4th July 2019, 06:23
| #16 | ||
| Distinguished - BHPian   | re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Quote:
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4th July 2019, 13:20
| #17 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Bangalore
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| re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Quote:
Will it go for 100 kms if one drives conservatively? | |
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4th July 2019, 14:21
| #18 | |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: TSTN
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| re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Quote:
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7th July 2019, 08:10
| #19 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: TSTN
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| re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Quote:
 It says 55 Km range with top speed of 80 Kmph or in Eco mode 75 Km https://www.atherenergy.com/ | |
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8th July 2019, 18:52
| #20 |
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9th July 2019, 17:58
| #21 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Jul 2017 Location: Pune
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| Ather 340 & 450 electric scooters launched in Chennai Ather Energy has launched its electric scooter range in Chennai. The on-road price of the Ather 340 and 450 is Rs. 1,19,091 and Rs. 1,31,683 respectively. The prices include 2 helmets, FAME 2 subsidy, insurance, road tax, GST and other fees.  The Ather 340 and 450 are powered by a Brushless DC electric motor (BLDC). The 340 has a peak output of 6 BHP and 20 Nm of torque, while the 450 has 7.2 BHP and 20.5 Nm of torque. The 450 uses a 2.4 kWh lithium-ion battery, while the 340 comes with 1.92 kWh battery pack. The maximum range of the 450 and 340 is 107 km and 86 km respectively - as tested by the ARAI. The claimed 0-40 km/h acceleration times for the Ather 340 and 450 are 5.1 seconds and 3.9 seconds respectively. Ather had started installing its Ather Grid fast charging points in Chennai in May 2019 and 10 are already operational. 40-50 more charging points will be setup in the coming months. These will be located at malls, offices, cafes, restaurants and grocery stores. Ather Grid locations in Chennai: Bikes and Burgers -Kolathur Coco Jaunt 1728 - Anna Nagar Soul Garden Bistro - Kilpauk Forum Vijaya Mall - Vadapalani AtWorks - Guindy East Coast at Madras Square - Neelankarai SunnyBee - Alwarpet Ampa SkyWalk mall - Aminjikarai Naturals - South Boag Road Kriyates - Thoraipakkam Ather Grid will provide free charging for all 4-wheelers and 2-wheelers till December 2019. Ather Energy will be opening its Ather Space showroom at Wallance Garden, Nungambakkam on July 24, 2019. Link to Team-BHP News |
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9th July 2019, 18:56
| #22 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Hyderabad
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19th July 2019, 11:55
| #23 | |
| Distinguished - BHPian | Re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Quote:
Information about taking Bangalore owners to the launch event at Chennai was first floated during the first Owner’s meet in Bangalore. Afterwards, we could sign up to the event in a google forms that we received (which I had). It was supposed to happen in June but got pushed by a month. Somewhere by the end of June, we received more details of this all expenses paid trip and we had to fill up another google form. Two options were provided for the travel. Based on your preference, we could select any one:
Accommodation was blocked and allotted on a twin sharing capacity, with a choice to decide our stay buddy from among the attendees. As far as the transport of the scooter was concerned, we were informed that they have to send the scooters a day ahead of the travel as they need to be up and ready at the venue before we reach. They arranged the scooter pick-up on 4th July afternoon and dropped it back on Monday once we were back from Chennai. The helmet and the charging cable(if available), was taken along with the scooter. The group ride with the Bangalore owners was planned on Sunday morning. We were insisted to carry our original driving license. On 1st of July, We got more information. The bus would start from Ather’s office in Bhannerughatta road at 21:30. We had to confirm if we were traveling alone or with family members. For people who would get their family/friends, only travel would be provided (accommodation not managed by Ather in that case). My wife told me that she’s not too keen to attend the event and hence I attended alone. Accommodation was booked at Ibis, Mount road and the launch event was in Ambassador Pallava close-by in Egmore On July 2nd, people who opted for Shatabdi had got their tickets over email and the next day, we got more details of the trip:
