Ather 450S First Ride Review - Little Delight?

With Fame II subsidies diminishing and government policies changing randomly, EV brands have a new challenge on their hands - how to make their products affordable and more relevant in a competitive market space. Ather has responded by launching the new 450S, which understandably is the cheapest Ather scooter on sale in India.

They managed to do so by reducing the battery capacity and dropping the power output. So how have these changes affected the scooter and does the 450S feel like a proper Ather scooter? We head to Bengaluru to get you the answer.

Performance

The big difference between the Ather 450S and the 450X is the difference in the power output (peak power is 5.4 kW) and understandably the 450S is slower in terms of acceleration. But the top speed of both the scooters is the same at 90 kmph (claimed). According to Ather, the 450S is positioned as a rival to 110-125cc ICE scooters and in that sense, the new electric scooter does feel peppy. One of the best aspects of an Ather scooter is its throttle calibration, which in my opinion is the best for any electric scooter on sale and the 450S too has the same throttle feel. There are two riding modes if you go for the Pro pack - Normal and Sports.

In Normal mode, the acceleration is very docile and top speed is limited to 45kmph, which is good enough for city commutes. But if you’re feeling enthusiastic or riding on the highway, Sports mode lets you cruise at 70 kmph easily. Having said that, if you have ridden a Ather scooter before you will miss the Warp mode for sure. Another impressive bit on the 450S Pro pack is the hill hold function, which is a very functional and important feature. Tap the brake of the scooter and it will automatically hold its position on inclined surfaces and this is very useful in real world riding situations.

Range & Charging

Ather claims an IDC range of 115 km, which will be between 70-80 km in real world conditions. Yes, it isn’t as impressive as the 450X and that’s owing to the smaller 2.9 kWh battery pack. But as a city runabout the range isn’t that bad.

What is a point of concern is the rather long charging time of 8 hrs and 36 mins to 100% and 6 hrs and 36 mins to 80%. The charging time should have been shorter as it’s amongst the highest for any EV on sale.

Styling & Features

Visually there is no difference between the Ather 450S and the 450X and if I was a 450X customer, I wouldn’t be too pleased as even after paying the premium there is no visual distinction between the two variants. Having said that the Ather 450 still looks like a properly modern and sporty scooter even though the design is over half a decade old. However, my suggestion to Ather designers will be to start sketching something new.

To make sure they hit the right price point, Ather had to reduce a few features on the 450S. It misses out on the TFT touch screen as seen on the 450X and even the brightness of the screen is lesser. However, the layout is clear and you still get navigation, although it’s turn-by-turn, unlike Google Maps. The 450S also gets new switch cubes to shuffle through the various menus on the console.

I personally feel the switch cubes are better than the touchscreen as it’s safer and offers you better control. The other new addition is a dedicated reverse button which is convenient. There’s also new coasting regen, which is a more optimised regeneration system and it varies based on the riding mode.

Ride, Handling & Braking

The underpinnings of the 450S are shared with the 450S so the chassis, braking and suspension hardware are identical. It feels very familiar in this regard and remains a very eager and fun to ride scooter.

The smaller battery pack means it’s 3.6 kg lighter than the X and this makes it feel a bit more agile while filtering through traffic.

While the front suspension performs its task in a composed manner, the rear suspension is set on the firmer end, so you need to be a bit cautious on bumps. Braking performance is decent, but there is no ABS.

Verdict

The main objective of the 450S was to make the Ather brand affordable with the revision in subsidies and I think it has managed (Rs 1.30 to Rs 1.43 lakh, ex-showroom) that as the price difference between it and the 450X is quite significant. Buyers who were planning to buy the Ather 450X but didn’t go ahead with the purchase owing to the steep pricing now have a good alternative. The performance difference is also easily noticeable as you do miss the crazy acceleration of the Warp mode, but since they have the same top speed, it’s a fair deal given the price.

Buyers switching from a 110-125cc ICE scooter wouldn’t feel the difference, in fact they will be thrilled by the brisk acceleration. With the given range, performance and bunch of features, the Ather 450S does make sense as a good city runabout. The only negative in my opinion is the price, if Ather could have been more aggressive, then it would be in the ICE scooter territory as even now the price gap is noticeable. And more importantly the slow charging time is a point of concern. Last but not the least, if you’re buying the 450S, please pay the extra premium for the Pro pack as the extra features are worth the extra moolah.