It is stated that demand for petrol cars will continue to surge, as automakers are slowly removing diesel from their portfolios. However, the recent sales data reveals that demand for diesel SUVs and MUVs continues to remain strong. In fact, close to 100% sales of big SUVs and MUVs came from diesel cars in the first 9 months of 2022 (Jan-September).
Demand for diesel variants is significantly low in case of hatchbacks and sedans. In fact, multiple small diesel cars are set to be discontinued from our market in the next few months or on the arrival of stringent BS6-RDE (Real Driving Emission) emission norms.
Big SUVs including Mahindra Bolero, MG Gloster and Mahindra Alturas G4 have 100% of sales from diesel variants. Diesel variants contributes around 97% and 96% of total sales of Toyota Fortuner and Mahindra Scorpio, respectively, in the first 9 months of 2022. The Tata Harrier and Safari, Jeep Meridian and Citroen C5 Aircross are only available with diesel engine. The Mahindra XUV700 is available with diesel and petrol engine options, with former accounting for 66% of total sales.
Hyundai is currently selling Alcazar, Tucson, Creta and Venue in the SUV category. Diesel version of the Alcazar and Tucson contributes to 73% and 72% of total sales respectively. In case of Creta, 55% of total sales come from diesel version. The demand for diesel in Venue is lower compared to other Hyundai SUVs. Diesel version commands 22% of total Venue sales in the first 9 months of 2022.
The Kia Seltos diesel version accounts for 43% of sales, while diesel Sonet contributes 45% in total sales between January-September 2022. Over 50% of total Mahindra XUV300 sold are powered by diesel engine. In case of MG Hector and Jeep Compass, 36% and 57% of total sales come from diesel versions respectively.
The compact SUVs with low diesel sales include Tata Nexon (16%) and Honda WR-V (11%). Honda has already announced to discontinue its diesel cars from our market. The new WR-V is under development, which will be fitted with petrol engine & petrol hybrid options.
Talking about small cars, Hyundai i20 and Tata Altroz diesel versions account for 11% of total sales in first 9 months of 2022. The i20 diesel is expected to be discontinued in the coming months. In the sedan segment, Hyundai Verna’s diesel account for 41% of sales. The diesel demand for Honda Amaze and City came down to just 6% in January to September period 2022.
In the MPV segment, 95% of total Toyota Innova sales come from diesel version. However, Toyota dealers are now not accepting bookings for the diesel Innova Crysta. Moreover, Toyota will soon launch the new-gen Innova Hycross MPV with petrol and petrol hybrid engine options. The Kia Carens diesel accounts for 53% of total sales in the first 9 months of 2022.
Source – Team-BHP
