Ather Energy, India’s first intelligent electric scooter manufacturer, has decided to bid adieu to its first product, Ather 450, which was launched in 2018. As of today, the Bangalore-based EV start-up will stop the sale of Ather 450 in both Bangalore and Chennai.

This marks the end of phase one of Ather Energy as a company as it moves on to a new stage of rapid growth aided by a new round of Series D funding, which generated an additional Rs 260 crore in fresh funding led by Sachin Bansal and Hero MotoCorp, on November 7, 2020.

The Ather 450 was one of India’s first premium electric scooters which was designed from scratch to offer an exhilarating ride and a hassle-free ownership experience. It will be replaced with the Ather 450X, launched on January 28, 2020 and Ather 450 Plus, which have been built on the same platform, with improved hardware and software capabilities.

The Ather 450, whose deliveries first began in 2018, can be said to have had an important influence on the Indian EV market and redefined the perception of electric two-wheelers. It raised the standards of not just the design and technology but also the performance, range, speed, and safety of two wheelers.  

The Bangalore-based EV start-up says feedback from Ather 450 owners and the Ather Forum have played a crucial part in shaping Ather Energy’s latest product, Ather 450X – the quicker and smarter sibling of Ather 450. 

Tarun Mehta, co-founder and CEO, Ather Energy, said: “Our maiden model, Ather 450 was the outcome of four years of continuous work on R&D, design, prototype building and testing, and improving the product to make it production worthy. The learnings from Ather 450 in terms of design, specifications and production along with feedback from the owners has helped shape the Ather 450X and Ather 450 Plus. We are now looking forward to delivering our new product line across all cities. We would also like to express our gratitude to our valued owners, suppliers and partners for being a part of Ather Energy’s journey. “

Entering nine new cities, facilitating pre-owned Ather 450 sales
With the introduction of Ather 450X and Ather 450 Plus, Ather Energy is focusing on delivering the products in new markets – Hyderabad, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Delhi, Kochi, Kozhikode, Coimbatore and Kolkata.
 

Tarun Mehta at the launch of the Series 1 collector's edition on September 26, 2020.

The deliveries of Ather's Series 1 model have already begun in a few markets and will soon be available across the country. Ather Energy will also set up 135 public fast charging, Ather Grid Points across 11 cities by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, in an effort to enable Ather 450 owners keen to upgrade to the 450X, Ather Energy has introduced a peer-to-peer service, Ather Certified Pre-owned, which connects Ather 450 owners to consumers who are interested in a pre-owned Ather 450. Every pre-owned Ather 450 listed for resale as part of this program comes with an Ather Health Certificate issued based on a comprehensive data-based inspection on every aspect of the scooter, making the system transparent and easy to use. 

According to the company, the Ather 450 has only been improving over the years with 7 over-the-air (OTA) updates which introduced new features like Eco-mode, Dark theme for the dashboard and guide-me-home lights.

An Ather Energy statement says, “The product line will continue to receive new features and upgrades in the coming years, so its customers can rest assured that the Ather 450 will only get better with time. The next OTA update is planned to be released soon and will carry the Theft and Tow detection feature for all Ather 450 and Ather 450X e-scooters.”

The Ather Grid charging system is already available, free of charge in Bangalore, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Pune with 62 fast charging points.