The Bengaluru based electric vehicle startup Ather Energy unleashed the collector’s edition of the Ather 450X scooter called ‘Series1’. Here in this article we bring answers to all your questions that you may have after reading the launch report in different publications:-
What is Ather 450X Series 1, Collector’s Edition?
Early this year in January Ather in the lead up to the unveil of Ather 450X ran a Pre-order-by-invite only program, for which the company received an overwhelming response from customers who booked the vehicle without knowing anything about its specs or price.
Looking into the response the firm decided to give something exclusive to those super enthusiasts and as a tribute to them, Ather designed Series 1, what it earlier called Collector’s Edition Ather 450X.
Who will get this Ather Series1, Collector’s Edition?
The Series1 will be given only to the customers who pre-ordered the 450X scooter before its prices were announced (January 28, 2020).
So how different is the exclusive edition?
In terms of performance, specs or pricing perspective, Series 1 is not different from Ather 450X. The only difference stands on design front and its exclusivity for its super enthusiasts.
The Series1 is the first scooter on the Indian roads with translucent panels offering a peek inside the body. The scooter’s aluminum chassis is visible under the seat along with the trellis frame design which is a unique aspect of the Ather scooters.
The all new scooter from the house of Ather features a high-gloss metallic Black body colour to amp up the premiumness. The mirror sheen of this colour is made even more special by a mix of gold, silver and blue flecks in the paint, casting warm highlights and cool shadows along the panel contours.
On the outside, the Series1 gets a gloss metallic black body color with red accents.
What is this translucent panel made of; will it affect life of my scooter? Are there any warranty?
According to company’s official website listing translucent panels are made of high automotive grade plastic, and have undergone standard testing which makes them highly reliable.
They’ll come with a warranty of 3 years just as the vehicle, and insurance will be applicable in the event of theft, accident or another hazard.
Will these translucent panels available for purchase separately?
No the company doesn’t have any plant to make it available separately at this point as this has been designed exclusively for Series 1 customers. However, the company on the website notes that – If a lot of customers find it too irresistible, it may consider making it available for purchase separately at a future date.
When will it be delivered?
Deliveries of Series1 scooters will begin by November 2020 in 11 cities – Bangalore, Chennai, Kozhikode, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Coimbatore, Delhi NCR, Kozhikode, Pune, Ahmedabad, and Kolkata.
Can we take the Series 1 on a 1-year or 2-year lease?
Yes, Series 1 will be available on lease.
Anything else that we should know!
What’s to be noted is that Ather says that the initial batches of Series1 scooters will ship out with black panels and will be upgraded to the translucent panels in May 2021.
Is the plastic used to make translucent recycleable and safe for environment?
The company has not mentioned about the life of the plastics used, how they can be dumped or recycled, which is quite a irresponsible approach as behind every electric vehicle company there is a hidden motive of serving for the environment. However, we all know plastics are not safe and can never do well to our environment.
Touting about the new feature Tarun Mehta, CEO, and Co-founder of Ather Energy said “Building automotive grade translucent panels is tricky and I am super excited that Ather is bringing them out for the first time ever with Series1. The teams have been working on it for months and despite the lockdown, we have been able to produce something truly fantastic.”