Click it and Unblock the Notifications
Ather Rizta Review: The Family Scooter Electrified
Bangalore-based Ather Energy was formed in 2011. In the 13 years since then, Ather has become one of the go-to marques for electric scooter buyers in the country.
With its 450 series of electric scooters, Ather has almost entirely drawn the attention of the enthusiast side of the electric scooter crowd with its nimble and small trio of power-packed two-wheeled maniacs.
However, not satisfied with setting the speed demons(cough within speed limits cough) free, Ather has now come up with one that caters to the other side of the scooter crowd, the ones with a family.
Dubbed the Rizta, this new electric scooter promises to bring the everyday family to the wonderful world of electric scooters. So is the Ather Rizta the electric scooter for the family man? We rode the Ather Rizta in Bangalore to get you your answers...
Ather Rizta Review: Design & Features - The Ather For Everyone
Ather's scooters before the Rizta, all featured pointy designs and were rather small in size. The Ather Rizta is unlike any of its siblings, it's big (compared to the 450 series) features a rather conventional design and has enough seating space for even the taller segment of riders.
The design of the Rizta is what you would call grown-up or rather one that appeals to everyone. In fact, the Ather Rizta looks rather like any conventional scooter on the road today, especially if you get it in a single-colour form.
It is only in the dual-tone guise that the white section of the front apron really stands out and highlights the horizontal strip that houses the front lighting setup of the Rizta. This horizontal bar houses the headlight setup with the integrated DRLs and the turn signals.
The sides of the Rizta show off the long footboard and the side panel in body colour that wraps around the rear of the electric scooter. The taillights like the lights up front feature a horizontal bar shape that wraps around the sides of the scooter.
The seat is rather long and more than deserves its oversized moniker with the pillion rider benefitting from a single-piece grabrail that can be optioned with a backrest. Underneath the 900mm long seat sits a 32-litre boot which when combined with the optional flexible frunk (22-litres) for the footboard gives you a total of 54 litres of luggage space on the Rizta.
One area where the Rizta does not differ from its older 450 series siblings is the tech. While the Rizta Z variants sport a 7-inch TFT screen, the Rizta S gets the 'Deepview' LCD from the 450S.
Both displays allow for a host of features especially when owners choose the 'Pro' package at the time of purchase which includes features like navigation, find my scooter, tow and theft notifications, Alexa skills and more. Z variants also get Google Maps on the go, WhatsApp previews and the ability to auto-reply to calls.
In terms of safety, the Ather Rizta gets the firm's new Skid Control technology that uses sensors to detect rear wheel slip and then modulates the power output to prevent wheel spin over slippery road surfaces.
There are also systems that flash the brake light in case of emergency braking and the Ather Fall Safe feature that cuts off the motor when the scooter falls over to make picking the scooter back up more safer experience.
Ather Rizta Review: Specs, Range & Dimensions: Bigger & Better
The Ather Rizta is offered with two battery sizes - 2.9kWh (S & Z)and 3.7kWh (Z only). The base 2.9kWh battery pack offers an IDC range of 123km and takes eight and a half hours to charge with a portable charger.
The larger battery pack ups the range to 159 kilometres on a single charge and when connected to the Ather Duo charger takes six hours and ten minutes to fully charge up. Both battery packs support Ather Grid fast charging (15km in 10 minutes) and offer IP67 dust and water resistance.
The Rizta's battery packs (which come with a standard five-year/60,000km warranty) are connected to an electric motor with a peak output of 5.76bhp and 22Nm which propels the new electric family scooter from 0-40km/h in 4.7 seconds and a top speed of 80km/h.
The Ather Rizta features an underbone chassis setup that is derived from the 450 series which is connected to a larger and wider subframe that is suspended off a telescopic fork at the front and a monoshock at the rear.
The Ather Rizta rides on 12-inch wheels with 90/90-12 (front) and 100/80-12 (rear) MRF tubeless tyres. Braking duties are handled by a 200mm disc at the front and a 130mm drum at the rear and are aided by a combi-braking setup.
The Ather Rizta measures 1,850mm long, 750mm wide and 1,140mm tall and features a 1,285mm long wheelbase. The Rizta offers 165mm of ground clearance and 400mm of water-wading capability.
Ather Rizta Review: Riding Impressions - A Zippy Family Scooter
The Ather Rizta is offered with two riding modes - Smart Eco and Zip. Smart Eco offers good initial pull but fades away as you get to higher speeds, which makes it very good for city use.
However, if you want to experience the Rizta at its best, Zip is the mode to be in. There is a noticeable upgrade in power levels compared to Smart Eco (which too has a good power output) and in Zip mode, you're able to exploit the Rizta's abilities to their fullest.
The acceleration is linear and you never feel a lack of power even as you start getting higher up on the speed charts. When you do hit the top speed of 80km/h, you do feel that the Rizta can go even faster, but the electric speed nanny cuts you off.
On the move, the Rizta felt quite stable. The front suspension felt slightly softer than the setup at the rear, but overall the Rizta felt at ease dealing with bumps, ruts and potholes with absolute ease.
In slippery conditions, the Skid Control system worked its magic. It modulated the power levels without ever seeming like an over-concerned nanny (like some TC systems) and cutting the power off entirely.
It was breaking that felt like where we felt Ather could have done a bit more work. The combi-braking system works well, even under hard braking, keeping the Rizta stable even when the rear wheel locked up. However, with two riders, The Rizta's brakes felt slightly weak, but we're hopeful that Ather will get that under control before the Rizta starts hitting the streets.
The regen system also could do with some work. The coasting regen setup felt decent, but don't expect it to bring you to a halt quickly though as it doesn't feel strong at all.
Ather Rizta Review: Verdict and Final Thoughts - The Ather Family Experience
The Ather Rizta sees the Bangalore firm head into the world of family scooters for the first time. The Ather Rizta feels refined, with enough grunt, range and space (both on the seat and under it) to convince you to make your everyday family scootering experience, an electric one.
Continue with Google