There’s no denying the fact that SUVs rule the current rooster in the Indian automobile sector. This past year saw numerous SUVs entering this space making it even more competitive for the various body styles of SUVs currently on offer in India. New products entered right from the small SUV segment to the large, full-sized three-row SUV segment however, only a few managed to make a name for themselves. While the tussle between Hyundai Motor India and Tata Motors for the top fight persists each month, the Hyundai Creta and Tata Nexon both managed to set new records this past month. Read on to know more on this as well as get a lowdown on the top 10 SUVs sold in the country in January 2023.
Tata Nexon
Topping the SUV sales chart for the month of January is Tata Nexon as the company managed to sell 15,567 units of the sub-compact SUV in the domestic market. Overall, the company recorded sales of 48,289 passenger vehicles in January 2023, witnessing an 18 per cent growth compared to 40,942 units sold during the same month last year.
Hyundai Creta
Hyundai India's top-selling compact SUV, the Creta, achieved its highest-ever monthly sales in January 2023. Last month, the Korean carmaker sold 15,037 units of the Hyundai Creta, which coincidently is also the compact SUV's best-ever monthly sales performance since its launch in 2015. As for the company’s total sales numbers, in January 2023, Hyundai India sold 50,106 vehicles in India, out of which, SUVs like - Tucson, Creta, Venue, Alcazar and Kona Electric collectively accounted for 27,532 units. 
Maruti Suzuki Brezza
Maruti Suzuki's best-seller, the Maruti Suzuki Brezza stood close third as it registered 14,359 units in January 2023. Updated last year with new styling elements and now called simply, ‘Brezza’, it is the second sub-compact SUV in our list today after the Tata Nexon. Cumulatively, Maruti Suzuki sold 35,353 utility vehicles including the XL6, and Grand Vitara in January 2023, witnessing a drop of 33 per cent, while the Eeco van saw an 11 per cent growth in sales at 11,709 units. Maruti Suzuki also sold 4,019 units of the Super Carry LCV, while sales to other OEMs (Toyota) stood at 3,775 units. 
Tata Punch
Next on our list is yet another Tata Motors product. The youngest sibling in the company’s SUV range is the Tata Punch as it managed to register 12,006 units in the month of January 2023. Available in petrol and CNG versions, the Tata Punch is the smallest SUV in the company's product portfolio as it made its market launch in 2021. Overall, Tata Motors’ overall sales stood at 81,069 vehicles, compared to 76,210 units during January 2022, a growth of 6.3 per cent. 
Hyundai Venue
The third sub-compact SUV in our list is the Hyundai Venue with 10,738 units sold in January 2023. Like the Maruti Suzuki Brezza, the Hyundai Venue also underwent a cosmetic update last year, while employing the same powertrain options as earlier. The Hyundai Venue is offered in two petrol options and a diesel engine offering coupled with a slew of manual, and automatic transmissions.
Kia Seltos
After the Hyundai Creta, its sibling, the Kia Seltos also joins the list with 10,470 units sold in the month of January 2023. However, the compact SUV sees a dip as it recorded 11,483 units in the same period last year, a 9 per cent difference. The Kia Seltos is due for an update later this month when it brings in new design elements to the exterior along with new features on the inside as well as taking a slightly premium route to the cabin. Having said that, the company recorded 28,634 units in January 2023, a growth of over 48 per cent compared to 19,319 units in the corresponding month of the last year. 
Kia Sonet
The fourth sub-compact SUV in our list is the Kia Sonet as the company registered 9,261 units in January 2023, compared to 6,904 units sold in the same period last year, a growth of 34 per cent. Additionally, Kia India also surpassed the domestic sales milestone of 6.5 lakh units within its four years of business operations, making it the fastest carmaker in India to achieve the feat.
Mahindra Scorpio-N
Mahindra's Scorpio (Scorpio-N and Classic combined) accounted for 8,715 units this past month as compared to 3,026 units (previous-gen Scorpio) sold in the same period last year, recording a growth of 188 per cent. In comparison, Mahindra sold 33,040 passenger vehicles in January 2023, witnessing a 65 per cent growth compared to 19,964 units sold during the same period last year. Last month, the company sold 32,915 utility vehicles (SUVs and MPVs) up 66 per cent, while the sale of cars and vans (including EVs) stood at 125 units, a growth of 8 per cent.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara is the newest compact SUV to join the list of top sellers in our January 2023 list with 8,662 units. The Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara not only comes in petrol and hybrid forms but also CNG variants recently added to the compact SUV’s portfolio. The car is available in 7 exterior paint schemes and rivals the like of Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Volkswagen Taigun, Skoda Kushaq, MG Astor as well as Toyota Urban Cruiser HyRyder in the compact SUV segment.
Mahindra XUV700
Last on our list of the Mahindra XUV700, recording 5,787 units in January 2023. The uptick in sales is an indication of greener pastures in the coming months as the company recalled over 19,000 units of the XUV700 and the Scorpio-N SUVs in November 2022 to inspect rubber bellow inside bell housing on the manual transmission versions of the SUVs. 
Nevertheless, In January 2023, Mahindra’s total exports (including CVs) stood at 3,009 units, witnessing a 5 per cent YoY growth compared to the 2,865 vehicles exported during the same month in 2022.
