[nettooran]

A lot of confusion on Simple one. for those who understands Malayalam, the video explains a lot. Hold back your bookings.

https://youtu.be/Hjy6OWtt13Q

Credits to the original video to the creators , who are here in Team-BHP also.

[aswin ajith]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

http://Youtu.be/BUTu3zjRI7A

Saw this video on YouTube. Seems to be recorded on the day of launch. Somehow all answers seemed vague and nothing has been decided. I don't know why all companies these days are in a great hurry to launch the product (cars, scooters) even when nothing is ready!

The way this guy answers the questions put forward gives a very odd feeling. There is very little clarity in his speech. Immediately after seeing this, searched for his Linkedin profile but looks like he doesn't have one. He just has a Facebook profile. An undergraduate from some college in KA I believe.

While it's clearly out in the open that it's a non working Ather 450X that they displayed with a chain drive and a reworked swing arm, this guy's credentials look very suspect to me. Not getting the right vibes somehow.

[Alfaholic]

One thing that I found interesting is that Suhas did a bachelor's in architecture, passed out in 2018 (possibly), and in 2019 started Simple Energy. All of these are provided in his Linkedin account. So the guy has zero corporate experience (which may not be a bad thing).

I hope all these weird claims/spec changes are due to the guy being an amateur. But seeing his profile on Linkedin just doesn't give me the confidence of buying a product from the brand.

[JithinR]

Agreed. When I saw fellow members post about how the VIN number was an Ather product, I realised how dumb I had been by pre-booking it.

This would have been the first scam I had fallen for. Fortunately, after placing the cancellation request last week I have got the amount credited back to my account yesterday.

My wait for an electric two wheeler that can be charged at home continues.

[callmeneo]

Originally Posted by nettooran

A lot of confusion on Simple one. for those who understands Malayalam, the video explains a lot. Hold back your bookings.

After going through the findings shown in the above video, it looks like some disgruntled employee of OLA bought over an Ather, created a company and a website so that he could go One Up on OLA and steal its limelight and nothing else

Has all the makings of the Freedom phone scam if all the open points are not answered within this month.

[car FANATICUS]

Utterly shocked to read about dubious claims! My ex-organization's CEO is angel investor for Simple Energy , I should alert him if he already doesn't know

[udaikalra01]

Originally Posted by nettooran

A lot of confusion on Simple one. for those who understands Malayalam, the video explains a lot. Hold back your bookings.

https://Youtu.be/Hjy6OWtt13Q

Credits to the original video to the creators , who are here in Team-BHP also.

Can someone please translate the major highlights of this video in English and post it here? Would be great for people like me who do not know the language.

Also if you're still booking this scooter, please carefully check the domain name before you pay the amount. A fake website has been formed by this address:
www.simpleenargy.in
The fake one has many typing errors.

[skyocean]

Originally Posted by callmeneo

After going through the findings shown in the above video, it looks like some disgruntled employee of OLA bought over an Ather, created a company and a website so that he could go One Up on OLA and steal its limelight and nothing else

Haha, I like the way you think. Here is my theory.

Why can it be the other way around?

1) Ola is currently having an upper hand and has undercut Ather pretty badly. Ather`s existence is at stake in the battle of electric two wheelers.
2) From what I have heard from a reliable source, Ather is working on a cheaper electric scooter to counter Ola. So it’s clear they have already lost the price war to Ola, they cannot counter them currently.
3) It’s a simple proposition, Ola is a household name, their strategy is currently holding on good, direct delivery without showrooms is an ingenious idea to spread throughout the nation in record time, Ather on the other hand has been investing heavily for showrooms and media events for making the brand known.
4) If Ola is able to deliver by the promised date, 4 in every 5 electric two wheelers will be from Ola and it will take the lead to have monopoly like Hero.

All this is bad news for Ather who have heavily invested and are yet to reap their profits. Ola undercutting them is a big blow they cannot afford.

What can anyone do now to delay or disrupt Ola bookings?
-> Bring in an opponent who claims something nearly as good for a similar price.

Simple Energy looks like a half cooked opponent fielded by Ather to tussle with Ola which if not now will be acquired soon under the main umbrella of Ather Energy. This can explain why they found an Ather under the hood of their display vehicle, also the quick modifications to make it look different.

How is the above speculation? Interesting right . It is very easy to put forward a theory and back it up with so called gallery facts.

All this being said, I'm a big fan of Ather and the way they have brought about their products, their IT infrastructure etc. It is sad to see if they lose the battle in spite of being one of the first to be in business. And deep down I believe that Simple Energy is also a legitimate manufacturer who wanted to ride the popularity wave of Ola electric launch, now they have been bombarded by speculations by the so called automotive experts because of their unpreparedness. Let’s cut them some slack guys and only time will tell.

