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TVS Motor Company has surpassed Yamaha to become the world’s third-largest two-wheeler maker by volume, based on 2025 sales. The news was discussed in Autocar India’s Deep Drive podcast.
Autocar India said the Chennai-based manufacturer moved up the global two-wheeler rankings after selling 5.6 million units in 2025, while Yamaha ended the year with nearly 5 million units.
Autocar India released the 96th episode of its Deep Drive podcast on January 24, 2026. The episode featured Rishaad Mody, Editor of Bikes at Autocar India, and Ketan Thakkar, Editor of Autocar Professional.
The hosts said the gap between TVS Motor and Yamaha widened in the final quarter of 2025. TVS posted record monthly sales during that period, while Yamaha maintained relatively flat growth.
The podcast placed Honda in the top spot in global two-wheeler rankings, while Hero MotoCorp was given the second position and TVS Motor the third.
Thakkar noted that the rise reflected performance across multiple segments. He pointed to categories ranging from mopeds and scooters to electric two-wheelers and premium bikes.
The discussion also framed the achievement as a broad-based volume story. It linked the ranking change to strength across product lines, rather than one model.
International business is featured as a central driver in the podcast. The hosts said that about one in every four two-wheelers that TVS manufactures is exported.
They put annual exports at approximately 1.2 million to 1.3 million vehicles and informed that TVS recorded its highest export figures through 2025.
The episode highlighted the HLX series that TVS developed for African markets. The hosts said HLX sales crossed 4 million units, making it bigger than the Apache brand in TVS’s portfolio.
Autocar India’s podcast noted that TVS has emerged as Africa’s second-largest two-wheeler manufacturer, with Bajaj Auto retaining the top position in the regional rankings.
Export momentum strengthened late in the year, based on figures cited in the discussion. The hosts said international business grew 58% year-over-year in November 2025.
The podcast outlined TVS’s next phase of ambition. It discussed the company’s plans to push further into Europe and North America using the Norton brand.
It also pointed to potential new products on a platform developed in partnership with BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke). However, the hosts did not disclose the timeline, model names, or launch targets.
Research and engineering investment were also featured in the episode. The hosts said TVS has invested over INR 1,000 crore in research and development (R&D).
They linked that spending to advanced engineering techniques in Indian motorcycles. However, the discussion did not detail specific technologies or production milestones.
The podcast concluded that a wide gap still separates the top two manufacturers, but added that TVS’s recent growth trajectory leaves scope for further progress in the coming years.
