[sri_tesla]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

And point number 4 - There is nothing else quite like it in the market. Yet!

But then - the Japanese take their own sweet time to react and the Chinese are nowhere close to the product specs and quality offered.

This is true. Japanese companies does not have any electric scooters in their plans. Even if they start now, it will be easily another 3-4 years to start mass production.

Only comparable scooters are by Taiwanese company Gogoro. But their business model is around swapping batteries subscription which is mostly higher than petrol prices. Also, they don't have any India plans yet.

The problems Ather facing are similar to what Tesla facing with each new vehicle introduction. Tesla had production delays with Roadster, Model S, Model X and Model 3 for different reasons. But once they resolve them, their production will be more than all others EVs combined.

I really hope Ather is able to resolve these problems and scale up production as soon as possible. They are the only company (that too Indian) which built a good electric vehicle and also taking care of charging aspect.

[pedrolourenco]

Originally Posted by Rahul Bhalgat

Invest remaining 60K in mutual funds and expect an annual return of 10 to 14 thousand, which will pay for my annual petrol bill.

Which mutual fund would that be? I know there is a thread on that topic but curious to know which one you would opt for.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

Looking at the photos and reading some of the comments on it's forum,

Can you share the link to this forum?

In all probability the Jupiter + Mutual fund option will work better for me. But the 2 reasons I want the Ather 450 are i) Owning a really cool scooter and ii) Making a "Green Statement" riding around with green plates.
I called up Ather yesterday to ask when they are launching in Goa. They said that they will first expand to Chennai and then other places but they don't know when. I'm assuming that after Chennai they will expand to other Metros and Tier I cities followed by the Tier II cities. Only after that will they think of places like Goa. That means at least 2 years. I'm thinking of giving a Bangalore address and picking up the bike with temporary registration and trucking it to Goa. Yea I'll loose out on charging stations and service but I'm ready to live with home charging as my usage will never exceed 5-6 Km per day. Ather said they wouldn't recommend such a thing and I should wait for them to start selling in Goa.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Finally got a chance to try out the Ather 450 -

To cut a long story short - Brilliant product and even better showroom experience, but can't help but feel its around 25k more than its worth.

Also the Ather one plan is no longer free post Oct 31st, and that further increases the price. Deliveries expected by July if the booking is made now.

Overall, wife has dropped this idea of upgrading her scoot.

[sri_tesla]

Ather updated subscription plans. Now customers can choose between base connectivity or service+connect or charge+connect or Ather one (connect+service+charge) plans listed below. Based on the prices listed, choosing sub plans is not really a wise option. Ather one is still the best option as it includes charging costs, service costs and navigation.

Forum post with new subscription details:
https://forum.atherenergy.com/t/internal-updates/290/3

FAQs link for subscriptions:
https://www.atherenergy.com/faq/vehi...r-subscription

The new subscription plans

Ather Connect - The base plan that runs the entire gamut of intelligence features on your scooter.
What’s included? Over-the-air updates to enhance ride experience, remote diagnostics for quicker service, ride recommendations, onboard navigation etc.
@ ₹3000 +GST / year OR ₹900 +GST / quarter

Ather Service - A service focussed plan for all your service needs, including consumables.
What’s included? Vehicle service & roadside assistance + Ather Connect
@ ₹6000 +GST / year OR ₹1650 +GST / quarter

Ather Charge - A charging focussed plan for unlimited charging at any AtherGrid point.
What’s included? Unlimited public charging at AtherGrid Points + Ather Connect
@ ₹6000 +GST / year OR ₹1650 +GST / quarter

And the flagship

Ather One - An all-encompassing subscription plan that takes care of all your expenses & scooter maintenance.
What’s included? Ather Connect + Ather Service + Ather Charge + reimbursement of cost incurred while charging at home
@ ₹8400 +GST / year OR ₹2200 +GST / quarter

Our website has been updated to reflect these changes. We’ve also addressed questions that you may have in the FAQs section of the website.

What changes for current owner & pre-order customers?

Nothing. Ather One continues to be free for a year from date of delivery. Post that you can choose any of the above plans.

What changes for future pre-order customers?

Those pre-ordering from today, November 1st, 2018, onwards will get Ather Service plan free for a limited period. Free Ather One plan for pre-order customers has been discontinued since yesterday, October 31st, 2018.

Additionally, for these customers, charging at any AtherGrid location will be free until December 31st, 2019.

[ksameer1234]

Ather seems to have gone silent on the updates. I was expecting a few more deliveries in Bangalore and at least some initiation in other cities. Personally, I have a 12 year old Activa in garage which is now used sparingly. I was looking forward to replacing it with Ather but it doesn't look like Ather will come to Pune for at least an year.

