electric scooter World EV Day, Lets discuss about EVs, Comparing active competitors

[LoneRanger]

I have always felt that electric vehicle revolution in India , would be through Two wheeler than Four wheeler.  Scooters and bikes are the base of commute , not just in urban congregations but all over India, a fact easily deduce-able from the sheer volume of sales. In the Fy 2019, the number of two wheelers sold in India is approximately five times the number of four wheelers. ( 21.1 Million units vs 4.4 Million Units). And with 3.15 million units sold in the year 2019 , Honda Activa is the reigning monarch. So , this EV day , i want to explore the EV options who can challenge Honda Activa and their Pros and Cons. 

 

 

Ather 450x : 

 

Ather 340 is discontinued, Ather 450 is available only in Bengaluru and Chennai , and will be discontinued in near future. Ather 450X will be available in Hyderabad and other metros from November 2020.(Expected)

 

Price : Very complex pricing. In simple words, 99,000/- for Scooter. And 1999/- every month for battery and data connection

 

Range : 85 Kms

High Speed Warp Mode: 80 Kmph

Charge time : 4 Hours. 

 

Pros : Best build quality, Android Touch screen for navigation, music, Calls and saving soft copies of Bike documents

 

Cons : Very Very expensive & mindless pricing as compared to 450.

 

 

Bajaj Chetak : 

 

Bajaj Chetak is available in two variants , and right now available only in the cities of Pune and Bengaluru.  No launch date for Hyderabad.

 

Price : Bajaj Chetak is priced at 1,00,000/- for Urbane variant and 1,15,000/- for Premium variant.

 

Range : 95 Kms

High Speed In Sports Mode: 70 Kmph

Charge time :  5 Hours. 

 

Pros : Retro stylish , and Backing of Bajaj Brand.

 

Cons : Old LED Display, Very high waiting periods, Bookings in Pune are on Hold now.

 

 

TVS iQube : 

 

Bajaj Chetak is launched in 2020 Jan, and right now available only in the city of Bengaluru.  No launch date for Hyderabad.

 

Price :  iQube is priced at 1,15,000/- 

 

Range : 75 Kms

High Speed In Sports Mode: 78 Kmph

Charge time :  6 Hours. 

 

Pros : Polarizing styling, Full Color TFT screen, Integration with mobile with Smart App for Navigation.

 

Cons : No option of Fast Charging and Batteries cannot be removed. 

[Gowtham]

Thank you for sharing the wonderful post.

I am also looking for a EV scooter for my dad. But he is reluctant to move away from Activa. 
Ather looks promising but the pricing is unbelievable.

If they want to be Tesla of scooters in India, they need to bring down pricing.

 
Pricing need to come down.
Electric is future without any doubt. 

Until I drove Tesla, Im not keen on EVs.
Once we drive any electric vehicle, combustion engines feel very crude.
Power on EV feels very addictive. 

I am using my BIL's Tesla from the past three months. Last week I had to short-gun on a Honda CRV.
It felt pathetic. Petrol smell, vibrations, jerky ride, gear shifts list is endless. 

We did a 1000 kilometer trip without any major hiccups (EV) due to infrastructure. We had to take four charging breaks (15mins : 30mins : 45mins : 20mins)

 

We covered breakfast, lunch, dinner and coffee break. Charging is super fast. By the time we stretch, take a loo break, eat, car is ready. 

 

 

 

[LoneRanger]

On 9/12/2020 at 7:50 AM, Gowtham said:

Ather looks promising but the pricing is unbelievable.

If they want to be Tesla of scooters in India, they need to bring down pricing

 Exactly , they should realize that India is a price sensitive market. And , they should try to get profits from volume and not margins. 

 

On 9/12/2020 at 7:50 AM, Gowtham said:

Last week I had to short-gun on a Honda CRV.
It felt pathetic. Petrol smell, vibrations, jerky ride, gear shifts list is endless.

Never heard "Honda" and "Pathetic" in the same sentence before. Shows the refinement and ride quality offered by EV's. 

