Yash
Ather 450X is a product of Ather Energy.
It is a Bangalore-based Indian two-wheeler electric company.
Ather Energy started its operations in 2013 under the leadership of Mr. Tarun Mehta and Mr. Swapnil Jain.
It manufactures two electric scooters under the name:
- Ather 450X and Ather 450 Plus.
I’ll discuss Ather 450X in this post.
What is Ather 450X Gen 3?
Ather 450X is an e-scooter (two-wheeler) that is specifically designed for Indian commuters.
It is a clean, quick, and smart electric scooter with many unique built-in features.
It was launched in the month July 2022.
Features of Ather 450X
Let us discuss some of its salient features.
(i) Battery
It is one of the most important parts of any electric vehicle (EV).
A battery stores the energy in chemical form and converts it into electric current for running electric vehicles.
The battery capacity is defined in terms of kWh.
More capacity means more distance an EV can cover.
It is a fuel for EVs.
Therefore, the battery has to be efficient that can take you long distances.
The Ather 450X has a Li-ion battery with an installed capacity of 3.7 kWh (Theoretical capacity) and a usable capacity of 3.24 kWh.
It means you can use 87.6% of the installed capacity.
(Some energy needs to remain in the battery for its long working life. And it is defined by DOD).
(ii) Range
It is the maximum distance that an EV can take you once its battery is fully charged.
Ather 450X defines its range in two ways:
One is a certified range (146 km) when the conditions are ideal
Another is the true range (105 km) that you get when you drive your EV in real conditions.
- Water and dust resistance: IP67
- Pack casing: Aluminum alloy
(iii) Motor
The battery provides electric current to the motor. And motor in turn rotates the wheels of the vehicle.
Ather 450X is fitted with a powerful permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM)with a peak power of 6.2 kW.
(Its continuous power is 3.3 kW).
This powerful motor gives a torque of 26 N-m. That can rotate the wheels fast and in less time. This PMSM motor is quiet and performs equally well at low and high speeds.
(iv) Acceleration
This motor can take your two-wheeler from 0 to 40 km/hr in 3.3 seconds.
(v) Braking system
Ather 450X has a regenerative braking system. It is a kind of energy conversion mechanism.
Whenever the rider applies the brakes, the vehicle slows down and its kinetic energy is stored for charging the battery.
This method is different from the conventional braking system.
Where almost all the kinetic energy gets lost as heat.
Hence, the regenerative braking system provides additional charge to the battery and gives the rider the extra mile to reach the charging station.
(vi) Warranty
- Battery warranty: 3 years or unlimited km
- Vehicle warranty: 3 years/30,000 km
Other features
- Top speed: 80 km/hr (actual) 90 km/hr (display).
- Different riding modes: warp, sport, ride, eco, and smart eco.
- Its 7” dashboard helps in navigating through Google Maps with ease.
- In addition, it is Bluetooth enabled features lets the owner receive calls and listen to music with one touch.
What are the charging options for Ather 450X
It is true that we have limited charging stations.
But the same is the case everywhere in the world.
Although the number of charging stations is increasing.
To compensate for this, Ather offers multiple charging options for its e-scooters.
So that the owner does not limit her/his ride due to limited charging stations.
The various charging options are:
a) Home charger (Ather-dot) (0-80% in 4 h and 30 minutes)
You can charge your vehicle overnight easily in 6 to 8 hours.
This home charger can be installed by any professional electrician. However, if you would like to install it by Ather professional.
They charge Rs. 1800 + GST.
The mounting just requires 4 mounting holes about 6mm in diameter. It is similar to installing other electrical equipment like a geyser or wall-mounted TV.
Fast charging sometimes has an adverse effect on the battery.
Do you know?
b) Portable charging (0-80% in 4 h and 30 minutes)
If you do not have a parking option at your home. You can use the portable charging option. You travel long distances and sometimes do not have access to the Ather grid. Portable charging is the best way to keep your vehicle charged.
This portable charger is compatible with a 15 Ampere socket as well as a 5 Ampere socket.
c) Ather grid
- Ather public charging station can fast charge 15 km in 10 minutes from the Ather network of fast charging stations.
- Free for all Ather users until Dec 22
Download the specifications of Ather Energy e-scooter
Price of Ather 450X
Ather Energy has two models in the market.
First is that we are discussing Ather 450X and another is Ather 450 Plus.
- The Ather 450 plus comes at Rs. 1,34,147/- (ex-showroom)
- While Ather 450 X is priced at Rs. 1,55, 657/- (ex-showroom)
(FAME-II incentive of Rs. 55,000 is included in the above prices. FAME II is the subsidy provided by the central govt of India for the purchase of EVs.)
The cost of charging Ather 450X
EV charging is very affordable when compared to fuelling conventional scooters running on gasoline.
Let us find the cost of charging Ather 450X with different sources.
a) The cost of charging with a grid
The charging of its 3.7 kWh battery full requires near to 4 units of grid electricity.
The average grid price in India is close to Rs. 7.
And it is increasing at a rate of 8% per year.
However, at present the average cost of charging Ather 450X battery with the grid is:
4 kWh x Rs. 7 = Rs. 28
For Rs. 28/- you can charge Ather 450 X battery full. That can drive you to 105 km (practical range).
Cost of charging Ather 450X with solar
The solar power system is another option that you can use for charging your Ather 450X e-scooter.
Before that, we need to rightly size the solar panels.
a) Size the solar panels
So that they can provide enough current for its charging.
The output from the solar panels is affected by many factors such as:
i) Sunlight Intensity
- When the sunlight is good in your region. You can charge your Ather 450X with fewer solar panels.
