Overseas shipments of the Bajaj Qute have recorded their best-ever fiscal year numbers. FY2025 saw 6,422 units of the quadricycle exported, beating the previous best of FY2020’s 5,185 units. Compared to exports, demand for the Qute in India remains poor. Since FY2019, only 3,275 Qutes have been sold in the country compared to 33,815 exports.
26 Apr 2025 | 438 Views | By Ajit Dalvi
Bajaj Auto, which is India’s No. 1 two-wheeler as well as three-wheeler exporter, has registered its best-ever exports of the Qute quadricycle of which is the sole manufacturer in the country. As per industry wholesales data from SIAM, Bajaj Auto shipped a total of 6,422 Qutes in FY2025, which constitutes ...
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Bajaj Auto, which is India’s No. 1 two-wheeler as well as three-wheeler exporter, has registered its best-ever exports of the Qute quadricycle of which is the sole manufacturer in the country. As per industry wholesales data from SIAM, Bajaj Auto shipped a total of 6,422 Qutes in FY2025, which constitutes a strong 54% YoY increase (FY2024: 4,178 units) and an additional 2,244 units over FY2024.
SIAM export sales data reveals that December (858 units) was the best month for the Qute in FY2025. April 2020, when 1,062 units were exported, remains the highest monthly export number for the Bajaj Qute.
Compared to the rising export demand, sales of the Qute, which is India’s first-ever quadricycle (a sub-group of the LCV segment) and launched in FY2019, its sales in the domestic market are minuscule. In FY2025, only 120 Qutes were sold in India, down 83% YoY (FY2024: 725 units). As per cumulative SIAM data, only 3,275 Qutes have been sold in India to date compared to 33,815 exported units.
Demand from Egypt helps accelerate Qute exports
What would have helped accelerate export demand for the Bajaj Qute is the move by Egypt to formally recognize quadricycles as vehicles for public transportation and also to replace the existing three-wheelers on its roads. Qute exports this fiscal commenced in Q1 with a first shipment of 500 units. The Qute is also exported to markets like Turkiye and Ghana, among others.
As is known, Bajaj Auto has a strong three-wheeler presence in Egypt, which was a major market for this product in the past. It is estimated that the country still has around 500,000 Bajaj RE three-wheelers plying on its roads. In end-2021, Egypt had banned import of three-wheelers (called tuk-tuks there) which had impacted Indian exports. In March 2024, the Egyptian parliament approved a draft law aimed at creating a new vehicle category for quadricycles to transport people.
The government of Egypt plans to progressively replace all three-wheelers with quadricycles, and move to recognise the quadricycle vehicle category clearly seems to have translated into good export business for Bajaj Auto.
ELECTRIC QUTE IN THE PIPELINE?
Given the government’s sharpened focus on the electric vehicle market, Bajaj Auto could be working on an electric avatar of the Qute, which is currently sold with CNG and petrol powertrains and is available for both personal and commercial usage.
Bajaj Auto’s diversification into EVs has proved hugely successful in both two-wheelers, where it was ranked No. 3 in FY2025 with sale of a record 230,808 Chetaks, up 116% (FY2024: 106,624 units). Bajaj sold an additional 124,184 units to surpass the 200,000 milestone for the first time in a fiscal year.
The company’s growing prowess in electric mobility is also reflected in the three-wheeler industry. Bajaj Auto, which entered the e3W market a little less than two years ago, has risen rapidly to take the No. 2 position, behind Mahindra. In fact, the company, which is India’s No. 1 3W manufacturer and exporter, has jumped 11 ranks in FY2025 to take the podium position in the electric 3-wheeler industry. In FY2025, the company sold 50,779 units, which is a handsome 367% YoY increase and gives it a 7% market share. In FY2024, Bajaj Auto had sold 10,885 units and was ranked No. 13.
Speaking in a conference call last year, Rakesh Sharma, executive director, Bajaj Auto, had said: “We are investing behind the Qute platform. When the BS-IV, BS-VI transitions took place, there was such a lot of work which was there in our R&D that we deprioritize Qute only because of the volumes. But we are now looking at an upgrade, which will provide the customer with a tech condition in Qute. And we are already now got a CNG-based Qute, and we will be working on an electric Qute as well.”
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