 

On 9/12/2020 at 7:50 AM, Gowtham said:

We did a 1000 kilometer trip without any major hiccups (EV) due to infrastructure. We had to take four charging breaks (15mins : 30mins : 45mins : 20mins)

 

That's exciting. 1000 Kms EV trip. Hope in India too we will have similar infrastructure. Just like filling stations , EV chargers stations has to be set up with local private partnership. 

 

The break time is very nominal. even without a Tesla(Specially travelling with women and kids), we take more time for a break. 

[shiva]

Nice post lone ranger. Perfect timing for me.
I am considering Ather for groceries shopping. I am fine with range. My only concern is price. 

Any test drive available for Ather in Hyderabad?

[LoneRanger]

9 hours ago, shiva said:

Any test drive available for Ather in Hyderabad?

Hello Shiva, test mules are right now running in Chennai and Bengaluru. It more like a real world testing of the scooter.

The users/owners of 450 , and 450x pre booking guys are given 450x for two/three days ,and the company is gathering users feedback and statistics of the scooter. 

 

Ather experience centers will unveiled at the end of this month(Dates haven't been out yet). And as soon as it's open in Hyderabad, 450x will be available for test drive. (worst estimate, mid October) 

[LoneRanger]

Update : Due to the long wait times, Bajaj Chetak has stopped taking orders. (Pune and Bengaluru). 

 

Im surprised to find that a company like Bajaj , with years of experience , instead of scaling up , is stopping bookings in the cities of Bengaluru and Pune. 

 

whats your opinion/comment on this?? 

[sagar]

Interesting post @LoneRanger.. Love to throw in my views to this thread. Correct me if I’m wrong..

I have been anticipating a lot about the influx of EV market in India and I was not surprised to see the spread of EVs during my AutoShow visit in Delhi Early this year.. 

 

Multiple brands have surely forayed their vision on EVs introduction into the market but in reality, I felt the country is still not ready for it. It is still in its development stage and I’m glad that government has also started promoting it though building of public Electric charging points are still due for long. Having such facility on the highways will build be more acceptable and I see that those days are not too far. All that government has to do is to accelerate the rate of promoting EVs in all means.

 

 

[sagar]

We guys still have to wait until the EV market emerges partially atleast. 
Few models by TVS, Hero Electric and Emflux seemed promising when compared to the other brands during my visit to the Delhi AutoShow this year.

[Sridhar Tandra]

People looking for EV scooters / bikes should check out the Revolt RV400, excellent stuff! (Please read the detailed 1 month review given by one of my friend on a different forum)

 

Make: Made in INDIA (except for charging adapter and few small parts rest of the bike and battery is made in India next batch will be 100%)

 

Top Speed : 95 kmph

 

Mileage : on full charge

Company claim 150kms eco mode (speed 45 max ) i got 143 kms (single drive )

Company claim 95 kms normal mode (speed 65 max)i got 84 single drive

Company claim 65 kms sports mode (speed 95 max) i got 50 kms

* mileage reduces by another 10km in each mode when we have pillion rider .

* shuffling among speed modes according to our requirements on the go will give approx 90 kms mileage with single rider

 

No change in pick up even when 2 people ride weighing 210 kg's together

 

Charging time : up to 70% 50 minutes

up to 100% 3 hours

Auto cut off after 100% no fear of over heating or over charging .

Units consumed per full charge: 3 units

Cost of charging : under 25 rs

Warranty: 8 years on battery 3 years free servicing or first 6 services . 3 years warranty on all other parts

 

More details :

led drls with day ligh sensor ,

Cell phone charging port and dock

Regenerative charging (battery gets charged when you use breaks more u drive in traffic more mileage u get)

disk breaks front back ,

hydraulic suspension front and mono suspension rear ,

total weight of bike 108 kgs .

