's total of 45,503 units.
Tata Motors also faced a YoY decline with sales dropping to 36,669 units last month from May 2024's figure of 42,332 units—a volume decrease of 5,663 units. Toyota claimed the fifth position on this list with sales reaching 22,031 units, a significant improvement over May 2024's total of 19,344 units.
Kia India's sales dropped to 16,810 units from last year's figure of 19,394 units YoY. Meanwhile Skoda Auto saw substantial growth thanks to its new Kylaq model; sales increased significantly to reach a total of 8,359 units compared to 6 ,577 units sold during the same period last year.
| PV OEM | May'25 | Market Share (%) May'25 | May'24 | Market Share (%) May'24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA LTD | 1,16,899 | 38.68% | 1,23,295 | 39.53% |
| MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA LIMITED | 43,560 | 14.41% | 34,517 | 11.07% |
| HYUNDAI MOTOR INDIA LTD | 38,189 | 12.64% | 45,503 | 14.59% |
| TATA MOTORS LTD | 36,669 | 12.13% | 42,332 | 13.57% |
| TOYOTA KIRLOSKAR MOTOR PVT LTD | 22,031 | 7.29% | 19,344 | 6.20% |
| KIA INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED | 16,810 | 5.56% | 19,394 | 6.22% |
| SKODA AUTO VOLKSWAGEN GROUP | 8,359 | 2.77% | 6,577 | 2.11% |
| SKODA AUTO VOLKSWAGEN INDIA PVT LTD | 8,328 | 2.76% | 6,527 | 2.09% |
| VOLKSWAGEN AG/INDIA PVT. LTD. | 13 | 0.00% | 2 | 0.00% |
| AUDI AG | 18 | 0.01% | 43 | 0.01% |
| SKODA AUTO INDIA/AS PVT LTD | - | - | 5 | 0.00% |
| JSW MG MOTOR INDIA PVT LTD | 4,982 | 1.65% | 4,474 | 1.43% |
| HONDA CARS INDIA LTD | 4,076 | 1.35% | 4,908 | 1.57% |
| RENAULT INDIA PVT LTD | 2,434 | 0.81% | 3,667 | 1.18% |
| NISSAN MOTOR INDIA PVT LTD | 1,529 | 0.51% | 2,079 | 0.67% |
| MERCEDES -BENZ GROUP | 1,335 | 0.44% | 1,256 | 0.40% |
| MERCEDES-BENZ INDIA PVT LTD | 1,244 | 0.41% | 1,142 | 0.37% |
| MERCEDES -BENZ AG | 80 | 0.03% | 109 | 0.03% |
| DAIMLER AG | 11 | 0.00% | 5 | 0.00% |
| BMW INDIA PVT LTD | 1,045 | 0.35% | 1,029 | 0.33% |
| FORCE MOTORS LIMITED | 602 | 0.20% | 735 | 0.24% |
| BYD INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED | 494 | 0.16% | 177 | 0.06% |
| PCA AUTOMOBILES INDIA PVT LTD | 398 | 0.13% | 448 | 0.14% |
| JAGUAR LAND ROVER INDIA LIMITED | 373 | 0.12% | 362 | 0.12% |
| FCA INDIA AUTOMOBILES PRIVATE LIMITED | 270 | 0.09% | 368 | 0.12% |
| Others | 2,159 | 0.71% | 1,443 | 0.46% |
| Total | 3,02,214 | 100% | 3,11,908 | 100% |
Luxury Segment Overview
The luxury segment witnessed some positive trends as Mercedes Benz reported an uptick in demand with sales reaching 1 ,335 cars during this past month compared against slightly lower number around twelve hundred fifty-six vehicles sold back then within the corresponding time frame one year prior. BMW also experienced marginal growth adding sixteen more cars onto their tally bringing them up towards just over one thousand forty-five vehicles sold overall throughout entire month-long period under review here today .
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