Chinese company BYD achieves record sales for the Sealion 7 model in the Indian market

The Volkswagen Taigun has celebrated its five-year anniversary in the Indian market. The company first introduced this model in September 2021. Over the past five years, one hundred thousand units of this crossover have been sold in India. Data on this mid-sized SUV was published by the SIAM organization.

According to SIAM data, 99,095 units of this mid-sized crossover were sold by the end of September 2026. To exceed the one hundred thousand mark, the vehicle needs to sell only 905 units in October. By September, the company had exported 52,751 units of the Taigun.

Thus, the total number of Taigun units sold, including domestic sales and exports, reached 151,846. Sales of this car began in the 2022 fiscal year. In the first year of sales, 16,889 units were sold. In the 2023 fiscal year, the SUV showed a growth of 28.69%, selling 21,738 units.

In the 2024 fiscal year, the company sold 20,485 units, after which sales began to decline. In the 2025 fiscal year, Volkswagen sold 19,910 units, and in the 2026 fiscal year, with a drop of 35.14%, 12,912 units were sold. To date, in the 2027 fiscal year, another 7,163 units have been sold, totaling 99,095 Volkswagen Taiguns in the Indian market.

Despite the fact that the sales of this SUV lag behind competitors in its segment, the company released an updated version of the Taigun this year. Sales data analysis shows a growth of approximately 4% year-on-year. In the updated version, the company added an automatic transmission along with an expanded set of features. The starting price of this vehicle is 10.99 lakh rupees, including all charges.

The Volkswagen Taigun is the brand's first SUV and was developed on the MQB A0 IN platform. This car became the first product of the company's India 2.0 project. On the same platform, the Skoda Kushaq was launched in India in June 2021 (previously). A total of 104,863 units of this SUV have been sold to date.

There is a growing demand for CNG-powered vehicles in the Indian market. In September, these vehicles accounted for 23.11 percent of total sales, making them the second most popular fuel after petrol in the passenger car segment. According to reports, 105,410 units were put into operation in September.

This figure demonstrates significant growth compared to last year: in September of last year, 83,357 CNG-powered cars were sold, which corresponds to a year-on-year increase of 26.5 percent.

Maruti Suzuki dominates this segment, selling the highest number of CNG vehicles. Hyundai is also actively increasing its market presence. Tata Motors ranks second in terms of CNG vehicle sales volume.

The Maruti Suzuki Ertiga CNG has become a bestseller in the CNG category due to its seven-seater variant. Besides it, the list of best-selling models includes the Dzire, Punch, Hyundai Aura, and Maruti Suzuki Vitto.

According to Auto पंडित्ज, the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga CNG topped sales, realizing 12,481 units in the CNG version. Maruti Suzuki Dzire took second place, selling 12,026 units, although its sales in September decreased by 4 percent compared to September of last year.

Third place in the list was held by the Maruti Suzuki WagonR, which sold 8,596 units in the CNG version. Tata Punch entered the top five, selling 8,473 units. Hyundai Aura is in fifth place, having sold 7,278 units in CNG.

Vitto showed the highest growth rate among CNG vehicles. Maruti Suzuki sold 7,216 units of this model in CNG, whereas only 1,449 units were sold in September of last year. Maruti Suzuki Brezza is also listed, having sold 7,214 units in CNG.

Tata Nexon became the eighth best-selling CNG car, selling 7,149 units in September. Maruti Suzuki Fronx sold 6,034 units in the CNG version, and Maruti Eco, despite being a van, made it into the top ten sellers, realizing 5,823 units in September.

Overall, Maruti Suzuki sold 69,780 CNG cars in September. Tata Motors ranked second with 20,171 CNG cars, Hyundai sold 11,908 units, and Toyota sold 3,551 CNG cars. It should be noted that this analysis only concerns factory CNG versions of cars, although other companies also offer such models.

The Chinese company BYD plans to launch its premium brand Denza into the Indian market. The company's current sales figures demonstrate its activity in this market. In September, the company sold a total of 1137 vehicles, which is a good indicator of growth compared to last year.

Although this figure may seem small when compared to giants like Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, and Mahindra, an analysis of the segment, portfolio, and previous sales data for BYD reveals significant progress. The company is actively promoting itself in the Indian market.

According to the report by Auto पंडित्ज, in September of last year (2025), the company delivered 513 vehicles. In September of the current year, this number increased to 1137 units, representing a year-on-year growth of 121.6%. Over this period, the brand sold 624 more cars.

The main driver of growth was the demand for the Sealion 7 and Atto 3 models. These two electric vehicles account for 92% of the company's total sales volume. BYD's portfolio includes four models, with the Sealion 7 being the bestseller, selling 530 units in September. Only 216 such vehicles were sold in September of last year, indicating a year-on-year growth of 145.4% for this model.

The Atto 3 model ranks second in sales, reaching 519 units in September. Last month, 199 Atto 3 units were sold, corresponding to a year-on-year growth of 160.8%. However, Emax 7 sales declined: if 88 units of Emax 7 were supplied in September of last year, this figure was 76 units in September of this year. The least popular model was the BYD Seal, which was supplied in only 12 units.

Currently, BYD does not conduct full vehicle manufacturing in India. The company imports vehicles through CKD or SKD (Completely Knocked Down or Semi Knocked Down) channels and assembles them at its factory in Sriperumbudur, Chennai. Since BYD has not yet received permission for local production for several reasons, the company uses these supply routes, which leads to increased vehicle prices. Denza models may also arrive via this route and will be aimed at luxury segment buyers.