SUV race intensifies as Maruti Brezza trumps Nexon, Tata Punch gains momentum

It could be one of the oldest SUV models still on sale in India. But Maruti Suzuki's Vitara Brezza continues to be one of the strongest players in the SUV genre, topping sales charts last month. It has seen a significant growth compared to November last year, something that is noticeable at a time when carmakers are struggling to meet demands due to chip shortage crisis.

Here is a look at the top 10 SUVs sold in India in November, 2021:

1. Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza

With 10,760 units sold last month, Maruti Vitara Brezza has retained its crown in the sub-compact SUV segment. The SUV, which is slated to get a facelift soon, has witnessed a growth of more than 37 per cent compared to the same month last year when Maruti sold 7,838 units. In fact, Brezza's November sales numbers are even better than the October numbers when Maruti sold 8,032 units.

2. Hyundai Creta

Despite a significant drop in sales, largely due to the ongoing supply chain issues, Hyundai Creta has proven to be one of the favourite SUVs for Indian buyers since the launch of the facelift model last year. In November this year, Hyundai sold 10,300 units, down from 12,017 units sold during the same period last year. However, there are signs of improvement as Hyundai sold just 6,455 units in the previous month.

3. Tata Nexon

In a crowded segment like the sub-compact SUVs, Tata Nexon seems to be ageing well with increasingly strong performance against newcomers like Nissan Magnite or Renault Kiger or established models like Hyundai Venue or Kia Sonet. Tata Motors sold 9,831 units of Nexon last month with a growth of more than 63 per cent since November last year, the highest growth shown by any of the SUVs. In November last year, Tata had sold just 6,021 units of Nexon.

4. Kia Seltos

Seltos SUV, which is considered to be the arch rival of Hyundai Creta in India, continues to be one of the preferred compact SUVs in the country. With 8,959 units sold last month, Seltos has shown consistency in sales numbers with just a 6 per cent drop compared to 9,205 units sold in November last year.

5. Hyundai Venue

Hyundai's sub-compact SUV Venue has seen a dip in sales over the past few months. With just 7,932 units sold last month, Venue has slipped in the race in its own segment, emerging behind Brezza and Nexon. In November last year, Hyundai had sold 9,265 units of Venue and was one of the leaders in the segment.

6. Tata Punch

The latest entrant in the sub-compact SUV segment is the Tata Punch. And it has made its mark from the start entering the top 10 SUVs sold in India in November. Tata Motors sold 6,110 units of the Pnch SUV last month, and promises to grow in number in coming months due to its affordable pricing and safest car tag from the Global NCAP recently.

7. Kia Sonet

When Kia launched the Sonet SUV two years ago, it had promised to take on segment leaders with a wide choice of variants and powertrains. However, as time passes, Sonet's performance seems to be waining a bit as it witnessed nearly 60 per cent dip in sales last month compared to November 2020. Kia sold just 4,719 units in November, less than half of 11,417 units sold the previous year.

8. Mahindra XUV300

Mahindra's SUVs may have scored high in crash tests conducted by Global NCAP. However, safety ratings alone cannot determine the popularity of a particular model as is shown by some of the best bets of the carmaker. XUV300 SUV, which rivals Brezza, Nexon and Venue among others, sold just 4,006 units last month. While it remains somewhat consistent, with 4,458 units sold in November last year, the sales base remains low to challenge the segment leaders yet.

9. Mahindra Scorpio

Mahindra is getting ready to launch the facelift version of the Scorpio SUV in India soon. Yet, the outgoing model remains one of the top-selling models for the carmaker in India. Mahindra sold 3,370 units of Scorpio last month, more than its latest SUV XUV700.

10. Mahindra XUV700

When Mahindra launched the XUV700 in August this year, the pricing had promised to take the segment by surprise. However, as Mahindra continues its struggle with ongoing chip shortage crisis, it has reflected in the sales numbers of the XUV700, Mahindra could sell just 3,207 units last month, with several more booked and waiting to be delivered.

Check out Upcoming Cars in India 2024, Best SUVs in India.