A report in Japan’s Nikkei newspaper about Mitsubishi Motors joining Honda-Nissan Alliance has raised many eyebrows. The tie-up between three major Japanese automakers would mark yet another chapter in the history of automotive industry as their combined sales of vehicles amounts to over eight million units. 

Mitsubishi Motors, in which Nissan has a 34 percent stake, will work with Honda and Nissan to finalise the details of their strategic partnership, the news report has mentioned. Also mentioned in the news report is that the three automakers intend to standardise in-vehicle software that controls cars.

Officials of Mitsubishi Motors and Honda Corporation have not made any formal announcement regarding such a partnership yet. Nissan spokesperson also did not confirm if such a development was under way either. 

Of the three automakers, Nissan – Japan’s third biggest automaker – has been steadily losing market share in its two largest markets, the United States and China. The two respective markets accounted for half its global sales in the year to March 2024. Nissan slashed its annual outlook after heavy discounting in the US that is claimed to have almost completely wiped out its first-quarter profit.

It was in March 2024 that Nissan and Honda announced they were considering a strategic partnership to collaborate on producing electric vehicle components and artificial intelligence in automotive software platforms.

Mitsubishi Motors is already part of a long-standing alliance with Nissan and France's Renault. The three automakers came to an agreement last year to restructure the same. The aim of the alliance restructure is said to be to downsize it, and yet ensure that it is more pragmatic and agile. 

Separate collaboration between Nissan, Honda and Mitsubishi Motors could help Japan's automakers manage costs and participate particularly well in the electric vehicle domain, which is currently being dominated by Chinese manufacturers like BYD. 

Once strong in China, which is the world’s largest auto market, the Japanese automakers have been facing considerable competition from the homegrown Chinese automakers. These automakers have been very agile and increasing their production capacity quite fast. They have also been able to offer lower priced vehicles that are ‘loaded’ with software, making them the most modern perhaps.

Image for representation purpose only.

Mumbai-based automotive major Mahindra & Mahindra has announced its wholesales for April 2025 at 84,170 vehicles, a growth of 19 percent, including exports.

The auto major sold a total of 52,330 SUVs in the domestic market, which was 28 percent higher than 41,008 SUVs sold for the same period last year. Commercial vehicle sales in the domestic market came at 22,989 units, which was 4 percent YoY. 

Veejay Nakra, President, Automotive Division, Mahindra & Mahindra, said, “Building on the strong momentum of last year's performance, we began the year on a strong note in April by achieving SUV sales of 52,330 units, a growth of 28 percent and total vehicle sales of 84,170 units, a 19 percent growth over the same month last year. These numbers indicate the strength of our portfolio and customer offerings.”

JSW MG Motor India, a leading passenger vehicles manufacturer, has announced its wholesales for April 2025.

The company reported sales of 5,829 units, which was 23 percent higher over April 2024, when it sold 4,725 vehicles.

Interestingly, the automaker's popular offering, the Windsor EV, has continued to be the top-selling electric passenger vehicle for the seventh month in a row.

JSW MG Motor India's Windsor EV has now gone home to over 20,000 customers.

Maruti Suzuki India, the country’s largest carmaker, has reported its wholesales of 179,791 units in April 2025, marking a 7 percent increase compared to 168,089 units sold in April 2024. The growth was primarily propelled by strong performance in utility vehicles and a sharp rise in export volumes.

Domestic sales, including passenger and light commercial vehicles, remained flat with 142,053 units, as compared to 140,448 units in April 2024. Within this, light commercial vehicles (LCVs) like the Super Carry saw a significant jump of 34.2 percent, with sales rising to 3,349 units from 2,496 units last year.

In the passenger vehicle segment, SUVs such as the Brezza, Ertiga, Grand Vitara and others recorded a 4.4 percent increase, selling 59,022 units compared to 56,553 in the previous year. However, sales for Eeco declined by 5.2 percent, while the mini segment (Alto, S-Presso) saw a sharp 45 percent drop, falling to 6,332 units from 11,519 units. The compact segment, which includes high-volume models like the Baleno and Swift, grew by 8.1 percent, reaching 61,591 units.

Sales to Toyota Kirloskar Motor rose sharply by 79.2 percent, from 5,481 units to 9,827 units, indicating a growing demand for cross-badged products.

The standout performer was the export segment, which surged 26 percent to 27,911 units from 22,160 units in April 2024. This strong export growth helped bolster the company’s overall numbers despite weaknesses in domestic sub-segments.

While some product lines such as the mid-size sedan Ciaz (-63 percent) continue to struggle.

Tata Motors reported total wholesales of 72,753 units for April 2025, reflecting a 6 percent year-on-year decline from 77,521 units in April 2024.

The passenger vehicle (PV) segment, including electric vehicles, accounted for 45,532 units, down 5 percent from 47,983 units in the same month last year. Within this, domestic PV sales dropped 6 percent to 45,199 units, while international business (IB) sales rose significantly to 333 units, up from 100 units. Electric vehicle sales (domestic + IB) declined 16 percent year-on-year to 5,318 units.

Commercial vehicle (CV) sales stood at 27,221 units, marking an 8 percent YoY drop from 29,538 units in April 2024. Domestic CV sales contracted 10 percent to 25,764 units, while CV exports (IB) grew 43 percent to 1,457 units. Key sub-segments like Small Commercial Vehicles (SCV) and pickups saw a steep 23 percent decline.

Despite growth in certain categories like ILMCV trucks and passenger carriers, overall sales momentum was tempered across both PV and CV segments.