The new family-oriented Ather Rizta electric scooter packs up to 3.7 kWh battery promising a range of up to 160 km on a single charge
Rizta marked a new direction for electric mobility solutions provider, Ather Energy. This is the first time Ather Energy has forayed into practical family-oriented scooter territory with Rizta. Like other Ather Energy offerings, Rizta promises a robust, over-engineered battery and safe ownership experience. What else does it offer? How do rivals fare? Let’s take a look.
Ather Rizta Vs Rivals – Is the price justified?
Except for Bajaj, all the other electric scooters quote “effective” ex-showroom prices in different cities with different region-wise subsidies. So, to keep it fair, we took real ex-showroom prices without any subsidies. There’s a reason why we took top-spec S1 Pro Gen 2, Simple One and Vida V1 Pro for this comparison.
Pricing is always confusing with Ather scooters. In this sense, Ather Rizta costs between Rs. 1,35,000 and Rs. 1,62,400 (“real” ex-sh) and these prices do not include all the trendy features that Ather announced on stage. To get those features, you need an optional Pro Pack (Rs. 13,000 to Rs. 20,000) which takes Rizta’s pricing between Rs. 1,48,000 and Rs. 1,82,400 (ex-sh). However, Ather does offer something called “Price Benefit” ranging between Rs. 7,401 and Rs. 15,001.
So, the quoted price without EMPS for Rizta is between Rs. 1,19,999 and Rs. 1,54,999 (with Pro Pack). Rizta is not Ather’s flagship, but top-spec Z 3.7 kWh variant with Pro Pack costs more than S1 Pro Gen 2 (ex-sh), which is Ola’s flagship offering. With Pro Pack, Rizta costs more than iQube, Chetak, Ola S1 Pro, Simple One and Vida V1 Pro.
Where powertrains and range are concerned, Rizta’s 4.3 kW peak power falls short of every other rival, except for 2024 Chetak with 4.2 kW electric motor. If we bring Ola S1 Pro Gen 2 with 11 kW peak power into the equation, Rizta is almost 3 times less powerful and has three times less torque. Powering the motor, Rizta gets either 2.9 kWh or 3.7 kWh battery options. Where battery size is concerned, nothing beats Simple One with a total of 5 kWh capacity.
Performance, range and features
Ather Rizta packs a mid-mounted motor driving rear wheels with a belt drive. This setup ensures a smooth and vibe-free riding experience. Only the TVS iQube gets a rear hub motor. Top speed is limited to 80 km/h on the Rizta. This is not bad when compared to 73 km/h, 78 km/h and 80 km/h top speeds of Chetak, iQube and V1 Pro respectively. Ather’s own 450X can do 90 km/h, Simple One can do 105 km/h and Ola S1 pro Gen 2, which costs less than Rizta, can hit 120 km/h.
Rizta’s base S trim lacks the TFT dashboard and lacks a larger 3.7 kWh battery pack option altogether. Even the top-spec Z trim lacks rear disc brakes and gets skinnier tyres than Ola S1 Pro. Rizta gets just two riding modes – Zip and SmartEco. Except for iQube and Chetak, other rivals offer more riding modes to ensure a balance between performance and range.
Speaking of range, Rizta promises a claimed range of up to 160 km. But Simple One takes the cake here with 212 km promised range on a single charge, owing to its larger 5 kWh battery. Ola isn’t far off, with a 195 km claimed range with S1 Pro Gen 2.
Conclusion
Rizta’s marketing elements include longest 900mm seat, optional 22L flexible frunk, pillion backrest and a flat floorboard. Rizta also has a wireless charger under its seat to charge their new Halo helmet (bought separately). If you are among the target demographic of these marketing elements, Rizta makes a lot of sense.
People already in Ather’s ecosystem or buyers smitten by Rizta’s sleek design can go for it too. But if you are looking for VFM products, Ola S1 Pro Gen 2 still takes the crown owing to its customer-centric approach. When compared to Rizta, S1 Pro is 3 times more powerful and torquey, while costing less. There are no optional packs with Ola. So, what you see is what you get, which is always nicer.
