India’s car market delivered some interesting surprises in August 2026, with the Tata Punch emerging as the country’s best-selling car and several SUVs posting strong year-on-year growth.
The latest top-25 sales data from AutoPunditz shows that the Punch comfortably crossed the 21,000-unit mark, while the Maruti Suzuki WagonR and Swift completed the top three.
The Tata Punch finished August at No. 1 with 21,320 units, almost double its August 2025 volume. Its year-on-year growth stood at an impressive 99 percent. The Punch also recorded its highest-ever monthly domestic sales during the month.
The Maruti Suzuki Wagon R took second place with 20,180 units, registering 39 percent growth. The Swift was third with 19,832 units, up 60 percent. Maruti’s Fronx was not far behind at 18,730 units, with sales rising 51 percent.
The Ertiga rounded off the top five with 18,516 units. Its sales were virtually flat compared to August last year.
The Tata Nexon occupied sixth place with 18,431 units, recording 32 percent year-on-year growth. The Nexon was followed closely by the Maruti Suzuki Dzire at 18,418 units, up 12 percent.
The Hyundai Creta was the eighth best-selling car with 16,288 units. Its growth was relatively modest at 2 percent, but the Creta continues to be one of Hyundai’s strongest sellers in India.
The Maruti Suzuki Baleno finished ninth with 15,746 units, up 25 percent. The Mahindra Scorpio completed the top 10 with 15,576 units, registering a strong 58 percent year-on-year increase.
One of the biggest stories further down the table is the Kia Seltos. The mid-size SUV sold 11,716 units in August, putting it at No. 14 overall. More importantly, its sales were up a massive 150 percent year on year, making it the fastest-growing model in the top 25 among cars with a non-zero year-ago base.
The Seltos’ strong performance also comes as Kia had an impressive overall month. The company recorded 29,042 wholesale units in August, up 48.1 percent year on year, and moved ahead of Toyota in the monthly manufacturer rankings.
The Mahindra XUV 7XO also posted a particularly strong performance. It recorded 8,541 units, making it the 20th best-selling car overall. Its sales were up 72 percent compared to the same month last year.
Mahindra Has Several Big Growth Stories
Mahindra had multiple models featuring in the top 25. Apart from the Scorpio and XUV 7XO, the XUV 3XO recorded 8,302 units, up 50 percent. The Thar registered 10,464 units, growing 50 percent, while the Bolero remained relatively stable at 8,159 units.
The rest of the top 25 included the Maruti Brezza, Victoris and Eeco, Kia Sonet, Toyota Innova HyCross and Hyryder, Maruti Alto, Tata Tiago and Hyundai Venue and Exter.
Overall, the August rankings underline the continued strength of SUVs and crossovers, but also show that hatchbacks such as the Wagon R, Swift and Baleno remain major volume generators. With the Punch leading the entire chart and several models recording double-digit growth, August proved to be a particularly strong month for India’s mass-market car segment.