[ram.iyer95]

Originally Posted by jnanesh

the headlight switch is non existent and the LED lights are ON the minute you switch on the scooter with no way to switch them off.

Off topic, but that has been the case with all two-wheelers since April 2017, after the Govt mandated AHO, or Auto-Headlamp On feature. None of the two wheelers on sale in India today have the headlamp ON/OFF switch.

[viggienomad]

In Bangalore, it now becomes a norm to bring your own helmets if you hire a scooter from Vogo or Bounce. You may find a helmet in the scooter, but why risk it?!

Old (relatively) Vogo scooters have a key to unlock & start. Newer scooters are all have GPS & App based lock / unlock. Here the scooters generally have both rear-view mirrors. Newer scooters are smooth. But I feel we as a country lack maintenance responsibilities (both the public & the company).

[girimajiananth]

This concept is pretty good, but as everyone else pointed out we Indians cannot take good care of such things. Vogo is good provided you either return the scooter to the same station or to another vogo station at your destination. I do not see a vogo station near bus stand or railway station in Bangalore. I find bounce scooter quite convenient, there is always one lying near by and I can leave it anywhere.

[xway]

i dont want to typecast here, but do you have any idea why VOGO/Bounce etc. have no service in Delhi NCR ?
I will tell you, that in other places like Hyderabad, Bangalore etc. many are petty thieves or "chindi chors" so they can pinch helmets and mirrors,
God forbid if these companies start operations here in NCR - I can imagine whole bikes going missing in days, it wont be surprising to see someone coming with a tractor or temp and picking all bikes up and vanishing.
Maybe thats the reason they have not started in this region as yet.
Its the public who dont leave anything as simple as mug tied to a chain in train toilets to steal, than how can one think of leaving something as expensive as bikes ?
Sorry, but most here have no remorse or self assessment and find pinching as an act of smartness also sometimes, the value depends for someone stealing a pen is a big deal, for someone else stealing a car means the same.

[ashikthomson]

So last week I had a really pathetic and disappointing incident with vogo in Banglore.
I went to a nearby vogo station. There were loads of scooters parked so tightly that getting out most of them needed rearranging another 10 scooters. Somehow I took managed to find a scooter with mirrors in a side which can be easily pulled out.
I tried scanning the QR code, it showed I was not in the station. After some 10 attempts and 25 minutes I got to unlock the scooter. Now is the real problem. The scooter wont start, the switch is jammed I guess. I tried to end the trip, but again same issue. It says I'm not in station, when in reality I have not even moved an inch from the pickup point. Multiple attempts, and lot of time, still no success. I became so frustrated since the customer care was also not picking up calls. I spent almost 1.5 hours to end the trip and finally succeeded. It was already 7pm and the place where I was supposed to go, the event got over. And they even charged me 25rs for this.
I wrote a detailed mail to vogo, but till date I got no response. I don't want to get stuck in a situation again. So never going to use vogo again.!

[rkv_2401]

I'll share my observations after having used the Vogo platform in Bangalore for around a month last year.

The first time I took a Vogo scooter, I was searching for PG rentals(Zolo) in the vicinity. I'd paid the deposit of 200Rs. 3/4 days ago, made a reservation 2 hours in advance, and also thoughtfully borrowed a helmet from a colleague. I thought I was prepared... until it started raining heavily 20 mins in. Pulled the Vogo over to a nearby cafe, and to my dismay, it wouldn't lock! On a Vogo, turning on the scooter when it is unlocked is as simple as pressing the start button. And I had no intentions of losing the scooter before I'd travelled even 5 kms on it.

Eventually, I got it locked. But after the rain subsided, I had an even bigger problem UNlocking it - a problem that would prove to be a recurring trend.
Customer support proved helpless, and I had to do some quick thinking involving switching Bluetooth on and off on my phone, rapidly pressing some buttons on the scooter whilst holding another, and even using the kick-starter to somehow coerce the Bluetooth-enabled 'box'(as Vogo refers to it on their website) into turning on - all whilst chilled to the bone in a cold November drizzle. I found this Bluetooth chip to be quite the pain, as it can shut off randomly in operation, cutting the engine even at 30-40km/hr and leaving you stranded in the middle of a junction. That being said, there is some trick that you can use to turn it on again in a very short period of time(I've forgotten now as it's been five months), well before the vehicle rolls to a halt.

There is an option where you can pick a scooter up at one drop zone and drop it off at another close to your destination. I found this to be very useful. There were many drop zones near the PG areas in Maruthi Nagar (BTM Layout), and there was one near every Metro railway station that I had visited. I dropped my scooter off at the Jayanagar Metro station everyday. There were always scooters available there.

Every morning, the Vogo scooters in Maruthi Nagar were only available till a certain time(9:30 or 10AM), after which no usable scooter will be available at any nearby drop zones - even though they are indicated on the app. There were scooters parked, but on scanning their QR codes the app would say that they are unavailable. They appeared to be reserved for someone, as they were in much better condition(from what I could tell) than the ones that I had been using. The people at the station made no attempts to turn them on or clarify my queries.

Speaking of maintenance of the scooters, they were almost always in poor condition - no mirrors, poor brakes, and I have never seen a Vogo helmet(in a Vogo scooter, that is. They are a ubiquitous sight on the streets, and in fact, my PG mate had one which he was using on Bounce scooters xD). Nearly all of them are low on fuel, but they'll get you to your destination. A couple of the scooters I picked up from the Maruthi Nagar Vogo station had weak front wheel bearings, which meant it would dive dangerously to a side, at random, at speeds above 30km/hr. Those were terrifying to drive. On the flip side, there were also a couple of brand new scooters that had done just 300kms(still no mirrors, though), had a half tank of fuel, and had brilliant brakes - I'd keep track of their numbers and take them every time they were available.

Driving around without a helmet wasn't an option for me. I bought a decent full-face helmet for 600Rs at a roadside shop. Carrying it around isn't that painful, and I get to use it even now for pillion riders. Half-helmets, like the Vogo/Bounce ones, were available at just 150Rs.

One of the scooters I'd taken had a puncture, which isn't easily noticeable at first as the scooters are placed on their main stand. I was able to return it and get on another scooter, though, and from that point on I made it part of my routine check when choosing a scooter for my commute - which has the tightest brakes? Fuel? Do both tires have air?

Eventually, I got tired of rushing out in the morning to be able to choose a decent scooter, getting used to the vastly different braking of each scooter(even at low speeds, Bangalore traffic can be difficult to maneuver, and I didn't want to get in any trouble), and worrying about the fuel or any other concerns with the bike.

I booked a Drivezy Activa for the next month of my stay.

[crashnburn_in]

So I'll be in Hyderabad now & then local to some areas like Tarnaka.

Any thoughts on 2 wheelers available for rent in the area? Billed by time etc?