Mumbai: Passenger vehicle retail sales in India rose a robust 32.1 per cent year-on-year to 4,27,213 units in September even as the total automobile retail sales for the month were 25,36,920 units, registering a growth of 31.82 per cent over September 2025, Federation of Indian Automobile Dealers (FADA) said Tuesday.
Two-wheelers’ demand for the previous month recorded a 33.08 per cent at 17,90,188 units against 13,45,153 units in September 2025, while three-wheeler sales stood at 1,32,570 units, up 22.25 per cent from 1,08,444 units in the year-ago period.
At the same time, commercial vehicle sales grew 37.62 per cent year-on-year in September 2026 at 1,03,557 units, FADA said in a statement.
“September’26 was the best-ever September in Indian auto retail, with the industry registering 25,36,920 units, up 31.82 per cent YoY, which is the most base distorted print of the year — a mirror of last September, when buyers deferred purchases in the week before GST 2.0 took effect September 22, 2025,” said Sai Giridhar, President, FADA.
It was the best-ever September across five of the FADA’s six categories and, with it, the best-ever first half of any financial year at 1,55,12,319 units (+20.77 per cent), he said, adding that retail rose 4.69 per cent over August; and even setting the distorted September aside, FY27’s first five months grew about 17 per cent, which is the truer underlying run-rate.
Passenger vehicle retails were the best-ever September sales with urban and rural growing (markets) almost in lockstep at 32.11 per cent and +32.09 per cent YoY, respectively, FADA said.
The fuel mix offered the month’s most watched signal: after alternative fuels overtook petrol for the first time in August, September saw the two settle into a near dead-heat, with petrol nudging marginally back ahead at 41.27 per cent against alternative fuels’ 41 per cent (CNG at 23.11 per cent, hybrid 9.44 per cent, EV 8.45 per cent), it said.
The August crossover was therefore an inflection, not a decisive flip with petrol and alternative fuels now effectively at parity, trading the lead month to month, even as EV share rose to a fresh high and CNG eased.
“One year on from GST 2.0, affordability remains the single engine of this cycle — and dealers now flag further price increases eroding that very affordability as their foremost risk for the quarter ahead. Protecting the GST gain is, to our mind, the key to converting the festive season into durable growth,” Girdhar added.
FADA said that overall, the outlook for October appears “cautiously optimistic” — with festive conversion on auspicious days the key swing factor.