[ninjatalli]

Here's a detailed log taken by an active vlogger on the case of Dr. Pritviraj based out of TN who after going through several ordeals burns up his Ola scooter in frustration.

Basically the gist of the long video
- the scooter was delivered at 2.30am in the night with lots of scratches etc
- wrong registration attempt in a different district (RTO refused) after which the owner had to run around as Ola officials gave it up
- scooter range dropping from 50+ to 0 within seconds causing the owner to be stsnded on the road several times and other issues
- multiple attempts by him to get support via twitter, mails, etc did not get any resolution

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3IbVB3-BpL0

I guess his twitter profile might give more direct details of his ordeal if anyone is interested. Not saying his final decision is the right one or not, but I guess that's for everyone to figure it out themselves.

[whitewing]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

..Another Ola scooter goes into reverse mode in full speed, leaves rider severely injured

I wish
a) Ola musters the moral courage to publish the telemetry data on this as well.
If they are in the wrong, show some spine and disable the "feature" that can potentially kill people.

b) the Government shows some responsibility and brings proper safety assessment procedures. Press statements threatening actions against manufacturers after certifying road worthiness, is, well just passing the buck.

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

Another Ola scooter goes into reverse mode in full speed, leaves rider severely injured

The gullible buyers of this brand of scooters are being treated as guinea pigs to test their new, shoddy product. Most two wheeler users are resigned to the spiralling fuel prices and that's among the reasons for a switchover from ICE to EV. After all these multiple fire incidents and also two reverse movements at high rpm without provocation (there could be a few unreported ones too), it is evident that Ola has devised a blueprint to mint money with an untested product.

We are not sure which government agency gave the mandatory approval /homologation for the prototype tested. Action needs to begin by initiating a preliminary fact finding inquiry against the government officials and if enough evidences are gathered, a full fledged inquiry needs to be commenced to arrive at a logical conclusion.

Ola on its part needs to be investigated by the government for marketing such a shoddy and life threatening product in our market.

LML had also garnered a few lakh bookings of the 100 cc LML Vespa in 1983 but as it was underpowered, lakhs of prospective customers cancelled their bookings. There were no safety issues at all here but prospective buyers fumed as the scooter was underpowered to pull two riders with the desired power output. At the end of the day LML was unable to refund the booking amounts of Rs 500=00 each and thousands of complaints emerged in the print media all over the country.

Ola could soon face such a fallout as "safety" could be the Achilles heel for this manufacturer.

[amol4184]

Wanted to give an update on Ola S1 Pro test drive experience in my town in Maharashtra that wasn't covered under primary big locations like Pune/Mumbai.

1. I got a mail/text from Ola saying test drives are available in your location.
2. App took my exact location, and showed me slots for next week spread across many hours of the day.
3. The app worked great. After choosing the slot I got text confirmation etc.
4. On actual TD day a guy called up for confirmation showed up at my doorstep albeit a bit late than anticipated. Fine with me. It was Friday.

Now onto the scooter itself:

1. Black color, just 1300kms on odo and seemed battle torn, battered the way TVS Scootys from early 2000s look. People must have abused poor thing.
2. Plasticky and even more so in black matte finish. Looks better in shinier colors.
3. Abysmal build quality. The panel gaps are awful.
4. Cheap and lightweight footrests and side stand that had already loosened from their spring mount points and were shaking. Our 15 year old Activa has snappier foot rests.
4. Surprisingly loud but very 'electronic' feeling horn. The button has odd sensation to it.
5. Poor quality switch gear. Buttons will be torn like rubber souls on shoes in two-three years.
6. My elderly mom could not put into "run" mode.
7. Good pick up, silent operation even at high-ish speeds.
8. The motor going dead on brake activation is scary. On 2 occasion the scooter came to dead stop before I could ride it again. I basically pushed it to the side of the road where I had to start from scratch to make it rolling again. Weird.
9. Excellent boot space and overall size/geometry fit well to my 6ft+ frame.
10. Good suspension. Felt way better than my Activa.
11. The bane of Ola, reverse mode is unnecessary. Why is it even needed? Its activated by pressing a button and doing negative movement of the throttle. I will never ever use it in real life.


My opinion? This thing won't last 5 years before disintegrating. Definitely not on my town's roads. Best case, if it does not fall apart, it will start rattling. May be it was that particular abused example but it is ridiculous they could get away with such haphazardly put together vehicle.

The strange accelerator/brake behavior is scary too. For tech-challenged folks this is quite handful. I had my doubts if mom could handle it but the doubt turned into confirmation. Those chimes and phone integration and what not is absolutely of no use for me or my mom.
I want a no nonsense turn-key escooter and this isn't it. I think we will continue to ride Activa until it dies - which it won't.

I was excited last year and was ready to put full payment down sight unseen and for whatever reasons that did not happen.

Today, looking back I am so glad the purchase bombed. I will be taking my Rs.500 back.

[Venkatesh]

The next purchase window for the S1 Pro will open on 21st May.

Those who have reserved will get early access.



Link

[RaghavEvoX]

Originally Posted by amol4184

Those chimes and phone integration and what not is absolutely of no use for me or my mom.
I want a no nonsense turn-key escooter and this isn't it. I think we will continue to ride Activa until it dies - which it won't.

