BMW aims to cross 20,000 annual car sales mark in India in 2026

BMW's Hardeep Singh Brar said that the life has been better for cars because there has been a major GST drop.

BMW Group India is targeting the 20,000-unit annual car sales milestone in 2026 as the company builds on consecutive years of record performance and strong consumer sentiment following the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) 2.0 regime.

During an interaction with Moneycontrol, the company's President and CEO, Hardeep Singh Brar, said the target is achievable given the current market momentum and sustained growth in demand for luxury vehicles. "I would like to do it next year. We need to see how this whole momentum goes. Right now, it looks positive. But there are certain global issues. Forex is a big dampener for us. It has deteriorated. I would like to do it next year, but let's see how quickly we can do that," he noted.

BMW Group India sold a record 15,721 cars in 2024, including 15,012 units of BMW and 709 units of Mini. This followed another record performance in 2023 at 14,172 cars (13,303 BMW and 869 Mini). The company's growth has continued into 2025, with January to September sales reaching 11,978 cars, up 13% year-on-year (y-o-y), resulting in the best-ever performance in the first nine months of any year. BMW accounted for 11,510 units of those sales, while Mini delivered 468 cars.

The third quarter (July–September) was the company's strongest yet, with sales of 4,204 cars, up 21% from the same period a year earlier. September was its best month ever, driven by the post-GST price correction and festive demand.

For reference, rival Mercedes-Benz India sold 19,565 cars in 2024.

"Life has been better for cars because there has been a major GST drop. In September, we grew by 40% y-o-y and even 40% month-on-month (m-o-m) in terms of bookings. This clearly shows there is a huge uptick in consumer sentiment. In terms of retail, we were up by about 21% y-o-y during the third quarter despite not getting the full September month. But with all the bookings coming, we expect October and the fourth quarter to be quite good," Brar said.

The luxury internal combustion engine (ICE) cars earlier attracted a total tax of 48% to 50%. This would include a GST of 28% and a compensation cess of 20% to 22%, depending on the engine capacity and body type of the model.

However, with GST rationalisation, all luxury ICE cars have been placed in a uniform 40% slab. Also, there is no compensation cess on automobiles now. Lower taxes have resulted in their prices going down.

The reduction in GST rates has lifted demand across price segments, particularly in the entry-level luxury range. "The price elasticity is lower in the luxury segment. But at the entry level of luxury, you will have the impact of price reduction, as there are consumers who may want to go up to the Rs 50 lakh price bracket. Beyond Rs 50 lakh, that segment remains almost the same. I would not say there would not be any impact, but relatively lower," Brar said.

"Our highest price drop is about Rs 9 lakh, which is significant. But the customer in that higher luxury segment is very limited. At the lower end, you have a lot of customers. There was an income tax benefit at the beginning of the year. Now there is a price cut," he added.

Among the luxury sports utility vehicles (SUVs) of BMW, there was a price drop of up to Rs 1.8 lakh on the entry-level X1, Rs 6.3 lakh on the X5 and Rs 9 lakh on the flagship X7. With regard to the luxury sedans, the price of the 2 Series Gran Coupe fell by up to Rs 1.6 lakh, the 3 Series LWB price by Rs 3.4 lakh and the 5 Series LWB by Rs 4.1 lakh.

Brar observed that BMW expects to close 2025 with strong double-digit growth. "From a luxury viewpoint, BMW was growing at 11% till August. We did much better in September. So we expect to close the year at a very strong double-digit growth," he said.

According to the company's latest data, BMW's long wheelbase (LWB) models have been key contributors to the growth momentum. Between January and September 2025, LWB cars accounted for 5,720 units, up 169% y-o-y, representing 50% of total BMW car sales. Models such as the 3 Series, 5 Series, 7 Series, and iX1 LWB variants have seen high demand, with the 3 Series emerging as BMW's best-selling sedan with a 16% share.

