Ather 450S price, range, mystery new EV scooter

A new mysterious scooter has been spotted on Bannerghatta road, Bengaluru and at first glance looks quite familiar to the popular TVS iQube. 

However, a closer look reveals that the camouflage is concealing  bodywork that appears quite different. Moreover, TVS test bikes generally do not wear KA registration plates and they are rarely spotted on the road at all. Whenever that does happen, it is generally near the Hosur factory and almost never right inside Bengaluru city. So this is not likely to be a TVS product. 

This scooter’s handlebars appear to be positioned quite high up, which means taller riders’ knees shouldn’t foul while taking u-turns. The overall seating position appears to be conventional with a focus on a relaxed riding and a comfortable riding posture. 

A telescopic fork can be seen along with a front disc brake. The front apron-mounted LED headlight does look very similar to the iQube’s unit but, closer inspection does show some differences. 

It’s hard to tell whether this is a petrol scooter or an EV, but the fact that it is Karnataka registered and spied in Bengaluru strongly suggests the latter, considering the large number of EV startups that call India’s tech hub home. Some contenders to whom this test mule belongs to include Ather Energy, River and Ultraviolette. In fact, we have previously reported that Ather is working on a family scooter of its own. 

In any case, this test mule appears quite production ready so we should know soon enough.