Revolt RV400 Review – India’s First Electric Motorcycle
Every major automobile brand is moving towards electric mobility. Continuing this trend, Revolt Intellicorp launches RV400 and RV 300 in India today. The bikes are marketed as AI-enabled electric bike and hence equipped with lots of connected features. We got the chance to test RV 400 capabilities and here is what we think.
Design and Styling: Revolt RV 400 carries a muscular stance and seems to be inspired by Chinese-origin electric bike sold in the UK. The hexagon-shaped LED headlamp, which carries Revolt branding at the top of it is an eye-catcher. The bike maker has chosen the LED setup for headlamp, indicators, and tail-lamp for efficiency and for styling as well. Revolt RV400 comes with a single seat which is very comfortable and plushy. The handlebar is perfectly suited for sharp turns and equipped with many functional buttons as well. You get telescopic fork at the front and mono-shock suspension at the back.
It comes with a fully digital instrument cluster which shows information like speed, odometer and trip meter readings, battery percentage, ampere readout temperature gauge. The Revolt also launches a mobile companion app through which you can access lots of connected features. The bike offers highest ground clearance of 220mm in the segment.
Performance: The electric bike uses 3KW Mid Drive electric motor and drives the rear wheel using a belt drive system. It offers 72V lithium-ion battery which can provide a range of approximately 156KM (ARAI Certified). The electric bike maker offers 2 modes for charging the battery. You can either charge directly from the socket provided on the bike or choose the option to remove the battery and charge it in your own convenience. You can also swap out the battery at forthcoming Revolt battery swap stations.
The weight of the bike is approximately 108 KG, which is very less even it is lighter than an average 125cc scooter. You can expect quick acceleration as you’ll get full torque from zero RPM. The electric bike will not move until you fully release the brake. The bike gets CBS braking system with Disc-brake at both the ends. Braking of the bike is quick and the bike remains stable even when you apply the brake at higher speeds. We drove it on a track which was designed in a way to replicate city riding like situations. There were sharp turns, U-turns, speed breakers and flat long road also for testing the throttle limits.
Ride and Handling: Revolt RV400 really perform on-road same as depicted on the papers. Maneuvering in the city road and traffic will not be a problem in Revolt RV400. It took us about 5-10 minutes to get in-sync with the bike but only after that, we could know the capabilities of the bike. You will feel confident while cornering as well. Revolt gives the option to change the exhaust note through its mobile application. It offers 3 more sound as of now but the company is claiming that they will add more sounds very soon. Since it generates full torque at zero RPM, it can create difficulty for the pillion rider. Instant acceleration might not be expected by the pillion and he might feel a jerk or worse probably fall off. This is the general problem of every electric vehicle.
The seat is plushy and comfortable; so long rides will not be the issue. It will always keep you ahead from rest of the traffic, thanks to initial torque. Revolt is offering 3 riding modes: Eco, City, and Sport. In Eco mode highest speed is electronically capped for less than 40kmph, in city mode, the capped limit increased to 60kmph and in sports mode, you can go till 85kmph. Most of the time, you will be using the city mode.
Revolt Mobile App: Connected vehicles are in trend nowadays, Revolt Motors is cashing in on it. Revolt Motors has launched My Revolt App. It is available for both apple and android users. Once the app gets synced with your bike, you can explore the many features like swipe right to start the bike, Geo-fencing, and trip info and vehicle condition and order battery from home, etc. The bike comes equipped with 4G enabled SIM which reads data with Internet Of Things device installed in the bike and performs diverse functions. Homepage of the app shows the motorcycle’s parked location with a map guide.
Should you buy? Revolt Intellicorp has introduced a new plan for selling the Revolt Bikes and they call it My Revolt Plan. According to it, you can buy the RV 300 at INR 2,999 per month, RV 400 (base model) at INR 3,499 per month and RV 400 (Premium) at INR 3,999 per month for 37 months. There is No lease concept and No rental plan. There is a fixed value that you have to pay for 37 months and the bike will be yours from day one. The revolt also takes care of insurance and maintenance cost for 3 years or 30,000 KM. The Vehicle warranty period is 5 year/75,000km and battery warranty is 8 Years/ 1.5L km. The battery swap will also be free till 31 Dec 2019.
Revolt is offering a lot with the RV400 and RV300 but the company is new in the market and yet to establish its name and trust. The concept and different selling approach will surely attract lots of customers towards the bike. The bike has the potential to make its way but it has to be seen how it performs over the long period of time.
