About a month ago, when Bajaj revealed their first ever electric scooter, Pratap Bose, Tata Motors Design VP had posted on social media that the new Chetak e-scooter was nothing but a Vespa rip-off. He also stated that it was a sad day for Indian design and that it was an oppurtunity lost by Bajaj Auto.
Now, on the sidelines of Bajaj Chetak electric event in Pune, Rajiv Bajaj has commented on what Design VP had to say about the Chetak electric. Rajiv Bajaj said, “I don’t know who he is. I mean I know he is the design head at Tata Motors but I don’t know where he’s coming from on this. Bose can make a statement on the design of the product alone and not on the quality because he hasn’t seen it or the price, which he does not know about. Even I don’t know about it.”
Next, Rajiv Bajaj took a dig at Tata Motors TVC. This is what he had to say “Tata does not have faith in its own design and they need to relate it as Land Rover’s poor cousin to sell its products.” Below is the Tata Harrier TVC which is being referred to by Rajiv Bajaj.
Speaking about the Chetak design, Rajiv Bajaj added, “His (Pratap Bose) comments are about the design alone. But if design is the only thing customers see then Maruti cars wouldn’t sell in large numbers. It’s also the pricing and the product that makes a difference. It’s also the same reason why customers shy away from Maruti cars over ? 7-8 lakh mark because they want something more for their money.”
Speaking about the Chetak Electric, it has successfully completed its over 3,000 kms journey from Delhi to Pune. Bookings of this new scooter will open online from next month. Deliveries will start from Jan 2020. It is expected to be priced from Rs 1-1.3 lakhs. First cities to get this new scooter will be Pune and Bangalore. In Bangalore, the new Bajaj electric scooter will take on the Ather 450, which has been already launched.
Featuring a groovy, retro design, Chetak is positioned as a premium electric scooter. It is easily distinguishable with its curved body panels, round headlamp, comfortable seat and chrome-infused rear view mirrors and front fenders. To make it an exclusive offering, the company has decided not to add ‘Bajaj’ logo. The scooter will only have ‘Chetak’ as the branding element.
Chetak is powered by a 4 kW electric motor, connected to an IP67 rated lithium battery. Although exact details are yet to be revealed, the company had said that Chetak can travel 100 km in Eco mode. This is quite good, provided that speed available to users is not less than 40 kmph.
Chetak can be charged with any 5 AMP plug point and it will take around 5 hours’ time to get a full charge. Bajaj will also be providing the option of home charging unit at a subsidized price. However, fast charging option won’t be available at the time of launch.
