Two-wheeler sales in April 2025 remained sluggish, with most original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) reporting subdued figures. Hero MotoCorp faced a significant decline, with dispatches to dealerships plunging 43% year-on-year to just 305,406 units. This puts Hero's April wholesales behind its key rivals-Honda (HMSI), TVS Motor, and Bajaj Auto.
Hero MotorCorp said that its sales (dispatches) were impacted by a three-day production pause at four of its plants between April 17 and 19. The halts took place to facilitate supply chain alignment and conduct scheduled maintenance and infrastructure enhancements.
The company said that it recorded 5.05 lakh VAHAN registrations for its internal combustion engine (ICE) two-wheelers in April 2025 and has maintained a consistent month-on-month increase in retail market share throughout 2025.
Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) reported that its total sales (dispatches) stood at 480,896 units in April 2025, which included 4,22,931 domestic units and 57,965 exported units. This is an 11% year-on-year decline from 541,946 units sold in April 2024. Bajaj Auto also reported decline in total two-wheeler sales last month. It fell 7% year-on-year to 317,937 units.
Domestic sales for the Pune-based automaker declined 13% year-on-year to 188,615 units, as against 216,950 units in the year-ago period. Bajaj’s exports, however, increased 4% year-on-year to 129,322 units, as compared to 124,839 units in April last year.
Among the large players, TVS Motor and Royal Enfield reported a growth in April sales. TVS reported that its two-wheelers registered a growth of 15% with sales increasing from 374,592 units in April 2024 to 430,330 units in April 2025. Domestic two-wheeler sales registered growth of 7% to 323,647 units in April 2025.
Royal Enfield posted monthly sales of 86,559 motorcycles in April 2025, up by 6% during the same month last year. The company’s domestic sales surged by 1% to 76,002 units while exports grew by 55% to 10,557 motorcycles during the month.
B Govindarajan, Managing Director of Eicher Motors and Chief Executive Officer of Royal Enfield, said, “After achieving the million unit sales milestone in the past financial year, this year is also off to a flying start. We also expanded our international footprint, introducing the Classic 350 in Nepal and continuing to deepen our connection with our global riding community.”
Analysts at Yes Securities said that auto retail sales are likely to drop YoY in April 2025 across most segments (ex 3W, Bus, tractors), courtesy of multiple factors including an urban slowdown in PV/2W and postponed MHCV purchases. “Within 2Ws, retails are expected to sustain a low-single-digit drop led by wedding season (central and northern markets) and below par festive volume offtake (western states) so far,” said Yes Securities.