Launched on September 21, 2017, the Nexon compact SUV has been a game-changing model for Tata Motors. The Nexon, India’s best-selling SUV in FY2022, FY2023 and FY2024 and the first Tata SUV to cross 700,000-unit sales, has benefited from a multi-fuel strategy of petrol, diesel and electric options with a model for every budget. And there’s a CNG variant coming soon.
21 Sep 2024 | 17033 Views | By Ajit Dalvi
Today is September 21, 2024. Exactly seven years ago to the day – September 21, 2017 – Tata Motors launched the Nexon, the game-changing compact SUV which helped provide the building blocks for the resurgence of the company, which is now a formidable player in the Indian passenger vehicle and ...
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Today is September 21, 2024. Exactly seven years ago to the day – September 21, 2017 – Tata Motors launched the Nexon, the game-changing compact SUV which helped provide the building blocks for the resurgence of the company, which is now a formidable player in the Indian passenger vehicle and SUV market.
Since its launch 84 months ago till end-August 2024, the Tata Nexon has clocked cumulative sales of an estimated 718,650 units in the domestic market. Its best fiscal year performance was in FY2023 when Tata Motors dispatched 172,138 units, up 39% year on year (FY2022: 124,130 units) and accounted for 32% of the company’s 373,138 passenger vehicle sales.
The Nexon drove past the 200,000-unit sales milestone in India in June 2021, a little less than four years after launch. The next 200,000 units were sold in just 15 months. The run from 400,000 units to 500,000 units took a scant seven months, and the next additional 100,000 units to 600,000 units came in eight months. Tata Motors’ best-selling product to date is also the first Tata SUV to achieve the 700,000 sales milestone, which came up in July 2024.
Not surprisingly, despite the intense competition in the SUV market, particularly the compact SUV segment teeming with rivals like the popular Maruti Brezza, sibling Punch, Hyundai Venue and Exter, Kia Sonet and the Mahindra XUV300 / 3XO, the Tata Nexon has topped the charts for three straight fiscals. It became India’s best-selling utility vehicle in FY2022 selling 124,130 units and maintained that No. 1 status in FY2023 with sales of 172,138 units. It held onto the No. 1 SUV title in FY2024 with 171,929 units.
However, in the current fiscal, Nexon sales are under pressure – the estimated 60,882 units dispatched between April and August 2024 are down 4% YoY (April-August 2023: 63,650 units) and the SUV is currently ranked No. 7 on the utility vehicle wholesales chart. Sibling Punch, which is currently the best-selling SUV, has outsold the Nexon for eight straight months since January 2024.
Facelifted ICE and electric Nexon introduced
On September 14, 2023, Tata Motors launched the newest avatar of its best-selling passenger vehicle. This is the second facelift for the Nexon, as the first facelift was launched in 2020. The facelifted Nexon (ICE powertrains) is priced at Rs 910,000 (on-road Delhi) for the base 1.2 Smart (O) MT petrol variant, going up to Rs 18.83 lakh for the top-end Fearless+ S Dark diesel AMT variant. The 10-variant Nexon EV range pricing starts at Rs 15.80 lakh for the base Creative+ MR variant and goes upwards to Rs 20.71 lakh for the top-end Empowered+ LR Dark Nexon EV variant.
In early September, Tata Motors announced mega discounts as part of its ‘Festival of Cars’ celebrations, aimed at accelerating sales. To make EVs more affordable, prices have been reduced by up to Rs 300,000 for the Nexon.ev and up to Rs 120,000 for the Punch.ev. Customers can additionally enjoy free charging for six months at any of the over 5,500 Tata Power charging stations across the country. This festive offer is available till October 31, 2024.
In its buyer's guide commentary on the SUV's latest update, Autocar India states, "The Nexon always delivered on that tough SUV feel, and 2023's comprehensive styling, tech and interior updates make it more likeable. Top-spec models are big on features and the vast variant list means there's a Nexon for every budget. A roomy cabin only furthers its case. However, it still doesn't have the finesse of some rivals, and the petrol engine remains unexciting."
