Will the ‘traders’ be able to compete with the original scooter seller in the Indian market? Huge surprises could await us!
Bajaj Auto is gearing to unveil its first-ever electric scooter offering for the Indian market on October 16. Rumored to be named “e-Chetak”, this electric scooter will be part of the company Urbanite brand and will take on the likes of the Ather 450. There is no official confirmation about the launch but we expect this new offering to be made available to buyers early next year.
The design inspiration of the scooter can be traced to the large displacement Vespa scooters that are sold abroad. The e-scooter will follow the neo-retro theme and come with the single-side front fork as evident from the spy images the electric scooter caught on the camera. Among the distinctive features of the scooter, some of the prominent ones include all-around LED lighting, Bluetooth connectivity feature, and a slew of artificial intelligence (AI) powered features.
The test mule of the scooter was caught testing on Pune streets as it was being tested alongside the Ather 450. This clearly indicates that Bajaj is benchmarking its e-scooter offering against the Ather 450 which is going to be its primary rival.
There is no clear cut indication on the price level of upcoming Bajaj but we guesstimate the prices to be around Rs 1 lakh (on-road). If that happens, this upcoming Bajaj scooter will significantly undercut the prices of the Ather 450. Just so you know the Ather 450 is priced at Rs 1.28 lakh (ex-showroom) in the Indian market.
It will be interesting to witness how Indian buyers will react to this new electric scooter offering from the house of Bajaj. For the company, this new electric scooter is going to be an important launch as it will set the tone for more premium, electric offerings from the house of the indigenous bike maker. Bajaj never found the automatic gearbox equipped ICE engine suitable and profitable enough. An electric is on its way and there will be no IC engine option along with Electric option as per other rumors suggested.
