Dzire creates more demand for compact sedan segment

Key highlights:

• C1 segment saw a massive 34% growth in sales in September this year
• Dzire accounted for nearly 50% of the sales in the C1 segment
• The C1 compact sedan sales grew to 49,965 units in September 2017

The C1 compact sedan has seen a dramatic turn in growth over the last few months. It saw a massive 34% growth in sales in September this year from sales in the same month last year.

The C1 compact sedan sales grew to 49,965 units in September 2017 from 37,374 units sold in September 2016.

In comparison, other top segments such as the B2 hatchback and C2 sedan segments have seen smaller growth during the month. The hatchback segment posted a 11% growth during September, while the C2 segment posted a 30% growth during the month.

Source: TeamBHP

The C1 segment consists of compact sedans priced below Rs 8 lakh. This includes cars such as the Maruti Suzuki Dzire, Hyundai Xcent, Honda Amaze, Ford Aspire, Tata Tigor, Tata Zest, Toyota Etios, Volkswagen Ameo, Nissan Sunny, Tata Indigo Manza and Mahindra Verito.

The compact car segment is now one of the fastest growing segments. From sales just above 20,000 units in May this year, it has now accounts for nearly 50,000 units in sales in September.

However, the growth in whole segment can be attributed due to one reason alone, Maruti Suzuki's launch of the new Dzire this year. This is as the Dzire accounted for nearly 50% of the sales in the C1 segment.

It sold 34,305 units in September. All of the other cars in the C1 segment accounted for sales of just 15,660 units.

The sales of the Maruti Suzuki Dzire has risen from just 9,413 units sold in May to a massive 34,305 units sold in September this year.

Source: TeamBHP

The only other car in the C1 compact sedan segment which witnessed a large growth during the month was Nissan Sunny posted a 278% growth year on year and a 23.5% month-on-month growth in September. However, this was at a very small base as the car sold only 242 units during the month.

Even the top selling Hyundai Xcent posted a 7.4% decline in sales during the month. Others such as the Tata Tigor posted a 15.8% month-on-month decline to sell 1,770 units in September. The Honda Amaze posted a 10.5% decline during September.

While the Dzire has renewed the demand in the C1 compact car segment, the other competitors will have to up their game in the segment in order to compete and take the segment even higher.

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