[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by nettooran

A lot of confusion on Simple one. for those who understands Malayalam, the video explains a lot. Hold back your bookings.
Credits to the original video to the creators , who are here in Team-BHP also.

Share the same feelings as those of Jayadev and Vivek in this video. Last week, I had come across a similar article on firstpost highlights the complexities of Simple.

I was looking at my own posts on this thread from the past and it is just an indication how things have turned for Simple.

From being impressed seeing the specs during launch...

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Of the two scootes launched today, this has impressed me more. Concentrated of realworld issues than fancy things. Two batteries is an interesting feature. People who wanted removable batteries will love this. Although I find the over scooter design overdone, it's not bad. The real world range should be easily 150kms with both batteries. pricing is also wonderful. Have to see how the actual scooter is.

...to finding the VIN and registration number of an Ather and high similarities to the swingarm of an Ather...

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Took this screenshot from the walkaroud video
Attachment 2193556
And when I looked at the registration number...guess what, it's an Ather 450x even the VIN number matches!

Attachment 2193557

Then I looked at the rear swing arm and it's undoubtedly 450 (albeit with a chain drive) and also the front suspension. This just shows how far they still have to go to be able to deliver a vehicle to actual customers.

...to finding the answers of Suhas RajKumar in the Q&A vague...

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Saw this video on YouTube. Seems to be recorded on the day of launch. Somehow all answers seemed vague and nothing has been decided. I don't know why all companies these days are in a great hurry to launch the product (cars, scooters) even when nothing is ready!

My opinion changed from impressive to suspicious in a matter of days. My suspicions were reinforced on the Ather Forum. As many of you might be aware, I post almost everything (about EVs) that you see me posting on TBHP. Here is what happened there...

I posted the link to the article from Firstpost (posted above) which also highlights this not-so-confidence-inspiring details of Simple and feels that this may be a scam.

Three members joined the Ather forum after that and within a few minutes post reactions defending Simple Energy. One member has an handle name S11 (coincidentally similar to S1), the second handle name was rk5644 (coincidentally it looks like initials of RajKumar) and the third handle again coincidentally had Kumar in it.

To be honest, initially I had not at all concentrated on the handle names or their opinions about Simple (as anyone is free to have any opinions about anybody). But when another member pointed out the fact that all 3 handles were posting from the same ip address, I looked back to find all these coincidences!!!

You can read the interactions here

[lsjey]

Originally Posted by nettooran

A lot of confusion on Simple one. for those who understands Malayalam, the video explains a lot. Hold back your bookings.

https://Youtu.be/Hjy6OWtt13Q

Credits to the original video to the creators , who are here in Team-BHP also.

I understand a little Malayalam. The way these guys explain the story is priceless. Mollywood has always been foremost in creating good thrillers, comedy, drama movies. Maybe they will create a movie out of this. If done, this story will have all elements of their skill set.

The Simple Energy guys have a lot of explaining to do.

Regards,
lsjey

[callmeneo]

Originally Posted by skyocean

Haha, I like the way you think. Here is my theory.

Why can it be the other way around?


How is the above speculation? Interesting right . It is very easy to put forward a theory and back it up with so called gallery facts.

To be very frank I had the same thought at first but refrained putting it up online lest I get attacked . Anything can happen in today's business world and nothing is wild anymore.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Share the same feelings as those of

Three members joined the Ather forum after that and within a few minutes post reactions defending Simple Energy. One member has an handle name S11 (coincidentally similar to S1), the second handle name was rk5644 (coincidentally it looks like initials of RajKumar) and the third handle again coincidentally had Kumar in it.

Using a similar initials as a username on a rival forum is as or even more stupid /lazythan using a the same VIN as your rival.

[n33rav]

After reading everything here and going through q&a video of founder, I got full-on vibes of Freedom 251!

[Sherlocked]

So why hasn't Ather Energy reacted yet? I mean if it is indeed your scooter that a rival company is portraying as their, shouldn't Ather Energy be concerned?

[superguy282]

Originally Posted by Sherlocked

So why hasn't Ather Energy reacted yet? I mean if it is indeed your scooter that a rival company is portraying as their, shouldn't Ather Energy be concerned?

I think they'd need more evidence than a VIN run on mParivahan on an online forum. Or, they're also in on this whole thing.

[Sherlocked]

Originally Posted by superguy282

I think they'd need more evidence than a VIN run on mParivahan on an online forum.

On the contrary, I think a VIN run is more than reasonable evidence that it is an Ather under the skin. But why would a scamster be so stupid that he will present the VIN number before you to decode. OTOH, no two vehicles can have the same VIN.

Too many questions. Hope we get the clarifications soon.