Meanwhile they created a Whatsapp group for quick co-ordination and broadcast during the event. There were totally 56 owners from Bangalore and some of Ather’s people in that group. They had outsourced the vehicle pickup to DriveU - a driver service. The executives came and picked up the vehicle. Most of them had experienced an EV for the first time, so many of us had to explain basics of the vehicle.The person who came to pick my scooter, had taken one more 450 before mine so I had less effort.  DriveU executive taking a scooter Some owners decided to drop their vehicles themselves. All vehicles reached safely and they were neatly packed in bubble wrap and loaded into two trucks  Vehicles packed  Bubble wrapped after removing mirrors  Fork lift  Two trucks  The vehicles reached Chennai On Friday, after finishing office, I went home, packed my bag and had dinner and reached their office at 21:00 as scheduled. They had confirmed that we could park our vehicles safely there and hence I had taken my car. On reaching, many people were delayed and so was the bus. No prizes for guessing the reason  They had arranged packed dinner and beverage for anyone hungry. I didn’t eat it but the arrangement was nice to see. The bus arrived at 22:00, luggage was loaded and we departed at 23:00. It is actually a good time IMO to depart to Chennai.After a meet & greet session and a good long group discussion, all owners finally slept at 00:30.  Bus arrived!  Tunnel  Meet&Greet The next time I opened my eyes, I was in Chennai at around 05:00. The driver of the bus wasn’t aware of the exact location of the hotel. I and another guy who woke up, guided him using Google maps. I got down, took my luggage, went in and checked in, crashed into my bed. Since both occupants got individual key cards to the room, I informed my room-mate and slept off. Had wonderful deep sleep before my room-mate Mr. Rajesh, woke me up at 08:00 in the morning for breakfast. He told me that he tried to wake me up earlier but I hadn’t responded Although I had opted for the afternoon sessions, I decided to attend the morning session as it was the first session of the weekend and I had nothing else to do basically. After breakfast, we were given a T-shirt each for the next day’s ride. I put it back in the room and went to pick my scooter from the basement. All scooters were fully charged and kept ready.  Charged up! The echoing sound of all the Athers leaving together from the basement was just amazing to hear. We rode in a group to the launch location which was around 2 kms away. We parked our scooters in a special area allocated for our scooters behind the conference hall.  We Arrive  Parked The front side had many test ride scooters parked. Almost all of them were TMP registered vehicles from KA. We got special tags to identify as owners and we could almost roam everywhere in the area. We got food coupons along with that.  Owner tag  Test ride coupon and prebooking counter  The stage Once everyone were seated inside, the session began with the CEO and co-founder, Tarun Mehta greeting everyone and explaining the Story of Ather as a company and their journey so far. From their first prototype to their scooter on stage, to where they stand, it was impressive. The co-founders Swapnil and Varun later on followed on with the product presentation. In between they answered a few questions from the audience. One important thing to note was that the Economy mode was officially announced here.  Agenda  Their first prototype  Where it began  Where it is now  Economy mode officially announced Later, two owners were called upon to share their experiences. One of them was the first ever customer of Ather. People asked a few questions to the owners as well.  First Ather customer Tarun came back and gave details about Athergrid and Leasing and finally announced the Chennai prices - 1,31,683 for the 450. To my surprise It was around 8K more than in Chennai. I had expected lesser prices compared to Bangalore. But I understood from the presentation that TN had road taxes of ~4% while KA has no road tax for EVs. Along with that, logistical costs (remember these scooters are produced in Bangalore) is added. Also TN state mandates providing 2 helmets along with new 2-wheelers.  Chennai Price  Delivery timeline Finally they closed the presentations an told the Chennai guys to proceed to test ride in batches according to a test-ride card that they’d got when they came in. We were requested to station ourselves in one area and people who were not taking test rides, could look at 4 vehicles placed in 4 corners of the hall and interact with us. On one side, there were Ather executives explaining the different aspects of the vehicle and answering all questions. The entire session was nice and interactive.  