Maruti Suzuki, India’s largest car manufacturer, foresees sustained growth in the sport utility vehicle (SUV) segment, surpassing the overall passenger vehicle market expansion. The company suggests ample room for substantial growth until the SUV segment attains a share of around 54-55% in the overall passenger vehicle market.
Currently, SUVs account for 48.7% of total passenger vehicle sales. Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales) at Maruti Suzuki India, indicated that the growth in SUV sales could continue until it reaches the 54-55% mark. In 2023, the SUV segment constituted 48.7% of total passenger vehicle sales, with expectations of further growth in the coming year.
Srivastava mentioned that according to their research, SUV growth might plateau around the 54-55% mark, and this year could see further expansion. He suggested that this growth trajectory might persist until 2025, depending on the market performance in 2024.
SUVs have been a key driver of passenger vehicle sales growth, compensating for the decline in small cars like hatchbacks and entry-level sedans. In 2023, SUV sales witnessed a substantial increase of around 26%, elevating their share in total passenger vehicle sales from 42% in 2022 to 48.7%. The overall passenger vehicle industry experienced an 8.3% year-on-year growth in sales during the calendar year 2023, surpassing 4.11 million units.
Hatchback cars’ share in total passenger vehicle sales dropped to 30% from 34.8% in 2023, while sedans declined to 9.4% from 11%. The contribution of multi-purpose vehicles remained steady at 8.7%. With hatchbacks and sedans unlikely to witness significant improvements in market share, the contribution of SUVs is poised to cross the 50% mark this year.
The increasing share of SUVs and top variants, coupled with price hikes due to higher input costs, has led to a notable rise in the average selling price in the passenger vehicle industry. According to Maruti Suzuki’s calculations, the average selling price in the industry surged to nearly Rs 11.50 lakh in 2023 from Rs 10.58 lakh in 2022. In 2019-2020, the industry’s average selling price was only Rs 8.20 lakh.