Portable battery (12kg)can charge in you home or charge directly in bike (need 16 amp socket)

 

Mobile App features:

Bike comes with inbuilt 4G sim card

Syncs with your My revolt app access given by company

Can track your battery percentage real time and while charging

Can track your bike location in 40 kms radius from your phone

Can change sounds of the bike (bikes comes with a speaker inbuilt to give the feel of revving and also alert walkers as its very very quite bike and people wont know its coming even if its 1 inch behind them)

Keeps a track of your servicing

User manual

Technical support

And also helps in switching battery's from battery stations for fully charged ones in future

 

My one month experience:

 

This bike has blown my mind totally more than the fact that its an electric bike the ride quality impressed me a lot i have been driving access 125 fr ages now but after shifting to revolt i don't feel like stepping out without it never felt a pothole since i bought this bike . I knocked 500 kms in a month and charged only 4 times in one month ( it came on 90% charge from showroom ) . Earlier going to other side of city on 2 wheeler or to place where roads are really bad was a task now i get excited to do the same . Ditched car many times just to ride it and feel it . The experience is totally new you don't feel the engine u cant hear anything sometimes you doubt if the bike is on or off . The pick up is amazing every one who test drives it goes mad with the pick up and get really scared to drive it as raw power from battery directly reaches motor in seconds and we don't have reaction time . Its just like charging your phone this is a best bike to travel in city according to me . Stress free smooth eco friendly pocket friendly.

 

Cons: this is a first generation EV motorcycle so basically there should be a 100 things gone wrong with it but there are very few

1.key less remote gets pressed in pocket

2. Chances of loosing key less remote are very high

3. A key is given to open battery lid , lock handle bar , and remove battery there is a chance we forget that key in these places and loose it as that ke is not required to start the bike so chances are very high

4.logos are stuck with bad glue they come of easily

5.it would be great if there was small storage space .

Booking amount 4000

Waiting time 6-8 months

Price :156k - 32k subsidy from govt

Total on road including insurance road tax isi mark helmet is 124k

If taken on loan 4k down payment plus monthly 3.5k for next 37 months which comes to 133k on road

PS: if you are having solar at home per km cost is 0 rs

[LoneRanger]

5 hours ago, sagar said:

I felt the country is still not ready for it.

Yes, India is not ready for EV adoption yet. 

 

5 hours ago, sagar said:

I’m glad that government has also started promoting it though building of public Electric charging points are still due for long

Imo, Govt gets only 28% Gst , and 14% Road tax as one time tax in purchase of a vehicle. But the taxes on fuel is a continuous revenue stream for both central and state govt. They only promote to an extent. And that too just for the sake of it, I don't think govt has real intention for this transition. 

 

Instead of govt, private players has to step up in building the infrastructure. 

[mayank]

Few facts of this are unbelievable @Sridhar Tandra.. But I’m glad if something of this sort is in action in our country.. Thanks for sharing..

[Gowtham]

On 9/14/2020 at 4:20 AM, Sridhar Tandra said:

Revolt RV400

 

Thank you for sharing the information. Looks very promising. 
Sharing the link for interested people : https://www.revoltmotors.com/

[sagar]

 

On 9/14/2020 at 8:00 PM, LoneRanger said:

They only promote to an extent.

Im not sure about this but, I have come across an article few months ago that the hive of India has started a campaign towards promoting the EV market and TVS, Hero electric, Ather are a part of this campaign. Also true that private investors should take hold of installing or establishing charging stations on a larger scale through the country to let grow of this market.

 

Also, Thank you so much @Sridhar Tandrafor sharing some amazing information. The ebikes from revolt looks revolutionary. 

[uday]

Very good post @LoneRanger. I never knew we had some many options in the market. This is an eye opener for me. 

On 9/14/2020 at 4:20 AM, Sridhar Tandra said:

one of my friend on a different forum

 

Good one Sridhar. May be ask him to join here and share his views. 

[Gowtham]

Quote

• Changing customer expectations, not legislation, to primarily fuel EV demand
• Battery prices falling to $95/kWh to make EVs more attainable 
• Commercial vehicles better suited for electrification than private vehicles  (ACI)

 

Battery prices look very reasonable now. 
100KWH battery is roughly 10,000$  = around 7 lakhs 
100KWH is like top of the range, performance category. 

[Sridhar Tandra]

On 9/16/2020 at 4:11 AM, uday said:

May be ask him to join here and share his views

will do it