Different topics answered  Prospective owner  Points to remember before taking the test ride  Test ride  Family  There was also a pre-booking counter where attendees could book the vehicle there itself. The booking for general public was all online and would open two days later. During this open session, everyone had lunch too. During this, a Radio Jockey came to us and asked us to share our experiences in Tamil. One in the group I was standing in, knew Tamil and he shared his experiences with the RJ. Apart from this there were no media houses. I came to know that Ather had planned a separate event for Media 2 days later. After around an hour or so, the session came to a close. Between the sessions, one Ather person came to me and asked if I could share my experiences on stage in the afternoon session. I hadn’t prepared anything but I said I’ll do it. I had a small discussion with their graphic designer who was managing the screens and requested to display some pictures during my time. I took out some pictures from my phone and sent it to him. Spent some 10-15 mins to organize and order the pictures. The second session started as usual and almost everything was same except that the audience were different and the owners sharing their experiences were different. It was probably my first time presenting to such a big audience, and it came out decent! Tarun named me the unofficial accessory man of Ather After the second session and dinner was over, I took my scooter and went for a Solo Ride to Marina beach. Although I didn’t enter the beach, The ride was nice. The on-board navigation is a boon in an unknown city. On the Whatsapp group, Ather owners planned a group night ride to Thiruvanmiyur Beach. I told I’d join them directly at that beach. Entered the co-ordinates and Wheee I went. One camera crew also joined us. Again, the group arrived, chatted for a while and nobody was in a mood to enter the beach. The beaches in Chennai are not very inviting in my opinion. After some 15 minutes of chatting and answering a few curious people, we left back to the hotel. We needed some sleep because the group ride was scheduled early morning the next day. We reached our hotel by 10PM. The scooters were taken in by Ather staff and charged overnight. The staff did a commendable job overnight in keeping almost all the vehicles fully charged. As we came in to the reception area, Ather people were waiting for us and they handed over a “starter kit” to everyone for the next day’s ride. The kit contained, 3 Breakfast bars, wet wipes, sunscreen and hand sanitizer. This is just another example of the impressive attention to detail they had shown during the entire trip. Day 2 continued in the next post... | |
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19th July 2019, 11:58
| #24 |
| Distinguished - BHPian | Re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Day 2 Continued... The next morning, I got up at 05:00 got ready, with the Tshirt, and took the scooter out to the meeting area (informed on the Whatsapp group) By 06:00. We were briefed about the route and riding signals and rules to be followed.  Starter kit for the Early morning ride  Scooters ready for the ride  Briefing  It sure turned many heads By 6:15, we were all set! The collective Wheee noise of the scooter sounded like music! The ride was actually short but nice. anything longer and the Chennai sun would’ve made it difficult for us. Also the Sessions on Sunday were to start later by 10:00 Our ride route was Mount road > Maria beach road > Indira Nagar > Thiruvanmiyur > IITM Research Park. Everyone maintained good lane discipline throughout and throughout the ride, people were curiously staring at this new “battery vandi”  That's me in the second row  Ready to Wheee!  At a Signal  Lane discipline  In the mirror  Waiting for the signal to go green 360° Video of the ride We stopped at the research park and Coffee/Tea was arranged. Tarun and Swapnil shared some of their memories about how and where everything started. After a group photo, we were ready to leave. Most of us came back to the hotel.  IITMRP parking  Coffee  Ride group Here, I got a chance to ride a Test ride vehicle having the new Economy mode. The hotel has 2 levels of basement and steep ramp. I decided to test it here. It felt as if someone was holding the vehicle from behind. But the torque was good enough to ride slowly but surely. I'd probably not use it at all (I don't even use the current ride mode now) but in emergency, low battery situations, it is not a bad compromise to extend the range. I could take it till 35kmph in the long empty basement driveway but it will be limited to 45kmph when launched. It wasn't too bad for a "low power" mode. Will post detailed experince of this mode when I get it on my scooter. Everybody had breakfast and got ready to go to Egmore for the first session of the second day. I decided to skip this session and take rest. In Chennai, I really don’t have anybody to visit and initially I had decided to sleep. But I casually called up BHPian J.Ravi who will generally be shuttling between Bangalore or Chennai and that weekend he was in Chennai. After checking out of the hotel, I went to his place for a quick visit. After a glass of buttermilk and chatting for sometime, he took a test ride and came back. It attracted some of his neighbors and they checked out the vehicle too before I left.  