Ather S340 & S450 launched; 10 things you don’t know about India’s MOST expensive electric scooters

Ather Energy launched the long-awaited S340 and S450 in India. The scooter has been in the news for a long time and has been dubbed as the Tesla of the two-wheeler markets by many. Now that the Ather Energy has finally launched the S340 and the S450, what are the most intriguing things that you do not know about the scooter? Let’s find out.

Waterproof battery

When it comes to electric automobiles, most people stay sceptic because of the huge battery and how it may get affected if water or any other liquid enters it. To overcome that doubt, Ather Energy is using advanced IP67 rated batteries. Now such ratings are quite common in smartphones but it is the first time that a two-wheeler battery gets such high-standard ratings. The IP67 ratings mean that the battery is completely dustproof and waterproof.

Lighting fast charging

Ather offers a fast charging solution as standard. They have set-up charging points in various places in Bengaluru with a fast charging feature. It will be able to quick charge the battery at the rate of 1km per minute. Which means the battery offers a fast charging option up to 80% and for every minute you charge, you get one km of riding range. According to Ather, there is a charging point at every 4 km in the city.

Long lasting battery

Batteries take up the most of the cost in an electric vehicle. The battery replacement cost is huge when the batteries go kaput after regular use. Ather Energy’s IP67 rated lithium-ion batteries are extremely long-lasting and will last for 50,000 km. Most scooters have a life of 50,000 km and if the battery lasts the lifetime, it is an achievement.

Has subscription fee

Ather One plan takes care of the after-sales service including the consumables like brake pads and other parts. For this, the consumers have to pay Rs. 700 per month. According to Ather, this is included in the on-road price of the scooter. It is not known if the customer can choose to opt out of such services.

True range

Both the scooters get the same battery capacity but the Ather 450 gets a more powerful engine. As per ARAI, both the scooters get a range of 107 km! But Ather has not considered that and has revealed that in the real world, the scooter would do only 60 km that can be increased to 75 km in Eco Mode.

A reverse gear!

While a reverse gear is common in four-wheelers, it is extremely limited to the high-end bikes when it comes to two-wheelers. Ather offers a reverse mode in the S340 and S450 that allows the rider to back-up the scooter effortlessly from the parking spots. Now that is something truly unique and is extremely uncommon in scooters.

Safe braking

The Ather electric scooters are very expensive but they do come with important features like disc brakes. Ather is the only scooter in India that offers front and rear disc brakes. Both the scooters offer disc brakes on both the wheels. However, ABS is not present even as an optional feature.

A touchscreen panel

Here is another unique feature of both the Ather S340 and S450. It gets a unique capacitive touchscreen as the instrument cluster. The 7-inch touchscreen unit is waterproof and is loaded with information. It also gets satellite navigation, remote diagnostics, charge status, speedometer and various other things. It gets an integrated SIM card and stays connected to the internet all the time. For safety, the touchscreen stops working at above 5 km/h speed.

Smartphone connected

It gets a dedicated Ather app for the smartphones that can remotely tell the owner about the scooter. The smartphone integrated app can show the charge status, shows the riding pattern and gives tips to improve the range. It also allows to pre-set the route on the map and request remote diagnostic too.

No service centre

Ather has not set-up any service centre. Instead, they provide support online and can diagnose a problem and even solve it with software updates over the air. The company says that they provide doorstep service whenever needed. This would be one of its kind Zero dealership and service center brand in India.