Petrol, Diesel or CNG: Which Used Car Does Bangalore Prefer?

Karnataka was the fifth largest used car market in 2024 accounting for 10% of sales. Bangalore is one of the state’s largest cities, has a strong preference for used cars with petrol engines, while demand for used CNG cars is negligible. 

Bangalore is known, among many things for its traffic congestion. This seems to be one of the reasons why second hand car buyers in Bangalore seem to prefer petrol vehicles. There are several factors affecting fuel preferences for used car buyers in Bangalore, which we shall discuss in this article. 

Used Car Fuel Trends in Bangalore: Petrol is King

According to the CARS24 Gears of Growth report, used car sales in Bangalore in the years 2023 and 2024 saw a clear demand for used petrol cars. Here’s our findings. 

Key Takeaways 

• Petrol cars dominate the used cars ecosystem in Bangalore. 
• Sales of used petrol cars remain strong as it is considered to be a safer bet owing to the vast petrol ecosystem, affordable maintenance and high resale value. 
• Most of Bangalore’s used car buyers prefer a more refined drive and are environment conscious. 
• Used CNG car sales are almost negligible in Bangalore compared to used petrol and diesel vehicles. 
• Low CNG adoption is owing to lack of sufficient CNG infrastructure in Bangalore. 
• Diesel vehicles too occupy a small part of Bangalore’s used car ecosystem.
• Diesel cars are less preferred owing to higher maintenance and high rate of depreciation. 

Do Fuel Types Affect Resale Value In Bangalore?

Yes, it has more to do with a ripple effect. Post BS6, most carmakers have switched to petrol only offerings for compact cars. Used car buyers in Bangalore prefer newer models which mostly consist of petrol only vehicles which again leads to more demand. 

• There is a high demand for used petrol vehicles 
• Conversely the demand for used CNG vehicles is almost negligible. 
• Used cars with automatic transmission mostly consist of petrol engines.

• Automatic cars constitute a substantial portion of the used car ecosystem in Bangalore, an overwhelming majority of which are petrol driven further enhancing retail value. 

   

Body Types and Fuel Types: The Correlation

Hatchbacks are the most popular second hand vehicles in Bangalore with sedans and SUVs being almost similarly matched in terms of demand. Here’s how demand for different fuel types change with vehicle body types in Bangalore

Hatchbacks:

Used car buyers in Bangalore overwhelmingly prefer petrol powered hatchbacks while a few go for diesel engines. A fraction of the used hatchback buyers prefer CNG. While the sale of used petrol hatchbacks in Bangalore remains strong, fewer buyers choose CNG powered vehicles owing to lack of infrastructure. 

Sedans:

While second hand car buyers prefer petrol sedans, a sizeable portion of buyers opt for diesel sedans as well. The sale of used CNG sedans remain negligible as well. These numbers are consistent year over year as witnessed from the data from the past two years. 

SUVs: 

As expected, diesel engines dominate the used SUV segment though the difference between diesel and petrol powered vehicles is not as stark as seen in other cities. In fact Bangalore is one of the very few cities where the demand between diesel and petrol powered SUVs is so close. 

Also, the demand for diesel powered SUVs are waning while that of petrol powered ones is gaining traction. Also as MPVs are counted under SUVs, these have a slightly higher percentage compared to hatchbacks and sedans. 

In Bangalore petrol remains the fuel of choice, while demand for CNG vehicles is almost non existent irrespective of body styles. 

Reasons behind used petrol vehicles being more popular in Bangalore?

Several factors affect the demand for petrol powered used cars in Bangalore. Here are a few of the notable ones. 

• Second-hand petrol cars are more easily available than diesel or CNG powered ones and command a lower retail price. 
• Petrol cars are cheaper to maintain and generally more reliable as well. 
• The vast number of fuel pumps not only in Bangalore but also in any part of India is a primary reason for the wider adoption of petrol powered vehicles. 
• Petrol vehicles easily pass stringent emission tests especially in a metro city like Bangalore. 

• Petrol engines are preferred owing to their refinement, ease of driving and easy availability with automatic transmissions. 

   

Most Popular Used Cars in Bangalore, Fuel Wise:

A majority of used car buyers prefer petrol driven vehicles. Save for used SUVs, diesel does not enjoy as much demand in Bangalore. In fact, an overwhelming number of used SUVs sold there are petrol powered. The Maruti Suzuki Swift is the most popular used petrol and diesel car while the Maruti Suzuki Wagon R is the best selling used CNG car in Bangalore. 

Petrol Cars: 

The Maruti Suzuki Swift is the best selling used petrol vehicle in Bangalore followed by the Hyundai i10. Interestingly, while the top 5 best selling used petrol vehicles are hatchbacks, the third best selling vehicle in the list is a sedan, the Honda City. The list is rounded off with the Maruti Suzuki Alto and Hyundai Grand i10. 

Diesel Cars:

The top 5 used diesel cars in Bangalore are a mix of different body styles. While the first and fifth cars in the list are hatchbacks, the second and third in the list are SUVs while the fourth best selling car is a sedan. Also it is interesting to note that besides mainstream car brands, other brands like Renault and Ford are well accepted in Bangalore. 

CNG Cars: 

Maruti Suzuki enjoys a monopoly not just in the new CNG car market but also the used CNG market with the top 5 cars being from the Indian-Japanese carmaker. The Wagon R covers almost half of the used CNG car market in Bangalore with a 44% share. The used CNG segment in Bangalore is dominated by hatchbacks and MPVs. 

Conclusion

While you have electric and hybrid vehicles on sale in India, their rarity means that petrol, diesel and CNG are the mainstream fuel propelling both new and used vehicles. Of these, petrol is the fuel of choice of Bangalore’s used car ecosystem. 

Compared to other cities, Bangalore has a matured used car buyers market whose primary buying need seems to rise above low running costs and focuses more on comfort and convenience. This explains why 75 percent of used cars sold in the city are petrol driven. Also the significant number of used petrol SUVs also bolster this observation. 

While diesel and CNG vehicles are bought for their fuel economy and lower running costs, they have failed to make a dent in Bangalore’s used car market. For now petrol is the fuel of choice for the metro city.