How GST rejig, Iran war-linked EV push took the wind out of hybrid cars growth
NEW DELHI : India’s hybrid car market is losing momentum as electric vehicles (EVs) pull ahead due to rising demand amid the West Asia war-induced fuel concerns and loss of its tax advantage over the fossil fuel variants eroding its appeal. Even as the broader passenger vehicle market posted robust sales, hybrid vehicles—which can run on fossil fuels as well as an electric motor—are losing pace in 2026, even as automakers prepare a string of launches to revive the segment.
EV penetration, or its share in total vehicle sales, has pulled significantly ahead of hybrids, widening the gap to more than 4% in recent months from around 2% in December 2025, as the growth in hybrids sales has lagged the overall industry for four consecutive months since February, data from government's Vahan portal showed.
Notably, sales of hybrid cars recorded a year-on-year decline in sales for the first time since separate data became available in May 2026, with total volumes falling 1.3% to 8,421 units as against overall passenger vehicle industry growth of 25% to 404,000 units. EV sales, on the other hand, surged 81% to 26,682 units during the month, giving it a 6.6% share in total sales as against the 2.1% share of hybrids.
