Tata Nexon Becomes India's Best Selling Car: Why's It So Popular!

Tata Nexon needs no introduction in the Indian market. It has been in good demand since its market debut in 2017. In September this year alone, over 22,500 Nexons were sold (a 60.7% increase over the August numbers), making it the best-selling SUV during the month. So, what makes the Nexon so popular among Indians? Let’s delve into the finer details...

Tata’s Sales Surge In September

Tata as a brand, turned in a blockbuster month. It posted retail sales of 40,594 units this September. Wholesale dispatches stood much higher, at 60,900 units. It, in fact, overtook Hyundai and Mahindra to claim the second spot. Policy changes like the recently announced revision in the GST structure have benefited the SUV’s and the manufacturer’s September sales.

Tata, as a manufacturer, took two spots in the list of top-five best selling cars of September. The Nexon topped the chart, selling 22,573 units and the Punch took the fifth spot, with 15,891 units sold. Below is a closer look at the rankings.

1. Tata Nexon - 22573 units 2. ⁠Maruti Suzuki Dzire - 20038 units 3. ⁠Hyundai Creta - 18861 units 4. ⁠Mahindra Scorpio - 18372 units 5. ⁠Tata Punch - 15891 units

The carmaker further tells us that over 90,000 units of the Nexon were sold during the period from April-to-September 2025.

Why Is The Nexon So Popular?

The stellar success of the SUV can be attributed to several factors:

A Lot Of Powertrain Combinations To Choose From

One of the biggest strengths of the Nexon is its multi-fuel and multi-powertrain strategy. The SUV offers the choice of petrol, diesel, CNG, and EV powertrains and is the only one in its segment to do so. The all-electric version further comes in two battery options- standard and long-range versions. Buyers with diverse powertrain preferences won’t be disappointed.

Even in transmissions, there’s a lot to choose from. The Nexon comes with manual, AMT, and DCT automatic transmissions. Even the CNG version is offered with an automatic transmission.

Something For Everyone

Around 100 variants are offered on the Nexon, spread across powertrains. The top-spec comes packed with features and tech. Tata Motors has further distributed these wisely between variants. This means that buyers with almost all interests and budgets have a variant of two of the Nexon to consider. This has helped in maximising its appeal.

Tata’s Sunroof game plan is also interesting. Considering the feature’s increased acceptance in the country, Tata gave the Nexon an electric sunroof in 2020. Now, even lower variants of the Nexon that sit towards the lower end of the price spectrum are equipped with this, commanding slight premiums over the prices of the previous variants. This makes things a lot easier for buyers while choosing... Even the Nexon CNG that came in 2024 gets a panoramic sunroof.

Competitive Pricing

Another major reason is the pricing. Most variants of the Nexon are priced competitively. Under GST 2.0, it starts at Rs 7.32 lakh and goes all the way to Rs 17.29 lakh for the range-topping Nexon EV Long Range. Looking at the breakdown, the petrol-powered variants are priced in the Rs 7.32 - 11.34 lakh bracket. The diesel variants start at Rs 9.01 lakh and go up to Rs 14.05 lakh, ex-showroom. And the CNG variants- targeted at cost-conscious buyers have their ex-showrooms in the rang of Rs 8.23- 9.42 lakh.

The standard range EV starts at Rs 12.49 lakh, ex-showroom, while the Long range (45 kWh) version has a starting price of Rs 13.99 lakh. Having several closely priced variants has definitely benefited the SUV in posting healthy monthly volumes.

Tata Has Always Kept Updating The Nexon

Back in 2017, the Nexon had a starting price of Rs 5.85 lakh, ex-showroom. Yes, it has become a lot pricier in these years. More importantly, it has evolved a lot in terms of features, powertrains and packaging. Tata has managed to keep it updated and prevented the appeal from fading away. Introduction of much sought-after features like sunroof and ventilated seats are all part of this broader strategy.

Additionally, the carmaker has also rolled out several cosmetic updates and special editions over the years. Remember the Dark, Red Dark, Jet, and Kaziranga editions? Well, most of them performed well here.

The design at large, has also had a tasteful evolution. When it was first launched, the Nexon had a mediocre styling. When you look at it now, a lot has changed on the design front. It has definitely gained a lot of appeal.

Updates extend to the powertrain front as well. In addition to the petrol and diesel engines, Tata gave the Nexon CNG and EV iterations as and when the markets for these opened up and started gaining traction.

The introduction of the long range variant (which now comes with a 45 kWh battery pack) was a good example of the carmaker closely monitoring market demands and catering to the same. Rolling out an AMT automatic transmission on the CNG version is another.

Safe Yet Affordable

Tata cars and SUVs today are known for their crashworthiness and safety features. The Nexon was the first Indian car to be awarded a five-star rating in Global NCAP’s crash tests. The generations that came later too excelled with their crash test results. The outgoing Nexon has been evaluated by both Bharat NCAP and Global NCAP programs. It scored five-star ratings in both these.

In a time when more people are becoming informed and conscious about the safety offered by their vehicles, the Nexon’s solid crash test ratings would surely contribute to its sales here. In the past few years, we have seen many cases of Nexons saving lives in crashes. Remember how it kept the occupants safe after crashing into a Fortuner? In another case, the SUV was totalled, but the occupants survived...

To sum it up...

Tata's smart game plan seems to be fetching great results for the Nexon. The manufacturer has succeeded in keeping appeal of the nameplate high and perform exceptionally well on the sales front.

It's a text book case of how India-made cars can defeat global automakers by offering a mix of good looks, great value, a comprehensive feature-set and of course, exceptional safety.