As regards the new Nexon EV, the commentary adds, "The redone interior, new tech and updated powertrain make the electric SUV feel like it's taken a half-generation leap. It is the benchmark amongst affordable EVs."
Nexon contributes 28% of Tata Motors’ 2.53 million PV sales since FY2018
With the introduction of the Nexon in September 2017, Tata Motors’ PV fortunes began to look up. From 172,504 units in FY2017 (before the Nexon was introduced) to 210,200 units in FY2018, and 231,512 units in FY2019, Tata Motors saw demand come its way in spades. The Covid-impacted FY2020 saw sales decline for all OEMs but Tata bounced back in FY2022 with 373,138 units and 66% YoY growth, hit 544,391 units (up 46%) in FY2023 and went on to register best-ever fiscal sales of 582,915 units (up 7%) in FY2024.
In December 2018, the Nexon became the first made-in-India car to achieve Global NCAP’s five-star crash test rating (under the previous GNCAP protocol). In February 2024, the Tata Nexon achieved a top 5-star rating from Global NCAP under the new protocol. With growing consumer awareness about vehicle safety in India, the Nexon benefitted substantially from its top crash test rating.
The Nexon’s strong market performance is reflected in its growing contribution to the carmaker’s overall PV sales. From 13% in FY2018, the Nexon’s share rose to 24% in FY2019, crossed the 30% mark in FY2020, hit 33% in FY2022. However, since then, with the rollout of sibling Punch and rising sales of the Altroz and Tiago hatchbacks, its share has reduced. In FY2023, the Nexon (172,138 units) had a share of 31%, which dropped to 29% in FY2024 (171,929 units). In the first five months of FY2025, with 60,882 units (down 4% YoY), the Nexon’s share of Tata Motors’ total PV sales is 27 percent.
Benefiting from a multi-fuel strategy: 72 variants on offer
The Nexon has benefited from Tata Motors’ multi-fuel strategy in spades – there are all of 72 variants on offer across petrol (34 variants), diesel (28 variants) and electric (10 variants), which means there is a Nexon for every budget.
In early February this year, the company showcased the Nexon CNG concept at the Bharat Mobility Show in New Delhi. When the production-ready Nexon CNG model rolls out (likely later this month or in October 2024), it will add even more muscle to the Nexon model portfolio and take on the Maruti Brezza CNG.
With customer demand for compact SUVs showing no signs of slowing down, expect the Nexon to further making inroads into India’s ultra-competitive UV market. What has also helped Tata Motors with its fast-paced production is its quality supply chain management, of being able to deliver cars faster and keep the ‘con-Nexon’ going with the SUV customer. And, there’s no restriction on the manufacturing capacity front, what with additional capacity coming on stream with the new plant in Sanand, Gujarat.
Sibling Punch has outsold the Nexon for eight straight months since January 2024.
Can the Nexon hold on to its No. 1 SUV title in FY2025?
Nexon sales, in the recent past, have to some extent been cannibalised by popular sibling Tata Punch which, like the Nexon, also has petrol, diesel, electric but also a CNG avatar. The sales gap between the two models has been narrowing – in FY2024, the Punch, which was India’s third highest-selling SUV with 169,844 units, up 27% YoY), was just 2,085 units behind the Nexon and 53 units behind the Maruti Brezza (169,897 units).
In the current fiscal’s first five months, the Punch (88,109 units in April-August 2024) is not only the No. 1 SUV but is 22,227 units ahead of the Nexon and well placed to be India’s No. 1 SUV in FY2025. Can the Nexon, which has been India’s best-selling SUV for three straight fiscals fight back and regain its position in the SUV rankings? There are some handsome discounts available currently on the Nexon (and other Tata models) as part of the company’s festival offers and there’s a Nexon CNG variant soon to be launched too.