Vehicle registrations up 18% in Sept. on two-wheeler rebound

Vehicle registrations rose 18% month-on-month to 54,214 units in September from 45,811 in August, driven mainly by a rebound in two-wheelers and three-wheelers, JB Securities said. Registrations rose across most major categories, though volumes remained below levels recorded earlier in 2026.

Two-wheelers accounted for the bulk of the increase, rising to 38,747 units from 33,498. Of these, 38,178 were brand-new. TVS led overall for the second consecutive month with 8,684 units, ahead of Bajaj with 8,035 and Honda with 7,673. Bajaj still led brand-new motorcycles with 7,821 units, while Honda led scooters with 7,532, ahead of TVS with 6,668. Financing accounted for 54.4% of two-wheeler registrations.

Three-wheeler registrations rose 37.3% to 5,375 from 3,914. Bajaj dominated the passenger segment with 4,278 units, or 82.2%, followed by TVS with 660 and Piaggio with 166. Cargo three-wheelers added 171 units, led by Piaggio with 126.

Motor car registrations rose to 3,414 from 2,609, with pre-owned cars accounting for most of the gain. Brand-new registrations edged up to 685 from 631, led by BYD with 338 units, almost all ATTO 1s. Pre-owned registrations rose to 2,729 from 1,978, led by Suzuki with 946 units, of which 770 were WagonRs, and Toyota with 683. Small cars below 1,000 cc accounted for 96.5% of brand-new and 98.1% of pre-owned registrations. Financing accounted for 47% of all car purchases.

SUV and crossover registrations increased to 3,941 from 3,226, comprising 1,633 brand-new and 2,308 pre-owned units. Toyota led with 1,357 units, including 1,032 Raizes, followed by Honda with 753, almost all Vezels, and Suzuki with 394, mostly Fronx models. Among Chinese brands, Jetour recorded 289 units and BYD 245. Premium vehicle registrations remained marginal at 77 units, up from 66.

Electric vehicle registrations rose to 6,048 from 5,084, with electric two-wheelers accounting for 5,030 units, led by Yadea with 2,067. Electric motor cars totalled 495 units. The financing share for EVs was 40.1%. JB Securities said this suggests a substantial share of purchases were made without financing, or that dealers registered vehicles before final sale. Hybrid registrations rose to 2,168 from 1,942, almost entirely SUVs and crossovers, led by Toyota and Honda.

Commercial vehicle trends were mixed. Medium-truck registrations rose to 386 units, with Isuzu holding a 77% share, while pickups increased to 361, led by Mahindra. Toyota recorded 116 pickups, including 72 Land Cruiser pickups attributed to the wildlife department. Heavy-truck registrations slipped to 218 from 230, and buses fell to 235 from 271. However, financing penetration for buses rose sharply to 69.8% from 40.6%.

Agricultural machinery also picked up. Large-tractor registrations doubled to 273 from 136, though they remained below June’s 353. Financing penetration in that segment rose to 78.8%, which JB Securities said underlines continued reliance on credit for agricultural machinery.

By origin, Indian imports rose to 36,495 units from 30,669, dominated by 29,308 two-wheelers and 5,299 three-wheelers. Japanese imports increased to 5,930 from 4,735, concentrated in compact cars and SUVs. Locally assembled registrations rose to about 4,999 from around 4,324, of which 4,595 were two-wheelers.

JB Securities said the continued dominance of small cars, small crossovers and two-wheelers highlights the importance of affordability in the market. While the broad-based rise points to a recovery in demand, it said sustainability will depend on household purchasing power, access to credit and the cost of vehicle imports.