Battle Of The Premium Desi Electric Scooters

Hero Vida has finally launched its much-anticipated electric scooter, the V1. The Vida V1 flaunts an attractive design language with the combination of a funky yet futuristic styling, under which is a slew of features. So can it put up a fight against the Ather 450X — the OG desi premium electric scooter, and a favourite amongst the ZigWheels crew? Let’s find out via images:

The Vida V1 looks minimalistic, and its handsome demeanour is a complete departure from anything we’ve previously seen from Hero’s stable. Its sharp fascia, chunky instrument console and sleek LED indicators make it look like a funky modern e-scooter

While the third generation of the Ather 450X doesn’t get a lot of changes, the scooter still looks chic in 2022. From its front apron-mounted LED headlight to the sleek body cladding, everything adds up well and fits perfectly on the scooter, giving it a properly lean and mean look. Design sure is subjective, but you’d not be wrong in choosing either one of them for their design. 

Both the V1 Pro and V1 Plus get an IP68-rated motor which claims to propel the scooters to a top speed of 80kmph. The V1 Pro, though, boasts a quicker 0-40kmph acceleration time of 3.2 seconds, against the V1 Plus’ 3.4 seconds. That said, both are powered by the same motor making 6kW of peak power and 3.9kW of continuous power.

The Hero Vida V1 Plus gets a 3.44kWh removable battery pack, which claims an Indian Driving Cycle (IDC) range of 143km. The V1 Pro, on the other hand, gets a slightly bigger, 3.94kWh removable battery pack and has an impressive IDC range of 165km. 

The Ather 450X’s motor is linked to a 3.7kWh non removable lithium-ion battery pack that offers a claimed range of 105km in Eco mode and 85km in Ride mode. The IDC range on the 450X is claimed to be 146km.

It features a telescopic fork and monoshock suspension setup with a disc brake up front and a drum at the rear for braking. It rides on 12-inch wheels: a 90-section front and 100-section rear. 

Built on the same platform as its previous iteration, the Ather 450X Gen3 continues with the same underpinnings: a telescopic fork, monoshock absorber and disc brakes at both ends with a combined braking system. The Ather too get 12-inch wheels, but now gets a 100-section rear instead of a 90-section one. 

Features are where most e-scooters really shine, and the Vida V1 is no different. It boasts a 7-inch TFT touchscreen instrument console, four riding modes (Eco, Sport, Ride and Custom) with the last one, as the name suggests, being fully customisable. Also on offer is keyless access, cruise control, turn-by-turn navigation and a lot more. It also gets a 26-litre underseat storage space.

The Ather 450X, too, gets a truckload of features. Connectivity, in-built full-fledged Google navigation, SMS and call alerts, music control, reverse assist, digital document storage and more, all of which can be accessed through the 7-inch touchscreen TFT console. It also gets four riding modes: Eco, Ride, Sport and Warp. It also has a lesser, 22-litre underseat storage space. 

The Vida V1 Plus is priced at Rs 1,45,000, while the V1 Pro carries a price tag of Rs 1,59,000 (both ex-showroom). Though it might be substantially more than what we expected, it does pack the design and features to put up a good fight against its rivals.