In the Indian context, scooters have always had a more family focused market positioning. As one would be aware, following the increased acceptance of commuter motorcycles as the designated mode of inexpensive transport, conventional scooters made way for gearless ones. This helped their makers regain some lost ground in the market, but it has also segued into what is now a playground for new all-electric products. Among the decent ones is Ather, a company based in Bengaluru, which has tapped into the electric scooter market with some class-leading products. Until now their focus was entirely on younger audiences, relegating practicality in favour of style, but with the new Rizta, it’s clear that Ather wants to widen its demographic. The paradigm shift (for this model, at least) is accompanied by a ₹1.25-lakh price tag (ex-showroom), a ‘dad bod’ instead of the lean appearance of the existing models and tonnes of useable bits. So, how good is it?
New design
With the much-publicised long seat, a 34-litre under-seat storage area and a spacious footboard, the Rizta seems to have made a good start. It moves from the sharper appearance of the 450X, which was Ather’s first product and hides its sub-frame under the new slightly bland body panels. The nearly generic appearance doesn’t leave as lasting an impression as the 450X but that’s not the point. Ather has clearly played safe with the design, focusing on making the scooter more accommodating. The large, wide footboard is complemented by a rear backrest for the pillion. The total storage space is rated at a whopping 34 litres, in addition to the optional 22-litre ‘frunk’. Features usually associated with electric scooters are present too: there’s a reverse mode for ease of parking, the instrument cluster is a large screen complete with Google Maps, Alexa and WhatsApp functionality, and the telephony features can be accessed through it, too.
Safety features
The Rizta doesn’t skimp on safety either: In addition to the front disc brake, it comes with the ability to auto shutdown in the case of a fall, there’s a new skid control feature, which promises to control wheel slippage on less-than-ideal surfaces, whereas ‘Autohold’ is said to make tackling inclines easy without the fear of the scooter rolling backwards. The onboard motor produces 7.94 bhp and 2.24 kg-m and allows the scooter to reach 40 km/h in 4.7 seconds. While that won’t win you any traffic-light GPs, it’s far from a dud. There are two drive modes to choose from: Smart Eco and Zip. The former is understandably slower with a performance cap, whereas Zip is what I’d personally choose. That works especially well in conjunction with Ather’s ‘Magic Twist’ functionality, which offers reverse throttle, thus enabling regenerative braking to slow down.
And even in Zip mode, the new Ather is more approachable, making it friendly for not as spirited, everyday riding. The near instant availability of torque right at the twist of the wrist isn’t scary at all, because the power delivery on the Rizta is smoother and the throttle response is calmer, especially in comparison to its stablemate, the 450X. Braking isn’t an issue, and while there’s no ABS, the Rizta comes with a combined braking system, and it stays composed, even under hard braking. Top speed is 80 km/h, regardless of the model you choose, and the claimed range varies between 123 km for the 2.9 kWh battery model and 159 km for the one with the larger 3.7 kWh battery. There are two variants: the more value-focused Rizta S and the better-equipped Rizta Z. The latter can be specced with either of the batteries and comes with an Android OS dashboard.
Charging times
Full charging times (0-100 per cent) for the 2.9 kWh models are said to be 8 hours and 30 minutes on the Ather 350 W portable charger while the Ather Duo 700W charger (available for the 3.7 kWh version) takes 6 hours and 10 minutes. The 0-80 per cent charging times are lower: 5 hours 45 minutes for the smaller battery models (and 350W charger) while just 4 hours 30 minutes for the top-spec scooter. On the Ather Grid, the company claims a 10-minute top-up will give the scooter a range increment of 15 km.
If you’re looking for a commuter scooter which embraces practicality, ease of use and space without letting go of extremely low running costs and environmental friendliness, the Rizta makes a strong case for itself. It’s very different from anything Ather has offered before, but going by the company’s track record, it promises to be a good purchase. It’s not the most exciting thing to look at or ride, and the TFT instrument console is a bit laggy at the moment, but the Rizta feels confident on the move, it’s comfortable and spacious, and to top it all, it brings electric mobility to a wider audience. In Gen-Z parlance, the Rizta’s ‘rizz’ might be very different to that of the 450X, but it’s still got rizz nonetheless.
©Motoring World