BMW in the March quarter, disputing registration data and citing stronger retail sales.
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The luxury car market in India is likely to see a limited impact of the West Asia conflict but a weaker rupee, which will push up costs for consumers, will result in near single-digit growth in luxury auto sales, Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Santosh Iyer told TOI.
Iyer said the company has already raised prices twice in 2026 and may consider another increase in June. On the West Asia conflict, he said, the impact has largely been limited to consumer sentiment, which might lead to purchase postponement. “There will be some impact on the sentiment. There may be some postponement, but we have not seen any cancellations and the order intake continues to be very strong,” he said.
Iyer also contested Vahan data suggesting BMW had overtaken Mercedes-Benz in the March quarter to be the largest luxury carmaker, stating that the company remained the top luxury car seller based on retail sales.
According to both companies’ press releases, Mercedes-Benz sold 5,131 units in the March quarter, compared to around 4,567 units for BMW for the same period.
He said that registration data often lags actual retail sales, especially in the luxury segment. “In the March quarter, we were 600 cars ahead of BMW… Vahan data has an impact of Telangana not being included and an impact of registration as many of our customers also don’t register the cars because they wait some months to get special number plates,” he said.
