[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by srishiva

There is not much info on how extensively it was tested. Did they test at various environmental conditions especially hot weather and its impact on battery life if any?

Ather claims to have built cell cyclers that helped in generating data equivalent of about 20 million km (and counting) of cumulative rides under varied (and often extreme) weather conditions.

More Info here

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Just think, when was the last time a brand new company built ground up without a big name backing it entered the auto sector in India successfully.

This is the future and it is coming very fast.

True. More companies are entering the electric space now - and the existing players are likely to tie up, provide funding and finally try to acquire all these smaller players that are establishing themselves in the two-wheeler space.

Originally Posted by GeeTee TSI

Though I have never been to premium bike (nor car) brand showrooms

None of the premium bike showrooms come close, except maybe Ducati in terms of ambience and Triumph for hospitality. Truly well done in that space.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Ather planning to complete installation of 200 charging points by end 2019 -

"We are opening in multiple cities in the coming months. By the end of this year we expect to increase the number of charging points to 200 charging points," Tarun Mehta, CEO and co-founder, Ather Energy told ETAuto.

Source

[hemanth.anand]

Ather deliveries have been stopped until there is clarity on FAME II subsidy. Neither any new registrations are being done nor any invoices being raised until April 10 by when they expect to get an update. People who have their payment window opened are being told to hold on to their payment because of this.

[jaganm]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Ather planning to complete installation of 200 charging points by end 2019 -

This is very necessary. The current public charging infrastructure is very inadequate. Whole important swathes between Marathahalli and Jayanagar are totally absent.

Also in a city like Bangalore, a charging station within 4 km may not be adequate. The 4km can sometimes take the better part of an hour to traverse

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by narayans80

Any idea on when they plan to launch in Madras? They were originally planning on launching in March 2019, but looking at the supply chain issues for the Bangalore deliveries, I am not so sure.

An old Scooty at home is up for change and the range looks good for our usage.

From the horse's mouth -

[jaganm]

It's been close to a month of ownership for me and the opinion is a bit more mixed as I live with the scooter.

- I still love the performance and handling of the scooter
- It does turn heads at signals, I recently had a traffic inspector quiz me a lot at a signal about the range and performance
- Since my office has shifted closer, I no longer have range anxiety and come back with a good 20-25 km to spare in Sport mode versus the 10-15 which left me no flexibility

But the negatives are piling on
- The constant attention this scooter demands. Do I have range? Have I forgotten to charge? Should I go down to the parking and unplug the charger or leave it overnight? It is taxing when you have a busy life and job. I realise this is not specific to Ather but common to every electric vehicle now. But I long for the simplicity of my Access, where every 2 weeks, I would just fill it to the brim and the only time I thought about it was if I misplaced my key somewhere
- I've given up on the Google Maps routing on the scooter. It almost never gives me the same route as the maps on my phone which inevitably gives me the fastest route. When I was in my previous office, it would always suggest the NICE route between HSR and Vijaynagar, which was impractical on the Ather
- The side stand is a huge design miss and a big irritant. It leans so much that I fear it will topple over with the slightest push. This is something I hope they will address in the next Version
- The seat is extremely uncomfortable for anything more than 20-25 km at a time. It's a good thing therefore that the range is limited as going any further would cause a massive pain in the backside. I think it is not so much the cushioning but the slope of the seat that is the problem.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by jaganm

I think it is not so much the cushioning but the slope of the seat that is the problem.

Why not modify the cushioning?

Should be very easy to do, and any reputed shops like Rao Seats (RE riders may be able to help you out with more options) should be able to add an additional layer of foam.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Why not modify the cushioning?

Should be very easy to do, and any reputed shops like Rao Seats (RE riders may be able to help you out with more options) should be able to add an additional layer of foam.

Certainly a sensible suggestion. But I would feel bad after shelling out a lakh-and-quarter for a bike, that I still need to spend more money and time fixing something as basic as seating and an impractical side stand! Ather, please take note.

