Here's What You Could Expect From Bajaj's Upcoming Chetak e-Scooter

[Update: Bajaj’s All-new Chetak Is Here In Electric Form!]

With the turn of the 21st century, Bajaj Auto’s scooter ambitions weaned off as it sought to become the face for the motorcycling enthusiast in the early 2000s with the Pulsar range. While the Pune-based manufacturer did dabble in scooters with offerings like the Kristal, they did not do enough for Bajaj to focus its energies into them. However, with the rage around electric mobility at an all-time high, Bajaj Auto dropped a bombshell and announced that it will be showcasing what the future holds for the brand on October 16: its first electric scooter that will arrive under the Urbanite sub-brand.

The news of Bajaj working on an electric scooter is not new. The EV has been spotted numerous times in and around Pune and on one occasion, even being tested alongside what is the current benchmark in the Indian electric scooter segment – the Ather 450. Bajaj wants to get it right from the get-go when it comes to the electric scooter as it would like to stamp its authority in the segment way before Japanese brands invade the country with their creations, like Honda did with the Activa in 2000.

Although we will have to wait until 16 October to know for sure what the scooter will be called, we think that Bajaj will be revisiting its history books to bring back the iconic ‘Chetak’ name and the new Bajaj scooter is likely to be called the Chetak Chic electric. And from what we have deduced so far from the test mules, this Chetak electric scooter is going to be a sleek and elegant looking scooter with curvaceous body panels like European scooters.

The camouflage does not reveal much about the aesthetics of the scooter. In fact the only thing or two that we know about the styling is that it gets a handlebar-mounted LED headlight unit with LED turn indicators on the front apron for a clean look. The instrument console is fully digital and is likely to pack AI-features much like the Ather 450. We guess that features like navigation, ride statistics, geo-fencing and perhaps even Bluetooth connectivity will come in as standard.

While exact details of the electric motor are still unknown, it is said that German electronics giant Bosch has played a key role in the development of the scooter. Although it does not get Bosch’s hub motor like the Revolt RV300, we guess that it will be powerful enough to offer a good balance between performance and practicality.

12-inch alloy wheels at either ends are pretty much the norm when it comes to scooters nowadays. And just like the original Chetak, this electric one too will be getting a single-sided front telescopic fork. But more details on the mechanical front on 16 October.

Bajaj has always managed to price its products pretty well, undercutting its rivals by some margin. Given that this is the first Urbanite product from Bajaj, we figure that the e-Chetak could be priced on par with the Ather 450. Hence, expect an ex-showroom price after FAME-II subsidies to be in the region of Rs 1 lakh. This price might sound like a bit on the higher side when compared to the Revolt RV400 but what one needs to know that this is Bajaj’s ground-up new design and not a rebadged and slightly-tweaked Chinese product for India.