September 2026 car sales see MoM decline for four top brands

India’s passenger vehicle wholesale market stayed broadly flat in September 2026 at around 4 lakh units. Maruti Suzuki remained the country’s largest carmaker, while Kia and Renault were the only manufacturers among the leading names to post month on month growth.

Tata stays ahead of Mahindra

Tata Motors finished September in second place, with Mahindra just 227 units behind it. The narrow gap highlights how closely the two manufacturers competed for the second position during the month.

For buyers comparing cars from these brands, the September numbers provide a snapshot of manufacturer-level wholesale volumes rather than sales of any single model. Individual car performance can therefore differ significantly from the overall company result.

Four of the top five decline

Most of the leading carmakers saw their wholesale volumes fall compared with August. The month on month movement among the top manufacturers was as follows:

• Maruti Suzuki recorded a month on month decline
• Tata Motors also reported lower volumes than August
• Mahindra was down month on month
• Kia posted month on month growth
• Renault was the other major carmaker to grow

Kia and Renault buck the trend

Kia and Renault stood out as the only two manufacturers among the group to record month on month growth in September. Their performance contrasted with the broader decline seen across most of the leading carmakers.

Maruti Suzuki still leads the market

Despite the month on month movement, Maruti Suzuki retained the top spot in India’s passenger vehicle wholesale rankings for September 2026. Tata Motors followed in second, with Mahindra close behind.

The overall market being broadly flat at around 4 lakh units suggests that September was more about changes in individual manufacturers’ shares of the market than a major shift in total wholesale volumes.

Which carmaker’s September performance matters most for your next purchase?