Petrol slips below half of India PV retails as CNG and EV demand gains

Petrol accounted for 48.1% of India’s passenger-vehicle registrations in August 2026, down from 51.9% a year earlier. CNG, EV and strong-hybrid models reached 34.8% of retails, helping Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors gain market share as buyers focus on running costs.

— Source publishedTue, 1 Sept, 2026, 19:41 IST·First seen Tue, 1 Sept, 2026, 19:46 IST·Source The Hindu BusinessLine

What happened

India passenger vehicle market · India’s passenger-vehicle retail market is shifting from petrol toward CNG and EVs amid E20 concerns and operating-cost

Key facts

  • Petrol vehicles represented 48.1% of passenger-vehicle registrations in August 2026, versus 51.9% a year earlier
  • Passenger-vehicle market grew 14.9% year-on-year in August 2026
  • PV registrations exceeded 390,000 units
  • Maruti Suzuki registered 164,000 units
  • Tata Motors registered 57,357 units
  • CNG, electric and strong-hybrid vehicles accounted for 34.8% of PV retails, versus 29.9% in August 2025
  • Strong-hybrid share fell to 1.9% from 2.7%
  • Tata market share rose to 14.7% from 12.1%
  • Maruti market share rose to 42.1% from 39.6%
  • Kia registrations rose 16.6% to 23,162 units
  • Mahindra registrations rose 4.4%, while share fell to 12.7% from 13.9%
  • Hyundai registrations rose 4.2%, while share fell to 11.9%
  • Sequential PV registrations fell 6.6%

Why this matters

The accelerating move beyond petrol raises the strategic value of CNG supply, battery ecosystems, charging, hybrid technology and partnerships that can expand affordable alternative-powertrain offerings.

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