Ather S340 electric scooter launch timeline revealed

Ather Energy will launch India’s first ‘smart’ electric scooter – the S340 – in the first quarter of 2017. The Ather S340 has been under development for the past couple of years, and the start-up from IIT Madras has already put enthusiasts on Beta test-rides of the electric scooter. The feedback has been helpful and positive, according to the founder CEO of Ather Energy, Tarun Mehta.

He also had this to say,

We have conducted the beta test rides and open houses across Bengaluru and Chennai. Close to 100 such enthusiasts have already test-ridden the S340 and feedback has been helpful and positive. We are looking to put an investment of about Rs 60 crore in the manufacturing facility in Whitefield (outskirts of Bengaluru) which has an initial capacity of 20,000 units. We would look at going beyond two-wheelers in the long run and for that fresh capital will be required but currently we are sufficiently funded to roll out our first model and all energies are driven towards that.

The Ather S340 electric scooter is built around an aluminum chassis, and weighs just 90 kilograms. It will use an electric motor that gives it a top speed of 72 km/h and a 0-60 km/h timing of 12.11 second. The motor will be powered by advanced lithium-ion batteries that have a life of over 50,000 km.

The batteries can be charged to up to 80% of its capacity in just 50 minutes through the quick charge. A full charge gives the scooter a range of 60 km. The scooter will have a waterproof touch screen instrument cluster for navigation, smartphone connectivity and over the air (OTA) updates.

Ather Energy is a start-up working on a single product – the S340 electric scooter. It was founded in IIT Madras in 2013, and is now backed by Tiger Global, Flipkart founders Sachin and Binny Bansal, and also Hero MotoCorp – India’s largest two wheeler maker. It has secured 45 million US dollars in funding, and now employs 250 people.

Via ETAuto