Bought an Ather 450S: Purchase process, first impressions & charging

Ather uses a jelly-like chemical inside the battery pack that restricts the battery temperature from rising too high

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Hello Bhpians,

On 6th October 2024, we brought home our first electric two-wheeler, the Ather 450S. Yes, I opted for the most budget-friendly model in Ather's lineup, as per my use case. I’ll also discuss my delivery experience and how I filtered out other competing EV two-wheelers from my consideration list before finally choosing Ather.

We didn’t have any two-wheeler in our family, and we were relying entirely on our car for every small errand and long trips. We are a family of three adults, and since we travel together about 50% of the time, that’s not an issue. However, for other scenarios like small trips to the market, grocery shopping, and office commutes, we faced a lot of difficulties. We needed a two-wheeler for these purposes, preferably an electric scooter, so it would be accessible for my family and economical as an electric vehicle.

Options considered in order of preference:
1st Preference: Hero Vida V1 Pro

Reasons to consider:

a. Removable 4kWh battery, so I can charge at any friend's place or if I’m stuck somewhere, as not everyone has electric sockets in their parking.
b. Support for Ather Grid charging stations.
c. More than sufficient power and acceleration.
d. Decent boot space—not huge, but it fulfills my requirements.

Things that set me off:

a. The switchgear was unresponsive, and so was the touchscreen.
b. Exposed wires were visible from a huge distance.
c. The battery is inside the boot, and I doubt how they managed the thermals there.
d. Some panels were very flimsy, almost like a toy.
e. Known issue of water getting into the boot space.

Don't get me wrong, Hero Vida is a very capable competitor and will surely bounce back with their next iteration of scooters. Their drivetrain issues are minimal, but for now, they weren't quite there.

2nd Preference: The newly launched Ather Rizta S

Reasons to consider:

• Support for Ather Grid charging stations.
• Sufficient power and acceleration.
• Reliable.
• Spacious seat and boot.

However, the bulky look and not-so-good dynamics due to that bulk, along with the heaviness felt on the handlebars while turning (compared to the 450 series), set me off from buying it.

The 450S wasn’t even in my consideration list initially, because during my research, I found that it is very sharp, and the ride quality is good only on smooth tarmac. Also, it seemed overpowered for family usage. But when I test-rode it while I was at the Ather Space for the Rizta's test ride, I was amazed.

Other competitive scooters like Bajaj Chetak and TVS iQube were also out of my consideration, primarily because of the lack of a fast-charging network. This was important to me because sometimes I like to go to the outskirts of Pune during the monsoon, and a fast-charging network enables me to do so without range anxiety. I even did a Pune-Mumbai-Pune trip on my Ather 450S, more on that in another post.

What tempted me to go for the 450S:

• Decent true range of 90km, with a pillion rider, it’s 80km. These numbers are not just on paper; they are achievable with some control over throttle input.
• Very agile and fun to ride (especially in sports mode) due to the forged aluminium frame and powerful PMSM motor.
• Good battery thermal management. Theoretically, if the battery stays cool, it will last a very long time. Ather uses a jelly-like chemical inside the battery pack that restricts the battery temperature from rising too high, and there are aluminum fins below the battery something like the fins on air cooled IC bike engines to help with cooling efficiency.
• Feels light. My wife mentioned that she is more comfortable riding this than the heavier Rizta.
• The 450 model has been in production since 2018, so they’ve already figured out most of the issues and fixed them, making it one of the most reliable options.

Cons:

• Motor thermal management is good but not perfect. On highways, the motor reduces power if it's running constantly over 80 km/h for more than 10-15 km in sports mode. It never slows down below 75 km/h, so it’s not a huge issue, but it leaves a sour taste when you want that extra 15 km/h and don’t get it.
• Smart Eco mode is inconsistent. To deliver the true range, it can cut off power at any moment, even while overtaking. I suggest forgetting about it and using the Ride and Sports modes instead. If you give controlled throttle input, you'll still get a range of over 90 km in Sports mode.
• The new switchgear in the 4th-gen Athers is good, with the joystick integration and all, but the reverse and power-on buttons tend to get stuck in the pressed position about 1 out of 5 times, especially after rain or a wash. I’m forced to pull the button back manually, which should happen automatically with the spring. I’ll raise this concern at my first service and hope they’ll fix it under warranty.
• The new display (non-touch, segmented LED) is good, but some Bluetooth connectivity features aren’t unlocked yet. I hope this will happen via OTA updates in the near future.
• Navigation from MapMyIndia is not great. The turn-by-turn directions are fine, and you’ll get used to them, but the map itself is almost useless. It often directs you to take motorways and bridges where two-wheelers are not allowed. I had to pay a ₹500 fine for entering an over-bridge in Mumbai meant only for four-wheelers. After that incident, I don’t trust the map completely. It also forces you to take the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, where two-wheelers are restricted.
• The home charger provided with the lower-range models of every Ather is very slow.
• The boot space is smaller compared to the competition, but it’s enough for my needs.

Delivery Experience and Accessories Opted:

The delivery experience was good. They were offering a discount of ₹8,000 at the time of my purchase. The on-road price in Pune was ₹1,36,500, and I got it for ₹1,28,524. However, Shaw Ather Kharadi insisted that I take insurance from them, as they were offering a better discount. I didn’t mind, so I went along with it.

I opted for a few Ather accessories, as I found them to be of very good quality:

• Rear left-side step for women wearing saree - ₹1,999
• Bodyguard (with installation) - ₹1,699 (This is a thick, transparent rubber compound, similar to a PPF, which is applied to all the areas that might come into contact with the road in the event of a crash.)
• Floor mat - ₹599
• Seat cover - ₹999
• Handle grip - ₹299

Total: ₹1,34,119

Home Charging Setup:

Fortunately, I have reserved underground parking for my car in my rented apartment, and it is not very far from the meter room. So, setting up the charging station was not a problem for me.

I bought a lockable box with a 16A socket and an MCB inside, to securely connect the charger without worrying about interference. This cost me ₹1,779 from Amazon.
I also purchased a 7-meter, 3-wire cable (2.5mm each) at ₹80 per meter, which amounted to ₹560.
Additional small items, such as a 1.5mm wire for proper grounding and a few clips for wire management, cost around ₹200.
The electrician's labor charge was ₹550.

Total for home charging setup: ₹3,089

Recommendation:

After riding it for more than 1,300 km and a long ride from Pune to Mumbai and back I would surely recommend everyone in the market for an electric scooter to go for a test ride and decide for themselves. The Ather 450S still offers tough competition to other players in the market, especially in terms of reliability. For those who need a better Google Maps experience, I think it’s worth paying a bit extra for the 450X, if you’re okay with the price tag, you’ll also get the extra sporty Warp mode, but otherwise, everything else is more or less the same between the 450S and 450X. One can also opt for the High Range model of 450x if your requirement is such, as it will provide 30 more km of True Range that is 120 km, and it also comes with a home fast charger which reduces the charging time significantly. If you will always be carrying stuff, opt for the Rizta, but don't go for the Rizta only for the bigger seat as 450's seat is also very comfortable for 2.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.