The model comes with an app that enables push navigation from the phone to the vehicle dashboard, remote monitoring of the vehicle health, charge monitoring and managing service requirements
Bangalore-based startup Ather Energy has launched it intelligent scooter, Ather 450.
The company claims the model is designed for city riding conditions and comes with a top speed of 80 km/hr, a range of 75 km and quick accelerations of 3.9 seconds from zero to 40 km/hr.
According to the founders, Ather 450 has been designed to solve for problems limiting current electric two-wheelers, like slow charging speeds, low powered motors, and short battery lives. It can fast charge to 80 per cent at a rate of 1 km/minute. It comes with a 3.3kW BLDC motor that can ride up 18-degree slopes, making steep parking lots, flyovers, and roads an easy climb.
The model also comes with parking assist, which allows riders to reverse into tight parking locations.
The Ather 450 has a 7-inch touchscreen dashboard that allows onboard navigation with options of alternative routes and saved locations. It comes with an app that enables push navigation from the phone to the vehicle dashboard, remote monitoring of the vehicle health, charge monitoring and managing service requirements.
With its over-the-air (OTA) functionality, the vehicle is capable of improving over time with continuous improvement and addition of new features and functionalities, claim its Co-founders Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain.
The Ather 450 comes with a home charging point, that will be installed by the company at either owners’ homes or workplace. Features like surge protection, authenticated power draw, and remote charge monitoring makes Ather’s Point a fast, safe and intelligent charger.
Ather Energy has a new dealership and service model. While the ordering, payment, and test ride scheduling is online, the brand has opened its experience centre AtherSpace to give customers an in-depth look and experience of the product. The servicing woes are also taken away by a doorstep pickup and service that can be scheduled through the Ather app.
Ather is offering a no-hassle, pricing model. The total cost includes what consumers pay upfront to buy the scooter and a monthly subscription that will take care of most operational expenses.
The Ather One plan entitles customers to free public and home charging, periodic maintenance inclusive of consumables, breakdown assistance and unlimited data services for the dashboard at only INR 700 (US$10) + GST per month, which is way lower than the sustenance cost of present scooters.
The Ather 450 is priced at INR 124,750 (US$1,861) on road and its previous model Ather 340 is priced at INR 109,750 (US$1637) on road. This is inclusive of subsidy @ INR 22,000 (US$328), GST, road tax, smart card fee, registration card, and insurance.
Co-founded in 2013 by IIT graduates Mehta and Jain, Ather Energy is backed by the founders of Flipkart, Tiger Global and Hero Motocorp. Ather Energy has filed 43 patent applications along with 11 international patent applications and 122 design registrations with their product that’s designed in India.
“In the last four 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 electronic vehicles 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 and Ather 340 launching and AtherGrid (its public charging network) being up and running in Bengaluru, we are really looking forward to expanding into Chennai and Pune in the coming months,”said Mahta, who is the CEO of the startup.
In 2016, Ather Energy raised US$27 million in Series B funding from Hero MotoCorp, one of the largest motor cycle manufacturers in India, in return for a 26 to 30 per cent stake.
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