The SUVs remained a mainstay, with 7,040 units sold in the first nine months of 2025, marking a 19% y-o-y rise. They now make up nearly 60% of BMW's total sales in India, led by the X1 and X7 models.

BMW's electric vehicle (EV) portfolio continues to expand its share in overall sales. Between January and September 2025, the company delivered 2,509 electric BMW and Mini vehicles, a 246% y-o-y increase, taking the EV share of total sales to 21%.

"From a long-term strategy perspective, the EV segment has done well for us. We would continue to invest there. The share of EVs in our total sales has increased to 21%. We will be the first player to hit that 30% mark, which the government is talking about by 2030. I think we will be able to achieve that by 2027," he said.

BMW Group India's electric car portfolio includes the BMW i7, BMW iX, BMW i5, BMW i4, BMW iX1 LWB and Mini Countryman E. It also offers electric scooters like the BMW CE 04 and BMW CE 02.

Brar said maintaining the 5% GST rate for EVs and improving charging infrastructure maintenance are key to sustaining growth. "The government should continue with the 5% GST for EVs. They should not touch it, because from an industry viewpoint, we have still not reached the inflexion point. The momentum should continue in the charging infrastructure, not only in terms of installation, but also in terms of maintenance, as we find that while installation is still pretty decent, the maintenance of those chargers is lagging somewhat. So maintenance is an equally important parameter," he noted.

However, he cautioned that policy ambiguity around hybrids could create confusion among buyers. "There are sometimes discussions about hybrids. Some of the states had given benefits to hybrids. So that sometimes derails the electric agenda as customers get confused. Keeping a focus on EVs is very important so that customers do not get confused," Brar pointed.

BMW is also expanding its retail and service footprint. The company will add 11 new touchpoints in nine cities by the end of 2025. It aims to reach the top 50 cities by 2026-end. "We plan to expand our network further. We are expanding in nine cities with 11 outlets this year, and we would like to expand even further to other markets, maybe the top 50 cities, by the end of next year," Brar said.

The company plans to launch 15 new models in 2026 across BMW, Mini and BMW Motorrad (two-wheeler arm) brands. For 2025, BMW Group India had announced 21 products, of which 15 have already been introduced. The next launch will be the Mini JCW Countryman All4 on October 14.

On the overall luxury car market, Brar said the GST cuts could lift the segment's growth rate to 7-8% in the coming years, compared with an average of 4.5-5% over the past decade. "If you look at the last 10 years, the average growth rate has been about 4.5-5% for the luxury segment. I expect with the GST price cut, the growth rate should go up to 7-8% in the coming years," he said.

While the luxury segment accounted for just around 51,000 car sales in 2024, Brar expects India's luxury car penetration to rise gradually as consumer attitudes evolve. "The new set of generation, which is now from 25 to 45, wants to own these brands. They want to really indulge and enjoy the finer things in life, rather than only thinking about savings and investment," he said. He projected the luxury segment's share of the overall passenger vehicle (PV) market to rise from around 1% at present to 1.5-2% in the next five years.

BMW Motorrad has also contributed to the overall growth. Between January and September 2025, it delivered 3,976 units in India, led by the locally produced G 310 RR. Among the imported models, the BMW 1300 GS and GSA were top sellers.

Brar described the two-wheeler segment as mixed under the GST 2.0 framework. "The two-wheeler segment is a mixed bag. For up to 350cc models, we got a tax benefit. Beyond that, there is actually a price increase. But because of that, we got a very good momentum before September 22. Going forward, greater than 350cc will have some pressure, whereas less than 350cc could be much better," he said.

The two-wheelers with an engine capacity of up to 350cc are in the 18% slab now, while those above 350cc are in the 40% slab. Earlier, there was a GST of 28% with no compensation cess on models with an engine capacity of up to 350cc and a 3% compensation cess on those above 350cc, resulting in the total tax incidence of 28% to 31%.