While on another hand, poor sunlight increases the size of the system and also costs you more.
In ideal conditions (no losses),
The size of the solar panels = Battery capacity/PSH (i)
ii) Losses in the solar power system
But no system is ideal. Like any other system, the solar power system does suffer from many losses such as:
- Dirt loss
- Shading loss
- Conversion loss
- Transfer loss
- Aging and many more…
These losses can eat up to 30% of the power produced by solar panels.
Therefore, to compensate for these losses, we need to increase the panel size.
Divide the equation (i) by 0.7 or multiply by 1.43.
To get the right solar panel size.
iii) The right size of solar panels
Finally, the size of the solar panels can be found as:
= Energy needs or the battery capacity/
(Peak Sun Hours x 0.7)
Or
=1.43 x (Energy need or the battery capacity/Peak Sun Hours)
Let us put the values to get the panel size.
The average PSH in India is over 5.35. I am going to further round it to 5.
Solar panel size = 3.7 / (5×0.7)
= 1 kW
The 1 kW solar power system will charge Ather 450X battery full in the daytime.
This solar electricity will cost you around Rs. 3.5 per unit.
(The per unit cost of solar electricity is calculated by considering many factors such as the cost of the system, maintenance cost, grid price, its escalation, peak sun hours, and many more).
However, to explain all at this juncture is beyond the scope of this post.
iv) The cost of charging Ather 450X with solar?
Therefore, for charging the 3.7kWh or nearly 4 kWh battery, the cost of charging would be:
Rs. 3.5 per unit x 4 kWh = Rs. 14
The cost of charging with solar having a battery backup
Many of us commute in the daytime.
Also. the solar power system installed at home works in the daytime.
How does a user charge the battery with solar when s/he is traveling in the daytime?
An addition is required in the system.
It is the battery.
The solar panels will charge the battery in the daytime.
And when you are back with your e-scooter after work.
The stored solar energy in the battery will charge your vehicle.
However, adding batteries increases the overall cost of the system.
Even after this, the cost of charging is lower than a grid.
It is Rs. 5.5 per unit.
And the cost of charging Ather 450X battery would be
Rs. 5.5 x 4 kWh = Rs. 22
(I have rounded off 3.7 kWh to 4 kWh for making calculations easy and simple).
It is still cheaper than charging with your grid supply.
The cost of a 1 kW solar power system
Although the cost of the solar power system varies due to the choice of solar panels and other components in the system.
However, the average price of a
The 1-kW solar power system is somewhere between:
- Rs. 65,000 to 75,000 (without battery)
- Rs. 85,000 to 95,000 (with battery backup)
Savings with Ather 450X
How much money do you save when you drive an e-scooter?
Let us see by comparing it with a conventional two-wheeler which runs on petrol.
i) Cost of running a scooter with petrol
A petrol scooter consumes around 1.5 litre for traveling 105 km.
(105 km is the practical range of Ather 450X)
At present, the cost of 1 litre of petrol is Rs. 95.
Therefore, the cost of traveling 105 km with a petrol scooter is:
Rs. 95 x 1.5 = Rs. 142.5
Traveling 30,000 km with petrol will cost you:
- Rs. 41106 {(Rs. 142.5/105 km) x 30,000 km}
ii) The cost of traveling when you charge your e-scooter with the grid
While traveling the same distance with Ather 450X and charging with the grid will cost you:
- Rs. 8,000 only {(Rs. 28/105 km) x 30,000 km}
iii) Cost of traveling when charged with solar
With solar without battery backup:
- Rs. 4000 only {(Rs. 14/105 km) x 30,000 km}
With solar with battery backup:
- Rs. 6285 only {(Rs. 22/105 km) x 30,000 km}
(I have taken 30,000 km because the company offers a vehicle warranty for 30,000 km or 3 years whichever is earlier).
The savings w.r.t the petrol vehicle can be found as:
Savings when charged with grid = Rs. 41,106 – Rs. 8,000 = Rs. 33,106.
The whole analysis can be shown in tabular form:
Reduction in carbon emissions with Ather 450X
When 1 litre of petrol burns 2.3 kg of carbon emissions go into the atmosphere.
When a conventional scooter travels 30,000 km, it burns 429 litres of petrol.
Releasing 429 x 2.3 kg = 986 kg carbon emissions in the air.
Therefore, by switching to electric vehicles you are reducing carbon emissions into the air.
And helping in mitigating climate change.
Moreover, if you prefer to charge your electric vehicle through solar.
You are going many steps ahead in mitigating climate change.
(Solar PV is a renewable source of energy. And the production of electric current by absorbing sunlight is a carbon-free process).
Conclusion
The Ather 450X is a smart, quick, and fast e-scooter with great range and battery capacity.
Great torque.
It gives Instant acceleration that takes your e-scooter from 0 to 40km/h in 3.3 seconds.
Although limited e-charging stations across the country are a challenge for any electric mobility company.
But offering multiple charging and charge anywhere options reduce the dependability on the charging stations to an extent.
However, a wide network of charging stations along with multiple charging options will synergize the adoption speed.
Another point of concern is the price.
The e-vehicles are more costly than their conventional counterparts of similar capacities.
However, when we talk about the cost of charging, it is very cheap than fuelling conventional vehicles of similar capacities.
When we take the long-term scenario, considering vehicle cost, the cost of charging, and the tax benefit up to Rs. 1,50,000 on the interest amount of the loan in u/s 80EEB of the Income tax act.
Then the overall cost difference between conventional and e-vehicles becomes marginal.
The advancement in technology will reduce the price.
And the increase in e-charging station numbers with time will make e-scooters a common commuting vehicle among youngsters and working professionals.
