450X Warp Mode Review - Pune

So, on Wednesday I was busy working from home. I got a call from Abhishek, asking me if I would like to test Ather 450X with Warp mode in Pune. Who would say no to that? Instantly said yes and asked him when and where. The icing on the cake? He told me I would get to keep the 450X for two days and test the warp mode extensively!

Here’s my experience riding Ather 450X with Warp mode for two days.

  • The scooter handed over to me was a modified 450 as in it had Warp mode. Not sure if it was a final production 450X as I was told that it’s a prototype.

  • Warp mode is a beast. You need to ride the Ather in Warp mode to experience it, can’t be put in words :slightly_smiling_face:. I haven’t seen this kind of pickup on any scooter yet. In fact, it’s as good as some 200cc bikes. You’ll get addicted to it. It’s getting really difficult to drive my petrol bike after using Ather with warp mode for 2 days. Can’t get the Warp mode out of my mind. Ather, please give me my 450X ASAP!

  • Warp mode range was 45kms on a full charge. The maximum I rode in a single trip was 30kms on Warp mode. The performance didn’t drop at all and the scooter didn’t feel stressed out even at higher speeds.

  • Eco mode has 85kms range and Ride mode has 70kms range on full charge.

  • Ride quality is good. Not too soft and not too hard. Just perfect.

  • I rode Ather to Taljai hill, people in Pune those who have visited Taljai hill will know the kind of steep inclines the road has. Ather was able to pull easily with a pillion rider.

  • It gets a lot of attention from people due to the motor noise. It feels great to listen to that music when you accelerate. Got lot of questions while waiting on traffic lights.

  • The brakes are pretty good, discs at both ends do the job pretty well.

  • Park assist is a boon. Makes it easy to take the Ather out from parking.

  • Better tires will definitely help in cornering and giving more confidence to extract performance out of the scooter.

  • Huge under seat storage.

  • My wife didn’t like the fact that it’s very difficult for her to sit on the pillion seat. It is too high. She would probably skip coming pillion with me on Ather. Biggest negative point that I have found.

  • No main stand. Has been discussed a lot. But had to put it here.

  • The mirrors are very small, I wish Ather had fixed these in 450X

Did I enjoy the scooter? YES! Would I buy it? YES!

Suggestion for those of you who are unable to take a decision on buying 450X: Just take a test ride in Warp mode. You won’t need any more convincing :slightly_smiling_face:.

Some photos I clicked with @Rohit.Gandhi when we were on our way to return our rockets :slight_smile:

Thank you Ather, Abhishek, and BU Bhandari team in Pune for giving me the opportunity to test the bike over the weekend! Just get me my 450X already! :laughing:

17 Likes

My wife and I tried it last Sunday. My wife tried it in Ride mode and was absolutely amazed at the ride quality, comfort and the “lightness” of the bike while I was busy drooling over the Series 1 :). Then I took the 450X for a ride and guess what - my first step was to change to the Warp mode. It is simply amazing, reminded me of my Pulsar days and this is better! Then I took my wife along, asked her to change to Warp mode and me riding pillion - she was absolutely stunned! The easy part: Let’s buy the bike now, the difficult part: We still have to wait for some more time for the Series 1. BTW, I also tried the “Eco” mode and it is quite cool tool - much the same way I ride my active most of the time - maybe a reflection of the fact that I am too old :wink:

10 Likes