Ather Energy, a startup by two IITians – Tarun Mehta and his batchmate Swapnil Jain, had revealed their new Ather S340 electric scooter today at the SURGE conference in Bengaluru about a year ago.
Ather S340 is a fully electric scooter which was to be launched later in 2016 via online-only sales model. But that has not happened. The company has now stated that launch has been delayed by at least one more year.
Ather S340 electric scooterIn an interview with Team-BHP, Ather CEO stated – “Being a new product, we don’t have years of customer and field data. Working around that, (testing on the bench and in the field) meant we took longer than we thought it would. Also, building a vertically integrated company has meant that we are practically our own suppliers, putting the entire reliability, design and manufacturability in our hands. While this end-to-end control is exactly what we wanted – it comes at a large upfront time investment. A first attempt meant that we are doing technology development in parallel with product development – and that’s hard to parallelize.”
Speaking about the scooter, it is powered by a lithium-ion battery pack, which delivers a driving range of up to 60 km and a top speed of 72 kmph. This battery pack can be charged 80% in just 50 minutes via fast charging mode. You can also charge the Ather S340 via a 5A outlet from your house in normal mode. Ather claims that the battery life is good to last for 50,000 km.
Featuring a lightweight hybrid aluminium chassis, Ather S340 has a distinctive, yet sporty design. It will easily manage to gel with existing lot of scooters on offer in India, yet keep a different appeal for itself. Thanks to a low centre of gravity, aluminium swing-arm, Ather S340 offers impressive riding dynamics. It also has intuitive LED lights that respond to ambient light conditions.
Ather S340 electric scooter instrument panelApart from being electric, S340 is also smart. It features a waterproof touchscreen dashboard which is integrated to cloud-based data, thereby offering a unique riding experience to the rider. As a rider, you can sign-in via the dashboard, and the scooter will recognize who is the rider, and thus offer a personalized riding experience.
The dashboard touchscreen can be integrated to the S340 Mobile App. Once connected, you can change and configure user preferences and riding profile at the touch of a button on your smartphone. You can also sync navigation routes remotely. The more kms you clock, the better the scooter starts understanding you. Customized vehicle updates will be downloaded automatically OTA.
“Intelligent vehicles will revolutionize our commute experience in future and we have just begun that journey.” – Tarun Mehta
Ather S340 electric scooter
Also, on offer are 200 mm disc brakes in the front and rear, 90/90/12 tyres, all LED headlight and taillight, large floorboard to accommodate luggage, and a comfortable seating position, for rider and pillion.
Just like their futuristic scooter, Ather is also going to offer a futuristic sales and service experience to customers. Ather has said that S340 can only be purchased online while delivery and servicing will be done at your doorstep by the company. Ather is also planning on setting up public charging infrastructure in major Indian cities.
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