Bengaluru-based Ather Energy has made its foray into the Indian two-wheeler industry by introducing its very first electric scooter, the Ather 450. Along with the launch of the Ather 450, the company has also introduced the Ather 340, another electric scooter that was first unveiled in 2016. On the price front, the Ather 450 has been priced at Rs 1,24,750, while the Ather 340 is priced at Rs 1,09,750 (both on-road).
The new Ather 450 is designed to overcome the issues faced by electric two-wheelers such as slow charging speeds, low powered motors, and short battery lives. The electric scooter comes with a 3.3kW BLDC motor producing 2.09 kgm of torque that can comfortably climb uphill roads up to 18-degrees, steep parking lots and flyovers. It is also the first electric scooter to feature a reverse assist feature which allows the rider to reverse into tight parking locations.
The Ather 450 offers a range of 75 km on a full charge. It is capable of achieving a top speed of 80 kph and 0-40 kph in under four seconds. As for the Ather 340, the electric scooter is rated to achieve a top speed of 70 kph, accelerate from 0-40 kph in five seconds, and boasts a range of 60 km on a full charge.
The Ather 450 comes with a 7-inch touchscreen dashboard that allows onboard navigation while displaying alternative routes options and saved locations. The company has also developed an app that enables the user to transfer the navigation inputs from the phone to the vehicle dashboard. The app also provides other information like remote monitoring of the vehicle health, charge monitoring and managing service requirements. The scooter also comes with over-the-air (OTA) functionality that enables it to be updated with continuous improvements, and addition of new features and functionalities.
Both electric scooters will be offered with Ather One, a service package that includes unlimited charging, consumables, roadside assistance, data services, scheduled maintenance, labour charges and others. The service will be available at Rs 700 per month which as per the company is less than the price of servicing a petrol vehicle.
Co-founder & CEO of Ather Energy, Tarun Mehta said, “We started building electric scooters four years ago at IIT Madras and we are super excited to launch not only the Ather 340 but also our higher performance flagship variant, the Ather 450. It has been designed with quick acceleration, great handling, high storage space and new-to-category features like park assist, remote diagnostics, and onboard navigation. In the last 4 years, we have not only built the scooter but an ecosystem for an electric vehicle future. Be it the suppliers and partners who were entering the EV market, the charging infrastructure that had to be set up for consumers and the engineering talent itself to build the products. Between the Ather 450 & Ather 340 launching and AtherGrid being up and running in Bengaluru, we are really looking forward to expanding into Chennai & Pune in the coming months. These are exciting times to be a part of the industry.”
