Ola Electric Scooter S1 and S1 Pro Overview
The highly anticipated Ola electric scooter is launched in India on the 15th of August. There is been a huge interest in the scooter ever since it was revealed. And with the incredible prices and specs, the interest in this scooter is way high up. Here are the top things to know about the new ola electric scooter.
Ola Electric Scooter Power & Performance
Ola electric has blown minds with the Specifications of the scooter. The scooter is available in two trims S1 and S1 Pro. Ola claims to have designed an electric motor with a peak output of 8.5 kilowatts.
For comparison’s sake, the Ather 450X is the current performance king in the E-scooter segment. And it has an electric motor with a peak output of 6 kilowatts. While both variants of the Ola electric scooter have the same motor. The top speed and claim performance differ.
The Ola S1 can accelerate from 0 to 40 kph in 3.6 seconds and 0 to 60 in 7 seconds, while the top speed is 90 kph.
The higher-end Ola S1 pro variant sprints from 0 to 40 in 3 seconds flat, while 60 kph comes up in 5 seconds. And claim top speed is 115 kph. All these figures are easily the highest of any Made in India scooter petrol or electric.
The torque of the motor for both variants is 58 newton meters. And they have similar gradability at 12 degrees. Now the S1 gets two riding modes normal and sports. While the S1 Pro gets normal, sports, and hyper.
Battery, Charging, And Range
The Ola S1 Pro has a 3.97-kilowatt-hour battery capacity. And hence the range is a whopping 181 kilometers. This is likely to be an official ARAI figure. But with such a large battery, the industry-leading range is to be expected. In case you were wondering battery cannot be removed.
The S1 Pro’s claim range is much more than every other E-scooter on sale. The Simple Energy Simple ONE electric scooter has a claimed range of 240 km. Despite the battery’s bigger size, the claim to charge times is in the same ballpark as the competition.
Using a portable 750-watt home charger, the S1 Pro charging time is 6 hours and 30 minutes. The base Ola S1 model gets a smaller 2.98-kilowatt battery. And hence the claimed range drops to 121 kilometers. The S1 will take 4 hours and 48 minutes to charge with the home charger.
Once the company’s fast charger network is established. It claims that 18 minutes of charging can give you 75 kilometers of range.
Ola electric says that it will also set up 1 lakh charging stations across 400 cities in India as part of its hyper charger network. As of today none of this exists. But Ola claimed that it will be the largest and densest electric two-wheeler charging network in the world.
The charging infrastructure will be set up in a phased manner. Beginning with 5000 charging points across 100 cities in the first year.
Design
The scooter itself is based on the Itergo App Scooter a Dutch startup company that Ola acquired in 2020. While the scooter has received many mechanical changes underneath. The design is familiar to the Itergo scooter. And it has clean and flowing lines that should appeal to a wide range of customers. Their S1 is available in 5 colors, while the S1 Pro gets 5 additional color options.
Feature
The Ola scooter has some interesting features, such as
- Proximity lock and unlock,
- Remote boot lock with 36 litres of boot space,
- TFT display,
- Inbuilt navigation,
- And Bluetooth connectivity.
There is even an option for the scooter to produce various customizable sounds played via a set of in-built speakers. But we’ll have to see how this works in person. If you go for the top models, you will also get
- Hill hold,
- Cruise control,
- And reverse features.
The display is customizable and also features built-in maps with real-time traffic assistance. To keep you updated about changing traffic conditions. On the topic of connectivity, the Ola App lets you set up individual profiles for your family. Other features on the app include:-
- Live location tracking,
- Remote battery,
- And health alerts.
And you can also book a doorstep service. The scooter can also be controlled using your voice. You can increase the volume of the track being played through the speakers using voice commands.
Chassis
Underneath the attractive design lies a tubular frame suspended by a single telescopic fork and a mono-shock at the rear. The scooter rides on 12-inch wheels with fat tires. Braking duties are taken care of by a 220 mm disc at the front and the 180 mm disc at the back with CBS as standard. However, there are no Abs.
Price, Booking, And Deliveries
Ola opened bookings on July 15th, 2021 for rupees 499. The scooter received over 1 lakh bookings within 24 hours says, Ola. For the claimed performance and range, the ola scooter appears to be exceptionally priced.
The Ola S1 costs 99,999 Rupees, while the S1 Pro will set you back by Rupees 1.3 lakh. All prices are Ex-showroom and include a fame 2 subsidy. But they don’t account for various state subsidies.
Now once you factor in the additional benefits from the various state subsidies. The price will be even lower. Recently the government announced that EVs will not be charged for road tax. The base Ola electric scooter could end up costing less than the likes of even the Honda Activa 125 on road. Here’s what some prices look like after state subsidies.
Now, the scooter can be purchased from 8th September onwards. And deliveries begin in October in more than 1000 cities. Ola plans to deliver the scooters straight to buyer’s homes across India. Instead of using a conventional dealer network.
Conclusion
Now all of this sounds incredibly exciting, and the product has all the makings of being a true game-changer. At the same time, Ola still has a long and difficult road ahead. And questions remain about the quality of the product. But the execution of the Unique sales and after-sales support model.
And not to mention the company’s ability to meet the demand. We hope to ride this exciting electric scooter soon. So we can bring you some of those answers. For the moment, let us know what you think about the ola scooter. Would you have it over a conventional petrol scooter?
