I am completely in sync with squeaky noise in stationery position, noise from front shocks, rear seat noise and bumpy rides, I am facing this right after 3 days of riding till date, scheduled service for noise issue, technician did not have tools to resolve the issue, got the bike checked during owners’ meet, no luck, bike automatic cover became a escape goat for rear noise, however I had these noises much before fitting the cover, not getting much help from Ather with respect to rattling noises issue, hope to reach out to Ather team again after they are back from Chennai.
@Abhishek I wasn’t insinuating. It’s just that like you and most others on the forum I booked the vehicle over a year back after keenly following their development for many years, starting 2016. All of us waited patiently while the vehicles were being readied and I totally share the excitement of a EV and a new experience.
But , most of us in the forum also understand products and why it is important to build something that is consistent and reliable. My experience with Hero electric is not great but my expectations were also not that high. My cousin has had one for a few years and it just works. No fancy stuff and not a premium product. It’s a barebones 35-40k product vs 120k!! Once you build something like 450 and position it as a premium offering with connectivity, things have to work. At least the things in your control. These are entitlements that we have paid for and I expect them to work.
And that is my crib. I crib because I care and my expectations were very high. They were not met. No arguments as far as the performance and looks etc are concerned. And not to forget a fantastic user community - a first for an auto product in India.
I could just choose to ignore and hope that things will sort themselves out in the next few iterations. Just that the niggles are too many and they cannot be put up with. It just mars the overall experience.
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Well documented points. And I agree, Ather will be better when they hear more feedback, criticism & brickbats.
But then when you think about it, a lot of the issues are solvable software items or customer management issues. You have an excellent product that is going through its infancy - ups and downs, right and wrong.
Like I said in the first owners meet, I only wish that they grow stronger and larger. These guys have a vision, something I don’t see with other homegrown EV companies in India today.
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That was really a nice review on the bike and feedbacks are required. Ather have made a product to the best of their knowledge and capacity. They are learning the market and getting the data now. It’s like whole new thing for them because they are first of its kind. Everybody has more expectation on the product Ather are trying to cater to each and everybody.
From my knowledge There is nothing called as best or perfect. They just learn and evolve. During this process it takes time.
I would say patience and support will lead to good results.
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The more I read these forums, the more confused I get about whether to go ahead with the order or not. On some days I feel like completing the payment immediately, while on other days ( like after reading @srinsesh’s review ) I feel like it isn’t worth it.
I also have some questions for the owners -
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How bad are the various noise complaints - like the under seat rattling, grinding noises from the front? Are they very noticeable ?
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Many videos I’ve watched show the dashboard (especially navigation) being extremely laggy. How bad is this? Is it fixable via a software update or is it due to a low powered chip?
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How long does shutting down and restarting the entire system take?
Would be thankful if you guys can answer some of these!
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I am also having many things to consider like value for money and is it necessary for me now, charging point, taking it to my hometown 160kms from chennai etc etc but I will pay 5000 refundable deposit and think about my issues later
Have been driving the 450 since March, and I have not seen any noise issues till date. No rattles at all. You will feel a grinding noise for the 1st 100 odd kms, that’s just the belt and pulley assembly getting into shape.
Purely depends on the 3g network strength when you engage the navigation. I have crappy coverage near my house and work, so it takes a coupe of secs to render the maps and directions.
Shutdown and restart are as fast as any android phone.
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Nice one. Should probably watch the latest START WARS!!
lucky me. No panel gaps or vibration. no squeaky seats and definitely no suspension judder. Got ears of a God if i can say that about myself,
only complaint i had was the belt slip vibration which is going away now after 300km and will possibly be entirely zero in about 1000 kms. I am not a fanboy, i bashed ather for their customer handling earlier instore and forum… yet i believe customers are nitpicking much, once saw an issue resolved in store. One guy filled up omboard memory with photos he loved and found the system crashing and lagging. Ather is a toddler learning how to make EVs and i guess are far from being polished. Customers on the other hand want a la voiture noire for the 1.2 lakhs they paid… Jobs was right, customers will always ask more cos they dont know what thwy want
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Not most of the owners have complained about the noise issue, especially the deliveries before 2 nd June but from 2nd June onwards some of the owners have faced various noise issue including myself, I am not sure if quality check took the hit or something else.
