India’s automobile retail sales stand at over 31.72 lakh units in Oct, EVs at all-time high

New Delhi: India’s automobile sector saw total vehicle retails at 31,72,466 units, 25.05 per cent higher than September but 23.80 per cent lower than October 2025, as the year-on-year decline is almost entirely optical, the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) said on Friday.

The clearest bright spot was electrification. EV retails touched an all-time high of about 3.55 lakh units, up 44.88 per cent year-on-year, lifting overall EV penetration to roughly 11.5 per cent from about 6 per cent a year ago — a best-ever October for electric Two-Wheelers, Three-Wheelers, Passenger Vehicles and Commercial Vehicles alike.

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Last October was an exceptional month that carried both Navratri and Deepawali together, over and above the pent-up demand released after the GST 2.0 rate cuts.

This year, Navratri fell in October while Dhanteras and Diwali moved into November. Measured against that extraordinary base, two-wheelers declined 28.35 per cent and passenger vehicles 14.23 per cent, even as commercial vehicles grew 2.29 per cent, three-wheelers 3.97 per cent, tractors 3.10 per cent and construction equipment 22.07 per cent, according to FADA data.

“Seen correctly, this was still the second-highest October on record — with Commercial Vehicles, Three-Wheelers and Tractors each posting their best-ever October — and the 25 per cent sequential jump over September is the truer measure of festive demand,” said FADA president Sai Giridhar.

Two-Wheelers retailed 23,21,419 units. Their year-on-year optics are the weakest of any category, because the two-wheeler is the most festival- and rural-sensitive segment, and last October captured the full Deepawali wave that this year falls in November.

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“Yet month-on-month, they rose 29.67 per cent, and independent festive-window tracking shows two-wheeler registrations growing on a like-for-like basis — the truer measure of the season. Dealers report healthy festive footfalls, tempered by localised rural stress in areas hit by deficient rains and a weak kharif, and by the fading of last year’s GST price advantage after subsequent manufacturer price increases,” Giridhar explained.

Commercial Vehicles stood out, retailing 1,15,140 units — up 2.29 per cent year-on-year and 11.19 per cent over September — a best-ever October despite the high base.

Growth was led by heavier trucks, with HCVs up 28.95 per cent and MCVs 21.16 per cent, even as LCVs eased 9.57 per cent.

Passenger Vehicles retailed 5,07,768 units — 14.23 per cent below an exceptional October 2025 but 18.86 per cent above September, and the third-best October on record.

Utility vehicles and a strong launch pipeline continued to anchor demand, while entry-level cars remained in the softer spot.

“Our pressing concern is inventory: against record wholesale dispatches from manufacturers, Passenger Vehicle channel stock held at around 43–45 days — unchanged from September. With the Dhanteras-to-Diwali retail wave now under way, we expect inventory to fall back in 30 days range by end of CY,” said the FADA president.