Yamaha Aerox e First Ride Review: Does EV Trump ICE?

While this scooter has changed its powertrain, it's still very much positioned as fun to ride.

Yamaha Motor India has forayed into the electric mobility space with two electric scooters. The EC-06, built from the head — practical yet sporty and mostly for the family buyer — and the Aerox e, built from the heart. The new Yamaha Aerox e is what you get when Yamaha decides to electrify its most popular scooter in the ASEAN markets. This is based on the petrol version. While that is powered by a 155cc engine, this one goes all-electric.

Yamaha Aerox e: Going Electric

Unlike the EC-06, which has been co-developed with Bengaluru-based start-up River, the Aerox e is Yamaha’s own creation. It’s been largely developed in India for our market. The two-wheeler giant has opted for detachable battery packs on the Aerox e, instead of a fixed one like on the EC-06. You have two 1.5 kWh batteries hiding under the seat. The basic idea of a removable battery pack is to allow you to take it home and charge it, for convenience. Unlike the Honda Activa e, these are not swappable. That being said, the battery packs are quite heavy. Moreover, under-seat storage is marginally smaller compared to the Aerox 155.

The batteries are packed with "high energy type cells" for performance, and offer a combined range of 117 km on a single charge. The company is yet to reveal the charging time for each of these units.

Yamaha Aerox e: Performance

The electrification of the Aerox is mostly an excuse for Yamaha to meet its carbon neutrality goal. While the scooter has changed its powertrain and gained 13 kilos in the process, it's still very much positioned as fun to ride.

Managing the extra weight is an additional torque of 48 Nm from the electric motor, while power is about 12.7 bhp. This is a fairly quick scooter. If you like the Aerox, you will end up liking this as well. Performance is good. It's brisk on the throttle, but not ballistic. A pain point I do have is the throttle calibration, which needs work and seems to disconnect as soon you close the throttle.

To compensate for that, you now have a boost mode, which helps exploit all that power. You press the button and there’s a surge in power for 10 seconds, and this is actually noticeable. You are lunged forward, and the acceleration is truly enjoyable. Yes, your range will take a hit, but the feel is fantastic. The boost can be used again after 30-60 seconds, allowing you another opportunity for faster acceleration. The mode works great for overtakes and even pushes the top speed to 95.5 kmph.

ALSO READ: Yamaha EC-06 First Ride Review: Worth The Premium?

Yamaha Aerox e: Handling and Ride Quality

The key ethos of the Aerox is its brilliant handling,  and Yamaha has retained that very well here. A sharp corner feels seamless and predictable. While handling is fantastic, ride quality is on the stiffer side. It’s similar to the Aerox 155, and most undulations will be noticeable to the rider. If your idea is to just have some fun with a scooter, this is what you should be looking at. Stopping power is decent but with only single-channel ABS, the rear locks up frequently under hard braking. The e-scooter gets traction control as standard.

Yamaha Aerox e: Range Issues

Range is not exactly a strong point on the Aerox e. The TFT screen showed us about 35 km at the 85 per cent battery level, and dropped quickly once on the move. We also faced battery overheating issues on what was a pretty hot day. At one point, the electric scooter just wouldn’t start. We had to remove the battery and put it back in again, and it worked after multiple attempts.

Yamaha Aerox e: Design

Visually, the maxi-scooter design remains largely untouched. The X-shaped spine of the scooter is a constant, along with its twin headlamps and that bulbous body. The 14-inch wheels have been retained as well. What’s changed? There is no exhaust, and you get a cyan coloured cover instead to hide the electric motor and its components. Also, Yamaha is only offering the Aerox e in this white colour with cyan highlights, which I do like. The build quality is equally impressive and everything feels super sturdy.

Yamaha Aerox e: Ergonomics

The ergonomics remain identical as well. The riding posture is forward-facing with the floorboard and seat angled downward.  The central spine takes away some of the floorboard space. On the flip side, that X-Bone structure allows me to hold onto the scooter like a motorcycle, which is great for aggressive riding.

Yamaha Aerox e: Features

The 5-inch colour TFT screen adds a premium touch, and Bluetooth connectivity enables turn-by-turn navigation, as well as call and SMS alerts to the scooter. You also get access to rider stats via the mobile app.

Yamaha Aerox e: Verdict

While the Aerox e is a noble attempt from Yamaha to electrify its origins, much of this electric scooter feels half-baked for now. Prices are yet to be announced, but considering the EC-06, we do expect the Aerox e to arrive at significant premium. This will push this e-scooter into the league of super-exclusive products, such as the TVS X and BMW CE 02, which are more about making a statement than actual sales. As far as the niche goes, this one is right up there. But I’d still consider the Aerox 155 simply for how sorted the package already is.