What a reaction! I then went to Egmore by 13:00 and handed over my scooter to Ather team to prepare for packing. We could keep our luggage in a room. Before packing the vehicle, they took an Instant photo (polaroid for easy understanding-like Xerox ) of all the owners with their rides. another nice touch! Instant photo After lunch, all the owners were called on Stage and Tarun & team thanked us for coming. Everyone gave them feedback that everything was very well organized and they loved the experience. Tarun jokingly said that he couldn’t have got better marketing guys than us for so less!! Before the next session, we had a group picture to close it.  Thank you  A group pic with all all owners and Ather staff  Owners People who had opted for Shatabdi for their return journey (more people opted this for their return journey) left in a cab arranged for them. I had opted for the bus and hence sat through the last session too. I also met BHPian aargee in this session. After the last session and dinner was over, the dismantling of the entire stage and setup started. During, this session, I got to interact will many people from Ather at a personal and more casual level which was a good experience. Our scooters were packed and loaded into the trucks  Heading home Ather had a theme of morse codes for the event. From the T-shirts, the counter backdrops, the test ride coupon, the food coupon, the owners’ tag to a chocolate pack for the attendees, all had morse codes written over them. I decoded the morse code on the owners’ tag and posted in the owners’ whatsapp group. Everybody started finding the codes and decoding. So much so that we even found a spelling mistake on the code in the chocolate box  EARLY BIRD  SWEET YOU GOT IT...Spelling mistake  WHEE I was so much into it that I even thought that the Ather Logo was inspired by the Morse code.  Ather logo Morse code However I was told that I went a bit too far and no one had thought about it For trivia lovers, Ather logo is inspired by the symbol of a switch used in electric circuit diagrams Ather logo Inspiration Finally, we boarded our bus and left Chennai at 21:30. Although the plan was to leave a little later to reach Bangalore by 05:00, the hotel guys had problem in the bus parked there and we had to leave early. Almost everyone slept immediately as everyone were tired. The next time I opened my eyes, I was in Silkboard signal in Bangalore at 02:30. We reached the Ather office in another 15 minutes. As we got down, we got a goody bag from Ather having some sweets and snacks to take home! Took my car and drove home and slept like a log.  Goody Bag The weekend was well spent with some good memories and some new friends made. The event was very well organized and very well received too by the Chennai folks. The opportunity that they had in interacting with us owners will help in giving them confidence and faster adoption of Ather in specific and EVs in general. PS: few of the pictures are taken from the Whatapp group created for the event and some posted by Ather on Social media. Copyrights: respective owners Last edited by hemanth.anand : 19th July 2019 at 11:59. |
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19th July 2019, 20:59
| #25 |
| BHPian  Join Date: May 2010 Location: Bangalore
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22nd July 2019, 17:18
| #26 |
| Distinguished - BHPian | Re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Ather has put up a small video of the launch weekend on Youtube I make a small 1 second appearance at 1:59 in this too |
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22nd July 2019, 17:53
| #27 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Chennai
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| Re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Brilliant event Ather could easily be an established premium scooter brand if they keep this up, if I was in the market for a scooter, I would surely put my money down for one! For now Access is serving me well with minimal expense.Time to brainwash one of my friends to get this  |
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24th July 2019, 12:55
| #28 |
| Distinguished - BHPian | Re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Ather today has opened their Chennai experience centre - AtherSpace. It is located in Nungambakkam-Wallace garden street. I do not know about that area in Chennai but in Bangalore, AtherSpace is located in one of the upmarket areas. The pictures of it are posted on their social media platforms and the place looks really nice. It seems to be much bigger than what we have in Bengaluru and looks more futuristic IMO. From the pictures, I didn't find the Beautiful wall with an obituary to the silencer that is present in Bangalore Some pictures...         Pictures source:Ather's social media platforms and Google maps |
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25th July 2019, 07:10
| #29 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Columbus/HYD
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25th July 2019, 08:45
| #30 | |
| Distinguished - BHPian | Re: Ather Energy launches e-scooters in Chennai Quote:
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