[speedmiester]

Originally Posted by ksameer1234

Ather seems to have gone silent on the updates. I was expecting a few more deliveries in Bangalore and at least some initiation in other cities. Personally, I have a 12 year old Activa in garage which is now used sparingly. I was looking forward to replacing it with Ather but it doesn't look like Ather will come to Pune for at least an year.

You have a long wait ahead of you.
People who were supposed to get their scooters in November has been pushed to next year. They are facing serious supply chain issues along with teething issues in the initial batch of scooters that were delivered.

[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by ksameer1234

Ather seems to have gone silent on the updates. I was expecting a few more deliveries in Bangalore and at least some initiation in other cities. Personally, I have a 12 year old Activa in garage which is now used sparingly. I was looking forward to replacing it with Ather but it doesn't look like Ather will come to Pune for at least an year.

As per their latest forum post, they've manufactured 20 more after the initial 10. 6 of those 20 have been delivered and 14 are waiting for the payment formalities to be finished. They also wrote that they are in line to deliver the vehicles scheduled for December and January.

In the second half of next year it will be Chennai. After that Other cities. Your Activas registration might expire by the time you can get your hands on Ather in Pune

[ksameer1234]

Originally Posted by speedmiester

You have a long wait ahead of you.

Looks to be so. Was very eager to own one.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

In the second half of next year it will be Chennai. After that Other cities. Your Activas registration might expire by the time you can get your hands on Ather in Pune

While the 15 year deadline is certainly on my mind, the bigger issue now is the falling plastic panels and bulbs conking off. The engine though is amazingly smooth and efficient for its age. I am afraid I won't have enough time to wait for Ather and wife needs a scooter at home(only as a backup though).

[Bhatman510]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

As per their latest forum post, they've manufactured 20 more after the initial 10. 6 of those 20 have been delivered and 14 are waiting for the payment formalities to be finished. They also wrote that they are in line to deliver the vehicles scheduled for December and January.

In the second half of next year it will be Chennai. After that Other cities. Your Activas registration might expire by the time you can get your hands on Ather in Pune

When we built the first Model S cars (founder's series) it took us 3 months to get 30 car sets (not vehicles) ready for launch. We then got about 20ish cars out. Building up an EV supply chain and system is tough. Especially in a country where this is new territory.

[hemanth.anand]

Ather have been delivering the vehicles in a steady manner. After the revised timelines (which was a pessimistic timeline as per Ather), people have been getting their vehicles one month in advance. It is good to see. Hope they can continue with steady deliveries.

[Sebring]

There is a rumour online (and you can google that) that the next-gen Activa will have an electric variant. That will open the floodgates. Being a true BHPian, on my last visit I did go to Ather showroom, was immediately ushered inside, took a test drive and came away impressed. This is really the 'Apple' among scooters! The sales guy I interacted was an IITian, and the pitch was perfect. Unfortunately, I found the seat too narrow for comfort and there is an incredible year-long wait! So yes clearly, things are moving in the right direction for Ather. Would love to have one ownership review in our forum!

Originally Posted by sri_tesla

Japanese companies do not have any electric scooters in their plans.

[srishiva]

It might be hard to manufacture and sell these scooters given the small scale in which they are operating.
They should look at partnering with someone to scale up their operations. This is really too slow. If they are struggling this much, they might get into trouble with any launch by the established makers very easily.

If you want to be 'Apple' of e-scooters, you should have a lot of units manufactured before you start taking bookings a la Apple.

[Sebring]

Buyers are queued up for this product, and for sure this delay will hurt, simply because it's not available. Has anybody taken delivery of the Ather? Do you guys know of anyone who has this bike? How is the performance? Has the home charging unit been installed? How does it look? Any leads?

Originally Posted by srishiva

It might be hard to manufacture and sell these scooters given the small scale in which they are operating.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by srishiva

They should look at partnering with someone to scale up their operations

That happened way back, with Hero Motocorp investing 205 crores in Ather!

[mail2sekh]

Originally Posted by Sebring

Buyers are queued up for this product, and for sure this delay will hurt, simply because it's not available. Has anybody taken delivery of the Ather? Do you guys know of anyone who has this bike? How is the performance? Has the home charging unit been installed? How does it look? Any leads?

There is a forum - https://forum.atherenergy.com

where daily updates/heated debates happen on deliveries timelines/issues/charging units and installations/performance, range anxiety being a hot topic. They had organized an open session live with owners and pre-order customers in December 2018. The primary concern was the 'True range' of 75 km which Ather publicised so much and customers are not seeing it in reality. Noone has second thoughts on the performance though! The conclusion is that they need more data based on driving patterns/driving conditions etc to address - basically, the law of averages has to set in.
Some 30 deliveries are done as of Jan 2019 I believe. The Ather team is very responsive in the forum but I feel that they better get their act together soon. The euphoria is dying out. Mine was supposed to come in Feb but now it says May