The Indian electric vehicle market is on an upward drive, drawing lots of foreign manufacturers and experts to the burgeoning market. A recent government tax cut for EV batteries is a clear indication of the massive support coming from the government. The Indian EV market could soon be boosted with a Honda e-scooter. The Honda U-Go e-scooter patent application has been filed in India.

While there is no official confirmation yet that Honda will launch the U-Go in India, it is a plausible possibility. Several patent applications connected to EVs have been filed in recent times in India. The electric two-wheeler and four-wheeler market in the subcontinent is blossoming on the back of strong government support. A recent 13 percentage-point cut in the GST rate for EV battery packs by the government is bound to stimulate more activity.

The scooter is designed as a small two-wheeler for daily urban commutes. It is 179cm long and weighs 83kg. It has a wrap-around design with some graphics on the body panels. The headlight cluster has an inverted DRL and there are LED turn indicators on the handlebar’s sides. There is also LED lighting at the rear for the tail lights. It has a 12-inch front wheel with telescopic suspension. The disc brake system is housed in the front of the e-scooter while a drum brake is at the rear. The rear wheel of the U-Go version in China is 10 inches in size.

The Honda U-Go e-scooter which is currently available in China comes with some decent features. It has a BLDC motor in two sizes – 800W and 1,200W. Its replaceable Lithium-ion battery offers a range of 75km, which can be extended to 130km using the dual battery pack. The scooter can reach a top speed of 53km/h. The coming weeks may see an announcement by Honda concerning the patented scooter.

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Japanese automobile and motorbike giant Honda is making significant inroads into the two-wheeler EV market with its recent products. The Chinese arm of Honda, called Wuyang-Honda has added a new electric scooter to its lineup dubbed U-GO Electric Scooter in the Chinese market.

The U-GO e-scooter comes in two models that are ultra-affordable and purely designed for the urban commute. The two models both reflect a minimalist design and simple features. The standard model has a 1.2kW continuous-rated hub motor with a peak rating of 1.8kW, and a top speed of 53km/h. The second model has a lower power rating of 0.8kW while the top speed peaks at 43km/h.

Both models come with a removable Lithium-ion battery having a maximum capacity of 1.44kW. This can be doubled when it is upgraded to the bigger battery pack. Both models have an under-seat carriage with a capacity of 26L.

The new Honda U-GO electric scooter is presently available in China at a starting price of CNY 7,499 ($1,150) while the standard version with a 1.2kW rating is priced at CNY 7,999 ($1,233). The prices are on the low end of the spectrum. Some of the Chinese models are more than twice as expensive as the U-GO e-scooter.

The e-scooter market is booming in China and India, owing partly to the favourable and incentive-filled business climate in these two countries. We expect Honda to launch the new e-scooters in India at some point. We cannot also rule out future expansion into the lucrative US and European markets.

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