May Auto Sales Plumpets 4%, PV Segment Faces Sharp Fall!

The Auto sales in India saw a year-to-year decline compared to last year of the same month, i.e., May. This pattern has been noticed based on data from the Vahan portal. Around 20.3 lakh vehicles were registered by 3 PM on Saturday, compared to the 21.1 lakh registrations in May 2024.

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) and other industry experts believe that sales will remain low this financial year. The passenger vehicle segment saw the biggest drop in sales, with an approximate 8.6% down in sales (only 2.8 lakh cars were sold in May, compared to 3.07 lakh last year). The low rate of sales could be attributed to the decreased demand in cities and the increased interest in high-priced SUVs.

Sales of two-wheelers, though, tell a different story. There has been a remarkable improvement in the sales of bikes and scooters. This May, 15.9 lakh units were sold (Compared to 15.4 lakh in the same month last year), thus marking an increase of 3.28%. The three-wheeler segment also saw a small growth (less than 1%), with sales of 99,700 units, compared to 99,154 units last year. 

The electric vehicle (EV) segment outperformed its traditional counterparts in sales. There was a growth of over 16% in sales, with around 1.63 lakh EVs sold this May, compared to the 1.4 lakh last year. This increase in sales could be a direct result of the increasing competition from traditional automakers.

May marked a slight decline in sales, but the month of April 2025 showed a slight growth (year-on-year) of 3% in retail sales. The growth trend of April was positive for all segments except commercial vehicles (such as trucks and buses), which saw a drop of 1%. There was a 24.5% growth for three-wheelers, 2.25% for two-wheelers, and passenger vehicle sales rose by 1.5%. 

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Due to the wedding season and post-harvest purchases by rural buyers, industry experts believed, there would be an increase in two-wheeler sales. Car sales were meanwhile predicted to remain steady, as customers would wait for new model launches and high loan interest rates.