[GTO]

Ather had an owner's meet this Sunday:

For a Sunday morning, the enthusiasm our customers showcased left us pleasantly surprised. More than 100 Ather 450 owners turned up on their scooters. Some of them rode in with Tarun all the way from our experience centre. Ather 450s taking over Bengaluru streets was a sight to behold.

After they arrived at our offices, the conversations were about the capabilities Ather 450 has by virtue of being a connected and intelligent vehicle, including all the fun things we have learnt from the 450s on the road. Like the longest ride on a 450 (a very impressive 110kms with 90% capacity) or how Bengaluru traffic affects top speed at peak hours (an average of 18 km/hr between 6 pm to 8 pm).

The love, passion, and joy the owners shared with us during the session blew us away. They took the opportunity to share their stories and feedback on everything they love about their Ather 450s. They also discussed the features and enhancements they wish to see in the future. It was a great opportunity to put a face to all the names that have been emailing us, calling us and tweeting at us about their scooters and their rides.

[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by GTO

Ather had an owner's meet this Sunday

That's me in the top row, third from the right, in that Drone shot.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

It was a very well organised event and one interesting thing they told was that they'd like to organise an interactive meet for us and our scooters to meet their prospective buyers in Chennai-their next city. They told that they'd take care of logistics of our scooters. It'd be really nice if they do it and I'm ready for it.

On the lines of what they told in the event, they sent us an email asking us to nominate for participation in the Chennai event. So the launch in Chennai seems well on track.

On a separate note, the FAME II and lack of clarity around it has put a stop new deliveries. There were no vehicles registered this month. FAME II requires a fresh round of Homologation and Validation it seems. Also the exact amount of subsidy for Ather is still unknown.

[sri_tesla]

Ather Energy is entering Chennai. Ather is setting up Ather space (showroom) and Ather grid charging network in Chennai. Pre-orders will start in June.

Official forum update:
https://forum.atherenergy.com/t/internal-updates/290/9

[hemanth.anand]

Since April, there were no Athers invoiced, registered and delivered to customers. This was because of the FAME II scheme that required eligible EV Manufacturers to re-register and re-validate the vehicles with ARAI. Customers had to wait for more than a month longer because of this even though the scooters were manufactured and stocked-ready for delivery.
Ather today mentioned on thier Forum that they have finally received the certification for FAME II compliance. They also mentioned that the subsidy amount will now be ₹27,000/‐ (compared to the ₹22,000/- that I got under FAME I scheme). They have also written that they will restart invoicing soon after the registration will be completed next week.

[sri_tesla]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

They also mentioned that the subsidy amount will now be ₹27,000/‐ (compared to the ₹22,000/- that I got under FAME I scheme).

FAME II subsidy is based on the capacity of battery. Its Rs 10,000 per KWh of battery. Ather 450 has 2.4 KWh of usable battery but the actual capacity of battery is 2.7 KWh. Ather is limiting the capacity to 2.4 KWh to improve the life of the battery similar to what Tesla, Hyundai, Jaguar, etc... are doing with their EVs.

I am glad that the subsidy is based on the actual capacity of battery (2.7 KWh = Rs 27,000) but not on just for usable capacity. Also, glad to see relatively quick turnaround time (~1 month) to sort the certification and subsidy issue from govt agencies. Ideally, this should have been done before the end of FAME I, but not bad.

[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

...Customers had to wait for more than a month longer because of this even though the scooters were manufactured and stocked-ready for delivery.
...They have also written that they will restart invoicing soon after the registration will be completed next week.

Ather co-founder has tweeted the same with some additional photos. Looks like they are running out of parking place! Hope they are able to cut down some waiting time with this

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Ather co-founder has tweeted the same with some additional photos. Looks like they are running out of parking place! Hope they are able to cut down some waiting time with this

Woah! That's a lot of scooters. On the positive side, glad that their production issues are sorted.

They might also have ramped up production at just the wrong time in preparations for entering Chennai.