According to Vahan data, two-wheeler registrations grew 7% to a record 20.2 million units in 2025, while passenger vehicle registrations grew 9% to 4.38 million units, also a record.
New Delhi: India’s top manufacturers of scooters, motorcycles and cars are set to close the year on a record high, with two-wheeler retail registrations crossing 20 million and four-wheeler registrations crossing 4.3 million for the first time.
New Delhi: India's top manufacturers of scooters, motorcycles and cars are set to close the year on a record high, with two-wheeler retail registrations crossing 20 million and four-wheeler registrations crossing 4.3 million for the first time.
According to data from the government's Vahan portal, which records vehicle registrations after they have been sold at dealerships, two-wheeler registrations grew by 7% to 20.2 million units in 2025, breaking the all-time record of 19.6 million registrations in 2018. Meanwhile, passenger vehicle registrations (cars, sports utility vehicles and vans) grew 9% year-on-year to 4.38 million units, also a new record.
This growth is reflected in investors' bullishness for the automobile sector, with the Nifty Auto rising 22% during the year, against 10% for the benchmark Nifty 50.
Effect of GST cuts
Independent analysts have noted over the past few days that the automobile sector as a whole benefited from the goods and services tax (GST) cuts in September, helping it achieve record-high sales.
"Following the GST rationalization, demand has picked up across segments and seems to have remained intact even after the festive season. A notable trend is that entry-level vehicles, both two-wheelers and passenger vehicles, are seeing a marked pickup in demand," analysts at Motilal Oswal Financial Services wrote in a 30 December note.
In September, the Union government reduced the GST rate for small passenger vehicles and two-wheelers from 28% to 18%, and for bigger vehicles from 45-50% to 40%, following which automakers announced a series of price cuts.
Mahindra at No. 2
The automobile sector saw many other firsts besides the record growth in both two-wheeler and four-wheeler registrations. Mahindra and Mahindra ended the year at number two in passenger vehicles for the first time in at least 10 years, from when Vahan registration data is available for each company. In doing so, it eclipsed the Indian arm of Korean carmaker Hyundai, which has often come in second over the past few years. This year, Hyundai India was relegated to third place.
According to Vahan data, Maruti Suzuki recorded 8% growth in passenger vehicle sales to 1.7 million units, Mahindra and Mahindra recorded 20% growth to more than 583,000 units, and Tata Motors clocked 5% growth to 552,000 units, while Hyundai India saw a 1% decline to 557,000 units.
Legacy players' top electric two-wheeler market
Two-wheeler companies also saw mixed registration growth. TVS Motor Company led the pack with a 17% surge in registration to 3.8 million units, Hero Motocorp recorded 6% growth to 5.8 million units, and Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India clocked6% growth to 5 million units. Bajaj Auto's sales declined 1% to 2.15 million units.
Another first is that legacy two-wheeler makers TVS and Bajaj Auto are set to end the year at the top of EV market. Vahan data showed that TVS's EV sales jumped 35% to nearly 298,200 units while Bajaj Auto saw 39% growth to nearly 270,000 units.
The surge, along with rising sales of EVs in other segments such as four-wheelers, three-wheelers and commercial vehicles resulted in total EVs sales crossing two million for the first time. EV sales across all categories rose by 15% to 2.2 million.
Impressively, these milestones came during a time of unique geopolitical turmoil, with China restricting exports of rare earth magnets used in both internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and EVs.
Smaller discounts on the cards
With auto companies cheering the sales momentum, analysts now foresee smaller discounts in the coming months as companies look to relieve the pressure on profit margins. "Our analysis suggests that at current spot prices, 2W and PV OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) can see overall margin pressure of 67-74 bps from 2QFY26 levels," Rishi Vora and Apurva Desai of Kotak Institutional Equities wrote in a 24 December note. "PV and 2W segments are relatively impacted more, as they have higher content of base metals and PGM (platinum group metals) as compared to CVs and tractors."
Amit Hiranandani and Dev Jogani of PhillipCapital said in a 28 December note that demand so far has favoured SUVs and cars, with momentum remaining strong. "Vehicle retail demand remains healthy across segments after the GST cuts, with SUVs and premium models leading growth. Inventory is under control for most OEMs," they wrote.
"In two-wheelers, Royal Enfield and TVS are outperforming, while others show stable trends amid rising competition and controlled inventories. Passenger vehicle sales continue to favour SUVs, led by Mahindra, with Maruti Suzuki strong in entry- to mid-level models; discounts are expected to reduce going forward," the note added.
Two-wheeler and four-wheeler companies did not respond to Mint's request to comment on the developments.