Motorbike sales jump 15% in September as e-motorbikes wait on incentive

Top image: Photo: Focusfeel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Indonesians bought 654,343 new motorbikes in September 2026, according to Indonesian Motorcycle Industry Association (AISI) data reported by Kontan on 8 October. That was 15.37% more than in September 2025 (567,173 units) and 9.7% up on August’s 596,461 units.

The rebound is welcome news for the conventional two-wheeler makers that dominate AISI. It also highlights how far behind the electric segment has fallen, as e-motorbike buyers continue to wait for a government purchase incentive that has been promised repeatedly but not yet paid.

The wider market

Domestic sales for January to September reached 5.02 million units, 3.71% ahead of the 4.84 million sold in the same period of 2025. AISI is targeting 6.4 million to 6.7 million units for the full year, and Kontan calculates that the industry has already reached about 78.4% of the lower end of that range.

Exports also grew. AISI members shipped 55,098 fully built (CBU) motorbikes abroad in September, up 9.64% on August, plus 688,319 knocked-down (CKD) kits, almost unchanged month on month. CBU exports for the first nine months totalled 487,940 units.

Electric motorbikes: still a sliver of the market

AISI’s monthly figures, as reported, do not break out electric models. The most recent number comes from the Indonesian Electric Motorcycle Industry Association (Aismoli), whose chairman Budi Setiyadi told a parliamentary hearing on 21 September that members sold roughly 18,900 e-motorbikes in January to August 2026, CNN Indonesia reported. That compares with about 77,000 in 2024, when a Rp 7 million per-unit subsidy was available, and about 70,000 in 2025.

By our own rough calculation, 18,900 units is well under 1% (about 0.4%) of the roughly 4.37 million motorbikes AISI recorded over the same eight months (5.02 million minus September’s 654,343). The two associations represent different companies, so the comparison is indicative only. At the January–August pace of about 2,400 a month, the electric segment would end 2026 at around 28,000 units; that is also our own extrapolation, not an industry forecast.

Budi blamed buyers’ hesitation on policy uncertainty, describing it as a matter of “government policy, which is sometimes there and sometimes not” (translated from Indonesian).

Incentive “this year”, says Airlangga

The latest official signal came on 4 October, when Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said the electric vehicle incentive would take effect in 2026, detikOto reported. He said the technical work sat with the Industry and Finance ministries, while the programme’s budget allocation (DIPA) is held by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources. He gave no amount or start date.

That keeps alive a promise first made for June. As we reported on 5 October, the file has passed to new Industry Minister Muhammad Sarmuji after the latest cabinet reshuffle. Periklindo chairman Moeldoko has told lawmakers that dealers and manufacturers are “stuck” and that many dealers risk closing, according to detikOto. A figure of around Rp 3 million per unit was reportedly mentioned earlier by former finance minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, but no scheme has yet been finalised. For background, see our earlier report on the e-motorbike sales slump.

What it means for buyers

There is currently no government discount on new e-motorbikes, and with less than three months of 2026 left, buyers holding out for one are betting on a scheme with no published amount or start date. Anyone who needs a bike now should compare total running costs rather than sticker price alone. Our electric motorbike buyer’s guide covers charging, battery swapping and the main models, and the IndoEVs directory lists the e-motorbike brands selling in Indonesia.

Related: Car sales dip 2.7% in September as BYD and Jaecoo hold top-10 places.

Sources: Kontan (8 Oct 2026); CNN Indonesia (22 Sep 2026); detikOto (4 Oct 2026)