Exactly my thoughts when I saw the escooter.
It looked more bling than purpose built.
These days all these gimmicky useless features take more priority than reliable mechanicals.

I loved your Activa comment and it is a fact.
I have a 11 year old Honda CBR250 and i am still waiting for a strong reason to change the vehicle.

I appreciate Ola for their efforts in putting up a plant in a short time and mass producing scooters and competing against well established players, but they should have taken more time and launched a better product than a beta release.

[SKC-auto]

Booking already open today, I had a chance to book now, the price increased to 1.51Lakh from earlier 1.42 Lakh. Anyways I will be waiting for a cheaper scooter from OLA or other brands.

[TDIRaghav]

As per a video review from a youtuber in Pune, this scooter wasn't even able to move forward when the roads were just a bit steep. Although, Ather and another brand's (bajaj chetak maybe) scooter had no issues at all. Check out the review from Asardar reviews on youtube as well.

[sunilg33]

I paid my full amount in Jan and my insurance was done on the first week of April, but they don't have a clue when my vehicle will be delivered.
The customer support is useless. They give the same reply that I will soon receive a call from the registration team. They are not allowing me to cancel the booking as well.
Now opening a new window for booking shows their careless attitude.

Overall a pathetic experience and please beware of these jokers.

[AutoNoob]

Originally Posted by mathewspaul

Ola Electric sent a legal notice to Balwant Singh - the Guwahati resident whose son had met with an accident on the escooter around a month back

https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/bu...s-8493451.html

Off-Topic :
This may turn into interesting test case for Privacy and Data Protection.

Though this legal case cannot fall under the scope of upcoming Data Protection laws; if it goes to court, it'll be tested on the anvil of 'Right to Privacy' case.

[Livnletcarsliv]

Originally Posted by amol4184

I want a no nonsense turn-key escooter and this isn't it. I think we will continue to ride Activa until it dies - which it won't.

I was excited last year and was ready to put full payment down sight unseen and for whatever reasons that did not happen.

Ola EVs are just 30%-40% baked. It still has to go a long way even to become a 100% baked.
Now, probably you should look at the TVS iCube. A reputed and trusted brand like TVS will never take chances or launch half baked products. Just give it a TD and probably wait for the reviews here before you take a final call. The iCube is a fantastic product on papers (including the cost) until it is reviewed.

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by RaghavEvoX

I appreciate Ola for their efforts in putting up a plant in a short time and mass producing scooters and competing against well established players, but they should have taken more time and launched a better product than a beta release.

Originally Posted by Livnletcarsliv

Ola EVs are just 30%-40% baked. It still has to go a long way even to become a 100% baked.
Now, probably you should look at the TVS iCube. A reputed and trusted brand like TVS will never take chances or launch half baked products. Just give it a TD and probably wait for the reviews here before you take a final call. The iCube is a fantastic product on papers (including the cost) until it is reviewed.

You guys are right, its a product in beta testing phase. A version 2 is needed fast.

But here is something that I don't understand. On one hand we have a kid born yesterday shouting from rooftops about their half baked product and on other hand we have a half century old, racing team owning expert company sitting in a corner twiddling their thumb waiting in anticipation that someone will notice their EV. The 2022 iQube seems well rounded EV with good range and yet there is no noise, no fanfare, nada. I am willing to bet it will be head and shoulders above Ola in build quality.
How many iQubes have you seen on the road? I can count on my fingers! Just hope they market it more and make it available. If people don't see it they won't buy it.

[Livnletcarsliv]

Originally Posted by amol4184

But here is something that I don't understand. On one hand we have a kid born yesterday shouting from rooftops about their half baked product and on other hand we have a half century old, racing team owning expert company sitting in a corner twiddling their thumb waiting in anticipation that someone will notice their EV. The 2022 iQube seems well rounded EV with good range and yet there is no noise, no fanfare, nada. I am willing to bet it will be head and shoulders above Ola in build quality.
How many iQubes have you seen on the road? I can count on my fingers! Just hope they market it more and make it available. If people don't see it they won't buy it.

One of the main reasons is due the heavy investment that's gone into the ICE segment. India is still at a nascent stage in EV adoption even while the products are good especially in the cities. So for now and the near future it is still ICE 2 wheelers/4 wheelers. And so it will take a while for all the biggies (TVS, Hero, Bajaj, Honda, Suzuki, etc) to shift their full focus to EV's.

[prankey]

Originally Posted by amol4184

The strange accelerator/brake behavior is scary too. For tech-challenged folks this is quite handful. I had my doubts if mom could handle it but the doubt turned into confirmation. Those chimes and phone integration and what not is absolutely of no use for me or my mom.
I want a no nonsense turn-key escooter and this isn't it. I think we will continue to ride Activa until it dies - which it won't.

You just need to release the breaks completely to use the throttle. Why would you ride depressing brake Lever? I agree with build quality and comments on their silly customer service team who is mostly clueless and careless to begin with (as you may have seen my chasers on Twitter

However I still believe this is a value for money high power scooter giving the kicks of a super bike in straight line acceleration and torque while the low end torque needs to increase

[Sebring]

Bengaluru is iQube territory. See quite a few. Maybe this is their 'test region'

Originally Posted by amol4184

How many iQubes have you seen on the road? I can count on my fingers! Just hope they market it more and make it available. If people don't see it they won't buy it.