For me navigation or dashboard has not created much issue except freezing twice or thrice in a month’s time and 1200 Kms ride.
Shutdown and restart just happens with a minute.
For me except noise and hard suspension, evething is superb.
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I got my 450 delivered on 2nd July so may be i am not the right person to say yes or no. After my 2 days ride i feel ride is very fun to me and i am extremely grateful to Ather team for making such quality product which well justified its cost. About noise i don’t care as long as it is not harmful to the system. I am not seating inside a car so this noise is not a big deal to me if you compare with bangalore or any city traffic noise.
Thanks
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I was facing similar issue. I contacted ather support and they took it for servicing. Just received it today, the squeaking sound and vibration is gone. Not yet clear what was the exact issue.
Will raise it with Ather once again
For the seat wobbling, my vehicle had and it still has the noise… It is very annoying for sure. 3 attempts of fixing did not help. I was asked to send it for service. I am planning to send it after Chennai visit.
There is nothing called as perfect vehicle in whole world every vehicle has its own positive and negative. Any product you take no matter what ever it is there will be positive reviews and negative reviews because everyone is different. It’s up to you take a call. I took a call and bought this vehicle for me till today it has not given any problem I am happy with this vehicle.
Don’t listen to what others say you see, ride and decide. In the event you will see all vehicles from new to most Kilometers driven you can talk to them you will get good information.
Reason I bought this bike is its different from others and the guys have put in lot of effort to design and build this bike hats off to their effort and every day they are trying to improve make this vehicle better.
I still don’t understand how people decide worth of something because everything is unique in its own way. For me it’s just comparison and analysis of cost versus benefit.
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I have had the scooter since the end of March and I have ridden about 4200kms.
I don’t really have any noise problems. The grinding noises from the front was there for about 300-400kms and it’s not there now. And no noises from the seat either.
Again, did not have much problem with this. I rarely use navigation and on the occasions, I did use, I would rate it a 3.5/5. I had screen freeze maybe two or three times and I didn’t bother restarting. It got corrected by itself.
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@chethan.bn and others
Thanks a lot for your replies 
Actually I’m in Bangalore. Had pre-booked the vehicle assuming I’ll have 2-3 months to decide if I want to go through with the order but they opened the payment window very early. In-fact my lease has already been approved but I’m waiting to do the downpayment partly because my apartment MC hasn’t approved the charger installation yet and partly because I’m still on the fence about this purchase.
I had taken a small test ride at the Ather Space and loved it, but there are many things that one can’t notice during a test ride but owners would notice during actual usage. For this I would actually have to talk to other owners. Sadly I won’t be in Chennai to meet and talk to many owners at one place.
My payment deadline is July 5. I think I’m going to let it pass and move my delivery to Aug. Meanwhile I think I’ll take another longish test ride, hang around these forums and maybe meet some owners and decide!
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I hope you should join as pavilion rider of next any Ather owners trip. You will experience the Ather more.
I pre-ordered Ather without taking test drive. And being a owner of 24 days. I am much satisfied with Ather. There are problem which are adjustable and move on.
My dad who denied to buy EV waiting for weekend to ride my Ather which makes me proud.
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Unfortunately I am in Chennai will be back to Bangalore mid Aug if you are okay to wait I can come give you test ride at your home… we can go for long ride see for yourself how the vehicle is…
This is a good idea. Implementing this would mean that Ather has to upgrade the screen to OLED. Normal LED-backlit-LCD displays will light-up the entire display panel and cannot selectively turn-off parts of the screen like OLEDs can. In OLED displays, each pixel is independently lighted-up and there is no back-lighting.
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