Ola Roadster X Deliveries Delayed?

Ola Electric’s first electric bike range, the Ola Roadster was launched in India in August 2024. Later in early February, 2025, the company ‘relaunched’ the Ola Roadster range with difference in specifications, and price, along with changes in the variant lineup. The company had planned the deliveries of the Roadster range to commence from mid-March 2025. However, reports indicate that the deliveries of the Ola Roadster X have been delayed as it allegedly has not been homologated yet. We have reached out to the company for a comment regarding the homologation status and are yet to receive a response as of writing this article. 

As per reports online, the electric bike range is facing technical issues in the motor and battery pack, reportedly including inadequate heat management of the battery pack. Interestingly, as per the brand’s official website, the delivery timeline of the Ola Roadster X and its variants (2.5,3.5 and 4.5kWh), and also the Roadster X+ (4.5kWh variant) is listed as 16 April 2025. On the other hand the planned delivery of the 9.1kWh variant of the Roadster X+ will start from 18 July 2025. Note that the delivery timeline of the Ola Roadster and its variants (3.5kWh,4.5kWh and 6kWh) is still listed as March 2025 in the official website, at the time of writing.

Trade Certificate Violations

Adding to the woes, online reports have also revealed that Ola Electric has failed to secure trade certificates for several dealerships across the country. The company’s CEO had tweeted in December 2024 about the inaugural of the 4,000th dealership in India. Reports indicate that out of 3,400 dealerships only over 100 of them have the requisite trade certificates. Dealerships will need to have a Trade Certificate so that the registration of vehicles possessed by them is exempt. It is valid for a year, and will need to be renewed thereafter. The certificate is also required for a dealership to legally sell, give test rides and even transport the vehicles (from where it’s made to the dealers). It’s also reported that the government agencies have conducted raids, shutting down dealerships and even seizing EVs. The company has also reportedly received showcause notices regarding the matter.

The EV maker reportedly responded that the stockyards in which the unregistered vehicles are housed have the necessary paperwork and approvals but made no comments specifically about the certification required for the dealerships. 

ZigSays: A challenging road ahead

The electric motorcycle segment is still quite nascent in India with the only biggest player currently being Revolt Motors in the commuter segment. However, electric motorcycles have already started expanding beyond this genre. Case in point being the Ultraviolette F77, which is a proper performance electric motorcycle. And then there's also Ultraviolette's upcoming Shockwave, which not only plans to leave commuting behind, but roads altogether. Ola Electric has the advantage of time, but will have to get everything right with the Roadster range, and will have to ensure that its reputation doesn’t take a hit as the Ola scooters did. Consistency in performance, be it dynamics or the functionality of features - is really the key here. 

While Ola Electric has been aggressively expanding both in terms of its reach and new products, we feel the company also needs to pause and reflect a bit. It will first have to streamline its service quality. Cutting through the red tape to secure the right paperwork for such a huge number of dealerships can be challenging, but Ola has no other choice but to focus its energies in complying with regulations. Once Ola manages to get a hold on these two aspects, it will automatically start earning trust from customers as the products will speak for themselves. This will also help the building up of the company’s share prices, not to mention the confidence of its investors. In fact, the company has four investor meetings scheduled over the next few weeks this month, so stay tuned to ZigWheels.

Sources: 1, 2