Bangalore-based electric two-wheeler maker Ather Energy has announced that as part of its phase 2 expansion, the company will launch the Ather 450X in 16 additional cities: Mysore, Hubli, Jaipur, Indore, Panaji, Bhubaneshwar, Nasik, Surat, Chandigarh, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Guwahati, Nagpur, Noida, Lucknow and Siliguri.
The company says it has received overwhelming demand for its products, dealership requests, and also the volume of requests for test rides has led Ather Energy to include these new markets in Phase 2 of their expansion.
Ather Energy says it is now fast tracking its plans to meet the national demand for the vehicle and by Q1 CY2021, the Ather 450X will be available across 27 cities in India. Many in these new cities are also eligible for the limited-edition Series 1 vehicle, as they placed orders in January 2020 before the official launch of the new product line.
The EV maker says it will open up retail presence in these cities in a staggered manner by Q1 2021 and will begin by setting up test rides to let consumers experience the vehicle. It has also been talking to prospective retail partners in these markets and has already begun locating spaces to set up its fast EV charging network, Ather Grid. In the 11 markets that Ather has presence in, more than 60 charging points are already installed with more in the pipeline.
The Ather 450x will come with a 4G SIM card and Bluetooth connectivity, allowing riders to manage phone calls and music on the touchscreen dashboard. The new 7-inch touchscreen dashboard comes with a colour depth of 16M and a Snapdragon Quad-Core processor. Ather 450X utilises Android Open Source to offer Google map navigation, on-board diagnostics, and other unique features like OTA updates, Auto Indicator off and Guide-me-home lights.
The Ather mobile app will continue to offer personalised ride statistics, charging status, push navigation, and more functionalities like theft & tow detection, live location and vehicle state tracking.
Ravneet Singh Phokela, chief business officer, Ather Energy said: “We are really excited about adding 16 new markets and we look forward to establishing ourselves in these cities in the coming months. This expansion is the result of the strong demand from the consumers, dealerships and also, the test ride requests that we have received since the launch of Ather 450X. Ather Energy has always strived to build futuristic electric two-wheelers which boast of superior technology and innovative solutions to make the switch to electric easier for the consumers. We aim to introduce Ather products across the country and fulfil the needs of consumers by providing a premium offering.“