Half of India’s 14 car and SUV manufacturers who control 90 percent of the market managed to outsell August 2019 sales last month, buoyed by a strong uptick in retail demand and helped by the low base of last year.Total domestic sales of all the 14 brands stood at 234,343 units, a growth of 20 units compared to 195,800 units clocked in the same month last year, as per sales data disclosed by each company. Entry-level cars and sports utility vehicles (SUV) have believed to have kept up its momentum through August, as demand outstripped supply across select segments. Ganeshotsav celebrated in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Onam in Kerala helped attract buyers. Maruti Suzuki, India’s largest carmaker, reported a jump of 21 percent in passenger vehicle (PV) sales in August to 113,033 units as against 93,173 units sold in the same month last year. Sales of Alto and S-Presso, both entry cars, nearly doubled to nearly 20,000 units. Hyundai Motor India, the country’s second-largest carmaker posted a 20 percent jump in volumes in August to 45,809 units as compared to 38,205 units sold in the same month last year. The new Creta, with 65,000 bookings, and the compact SUV Venue drove volumes for the Korean car brand.