FADA Dealer Satisfaction Study 2026: JSW MG, Royal Enfield and Tata Motors CV Lead Their Segments

India’s overall Dealer Satisfaction Index rises 29 points to 810; Ather Energy leads electric two-wheelers while VinFast tops the electric passenger vehicle category

India’s automobile dealer ecosystem appears to be getting more satisfied with its OEM partners, but profitability, inventory management and long-term business viability remain major areas requiring attention.

The Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) has announced the results of its Dealer Satisfaction Study (DSS) 2026, conducted in association with PremonAsia. The sixth edition of the study saw JSW MG Motor India emerge as the leader in the 4-Wheeler Mass Market segment, while Royal Enfield topped the conventional two-wheeler category and Tata Motors Commercial Vehicles secured the highest position among CV manufacturers.

The study was based on 2,045 valid dealer responses collected across India during July-August 2026 and covered seven automotive segments. Around 60 attributes spread across six factors were analysed, with scores indexed on a maximum of 1,000 points.

India Dealer Satisfaction Index climbs to 810

One of the biggest takeaways from DSS 2026 is the improvement in overall dealer sentiment. The Industry Dealer Satisfaction Index rose 29 points over 2025 to 810. Two-wheelers improved by 35 points to 827, while the 4W Mass Market segment recorded a sizeable 39-point improvement to 810.

Segment	DSS 2026 Index
Overall Industry	810
2-Wheeler	827
4W Mass Market	810
Commercial Vehicles	782
Tractor*	784

*The release's overall DSI chart reports the Tractor segment at 784. The separate ranking chart on page 6 shows a segment figure of 778, so the source itself contains a discrepancy between the two charts.

Importantly, FADA says After-Sales now carries the highest factor importance. Together with Sales & Order Planning and Business Viability & Policy, these areas account for nearly 68% of dealer mind space.

JSW MG leads India's mass-market passenger vehicle dealers

JSW MG Motor India retained its leadership in the mass-market four-wheeler category with an impressive 865-point score, comfortably above the segment average of 810.

According to the ranking chart on page 5 of the study, the order was:

Rank	OEM	Dealer Satisfaction Score
1	JSW MG Motor India	865
2	Mahindra & Mahindra	853
3	Tata Motors	836
4	Kia Motors	812
5	Toyota Kirloskar Motor	778
6	Hyundai Motor India	766
7	Maruti Suzuki India	670
8	Renault India	597

The rankings reveal a considerable spread between the highest- and lowest-ranked manufacturers. JSW MG's 865 is 268 points higher than Renault India's 597. Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors also comfortably exceeded the segment average, while Kia narrowly crossed it. FADA additionally highlighted Toyota Kirloskar Motor and Kia as recording the strongest year-on-year improvements among the ranked mass-market OEMs.

Royal Enfield tops two-wheelers; Hero comes close

The competition was much tighter at the top of the two-wheeler rankings. Royal Enfield scored 878 points, narrowly beating Hero MotoCorp at 873. Both were substantially ahead of the overall two-wheeler segment average of 827.

The ranking chart on page 5 places the manufacturers as follows:

Rank	Two-Wheeler OEM	Score
1	Royal Enfield	878
2	Hero MotoCorp	873
3	TVS Motor Co	689
4	Suzuki Motorcycle India	666
5	HMSI	631
6	Bajaj Auto	570

The large gap after the top two is particularly noteworthy. Royal Enfield and Hero are the only manufacturers shown in the chart to score above the 827 segment average. Dealers appreciated product reliability and range, warranty fairness, sales-team training and digital marketing support. However, unsold-inventory buybacks/write-offs, training cost sharing and vehicle and spare-parts margins continue to be areas of concern. EV infrastructure, manpower capabilities and viable service economics are also becoming increasingly important for two-wheeler dealers.

Tata Motors CV edges Ashok Leyland

Tata Motors Commercial Vehicles topped the CV category with 800 points, only five points ahead of Ashok Leyland at 795. VECV-Eicher Motors followed with 732 points, against a CV segment average of 782 shown in the ranking chart on page 6.

FADA noted that commercial vehicle dealers place significant value on product range and reliability, regional sales support, supply allocation and access to senior management. At the same time, service economics are an especially important concern in this segment, including labour rates, warranty reimbursements, parts availability, turnaround times and Vehicle-On-Road margins.

Ather and VinFast lead pure-electric categories

DSS 2026 also provides an interesting perspective on India's emerging EV dealer ecosystem. Ather Energy scored 864 points to lead the pure-electric two-wheeler category, while VinFast Auto India scored 858 points to emerge as the leader in the electric passenger vehicle category.

These rankings are particularly relevant as the Indian automotive industry transitions towards electrification. For EV manufacturers, dealer satisfaction will increasingly depend not just on products, but on service economics, technical skills, charging/service infrastructure and the ability of dealerships to generate sustainable returns from EV operations.

BMW leads luxury cars; Swaraj tops tractors

BMW India emerged as the leader in the 4-Wheeler Luxury segment, recording 779 points, compared with the segment average of 758 shown on page 5.

In tractors, Mahindra & Mahindra's Swaraj Division secured the top position. The study says tractor dealers particularly appreciate product reliability, customer-visit support and floor-funding support, while warranty policies, parts delivery turnaround times, margins and training cost-sharing remain areas requiring improvement.

The bigger concern: Dealer profitability

The ranking tables make for compelling headlines, but arguably the most important message from DSS 2026 lies elsewhere. Despite the improvement in overall satisfaction, Business Viability & Policy remains the lowest-scoring factor.

Dealers highlighted concerns around unsold inventory and buyback/write-off mechanisms, training costs, vehicle and spare-parts margins, parts availability, service turnaround times, Vehicle-On-Road economics, network expansion and long-term dealership viability.

For mass-market passenger vehicle dealers specifically, inventory and deadstock, stock-carrying costs and dealership operating structures have emerged as significant pressure points. Dealers are also seeking greater predictability regarding investments demanded by OEM corporate-identity standards and network expansion.

FADA President Sai Giridhar said the findings underline the need for greater attention to sustainable margins, inventory and buyback policies, training cost sharing and clearer OEM policies. Dealers also want more structured participation in OEM decision-making.

FADA DSS 2026: JSW MG leads mass-market four-wheelers, Royal Enfield tops two-wheelers and Tata Motors CV leads commercial vehicles.

Auto Punditz Take

DSS 2026 sends a message that goes considerably beyond which manufacturer finished first.

An industry satisfaction score of 810, up 29 points, indicates an improving OEM-dealer relationship. But the underlying dealer concerns suggest that the traditional dealership business model is being tested by rising operating costs, inventory exposure, network investments and the transition towards EVs.

The 4W rankings are particularly interesting. JSW MG, Mahindra and Tata all score substantially above the industry average, while some of India's biggest volume manufacturers remain below it. This illustrates an important distinction: market share and dealer satisfaction do not necessarily move together.

The other important development is EV readiness. As electric vehicles account for a larger portion of retail volumes, OEMs will need to ensure that their dealers can make money not only from selling EVs but also from servicing and supporting them.

The next phase of OEM-dealer competition in India may therefore be fought on three fronts: dealer profitability, inventory discipline and after-sales economics.

And in that context, DSS 2026 suggests that the strongest OEM networks of the future may not simply be those selling the most vehicles — but those ensuring their dealer partners remain financially sustainable.