How Are New E-car Entrants Building Early Presence in the Indian Market?

India’s electric car (e-car) market has expanded significantly with a 2x growth over the past two years, with annual sales increasing from 54,473 units in FY2023 to 110,748 units in FY2025 and sales increasingly concentrated among a handful of established players.

However, recent vehicle registration data also points to the emergence of new global entrants. While their volumes remain modest at present, these players are beginning to register measurable sales and establish a presence within the broader competitive landscape.

Figure 1: Month wise sales data of top 10 e4W OEMs in India from Jan 2025 – November 2025

Source: Vahan dashboard, JMK Research

Over the last three months, new entrants such as VinFast and Tesla have started recording measurable sales volumes in the Indian EV market. VinFast, in particular, has shown signs of early traction, with November sales nearly doubling on a month-on-month basis. Cumulatively, the company sold 428 units during this three-month period. This initial traction can be attributed to a combination of factors related to VinFast’s market entry strategy:

  • Local Manufacturing Presence: One factor supporting this initial traction is VinFast’s local manufacturing presence. The company operates an EV assembly facility in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, spread over approximately 400 acres, with an initial annual capacity of 50,000 vehicles, scalable to 150,000 units. This facility is VinFast’s third manufacturing unit globally, after two plants in Vietnam. Establishing local assembly early in its India entry allows VinFast to reduce entry barriers, align pricing with market conditions, and position India as both a domestic market and a potential export base.
  • Rapid Sales and Service Network Expansion: Within just three months of market entry, VinFast has established a footprint of 27 dealership outlets and 84 service centres across multiple cities. Relative to several other recent entrants in the electric passenger car space, the pace of network rollout has been faster during the initial phase, indicating a focus on early execution and network readiness.
  • Right Price Band: VinFast’s initial models, the VF6 and VF7, are positioned in the INR 16–25 lakh price range. This segment currently represents the most active part of India’s electric car market, sitting between entry-level EVs and premium luxury imports, and has accounted for a significant share of private electric car purchases in recent years.

In parallel, Tesla’s India entry has followed a different operating model. The company has entered the market through a CBU (completely built unit) import-led approach and currently operates three official showrooms located in Mumbai, Delhi, and Gurgaon. Tesla is presently offering a single model, the Model Y, which due to import duties is priced in the INR 60–75 lakh range. This pricing positions the model within the premium EV segment, where adoption is typically limited to a narrower customer base and concentrated in select urban markets.

The recent entry of VinFast and Tesla highlights growing OEM interest in India’s electric passenger vehicle market, albeit across different price segments and operating models. Looking ahead, from 2026 onwards, the market is expected to broaden more meaningfully as several OEMs plan launches in the INR 15–30 lakh range, particularly in the mid-size SUV and family vehicle segments.

Upcoming models include Mahindra’s Thar.e, XUV 3XO EV and BE.07, along with Tata Motors’ Sierra EV and Safari EV. In addition, Maruti Suzuki’s e-Vitara, expected to enter the market from early January 2026, is likely to contribute incremental volumes.

In our view, wider model availability in this mid-range price band will be critical to expanding the addressable market and driving the next phase of EV adoption in India- moving beyond early adopters and premium segments toward more mainstream consumers.