EVs are emerging as the new choice for long-distance travel: BMW's Hardeep Singh Brar

Electric vehicles are starting to replace diesel as a fuel of choice for those travelling longer distances amid growing price parity with internal combustion engine (ICE) cars, expansion of highway charging network, and launch of higher-range vehicles by automakers, said Hardeep Singh Brar, president and CEO at BMW Group India.

Brar who spoke to ET ahead of the release of the company’s sales numbers said volumes in the first half of the year went up by 17% to 9,075 units.

BMW, which leads the Indian market for luxury electric vehicles, secured as much as 26% of these sales from EVs in the first half of 2026, compared to 16% from diesel. Brar is optimistic about the share of EVs rising to 40% by 2030.


“I think the electric narrative is now gaining momentum, especially after the increase in fuel prices,” Brar told ET. “So that is really pushing a lot of customers towards electric cars because they're not sure where this is going to line up. Even today, 30% of our bookings are actually coming from electric. So that clearly shows the demand is much higher (than retails), and the waiting period is now almost 2 or 3 months.”

He said BMW India will offer electric options across its portfolio over the next few years, which will further support the transition to the technology.

“So that gives us confidence that when our portfolio increases, and every car has an electric, 40% of sales will come from EVs,” he said.

He highlighted that the share of electrics in BMW India’s sales has risen by five percentage points in the first half of the year at the expense of both petrol and diesel.

However, while petrol continues to account for the majority of its sales with a 58% share during the period, diesel slipped to 16% from 18% in 2025. “Diesel is slowly declining and we clearly see EVs replacing diesel,” said Brar.

He said diesel car customers tend to drive longer distances and opt for the fuel to reduce running costs. “With the range (of EVs), now exceeding 500, for the diesel customer, it is in fact more beneficial (to get an EV),” he said. “The torque is amazing; pickup is even better than diesel. It's a cleaner fuel, so you're contributing to society, you are saving money, much more than what you will save on diesel and charging is not a problem.”

Brar, however, said it is imperative that more fast charging stations are set up on highways than in cities going ahead to accelerate EV adoption.

Separately, Brar said the company has been receiving customer queries on the use of E20 petrol, but it hasn’t received any complaint so far.

He emphasised that BMW cars are E25 compliant, but if even higher blends are to be introduced, the company would have to prepare for that. “Till E25, we are sorted,” he said. “But when it comes to even higher grades, it's always better if we have the clarity by when we need it. So that you can prepare for it,” he said.

“We have launched 11 cars till now and all of them are kind of sold out,” said Brar. “Coming to the second half, we have 14 more launches planned across sedans, electric, SUVs.”