Upon launch of the upcoming Hero Vida electric scooter from Hero MotoCorp, it will take on the likes of Bajaj Chetak and TVS iQube
After months of anticipation, Hero MotoCorp had announced the launch of a new subsidiary brand called Vida which will handle all operations in the electric vehicle (EV) space. The company’s entry into electric mobility had been discussed extensively over the last few months.
There were also questions regarding what brand name the bikemaker adopts for its EV business since rights for the ‘Hero’ brand are exclusively held by the Naveen Munjal-led firm Hero Electric. By opting for the brand name ‘Vida’, Hero MotoCorp has avoided all legal tangles and should now be able to focus solely on product development.
Hero Vida Electric Scooter Delayed
The first model to come out of this new Vida brand will be an electric scooter which was earlier teased in August last year during the company’s 10th anniversary celebration. This electric scooter was planned for launch on 1st July 2022, which is also the birth anniversary of Dr. Brijmohan Lall, Chairman Emeritus of Hero MotoCorp. But that is not going to be the case now. As per the latest update from Hero MotoCorp, launch has been delayed to festive season 2022.
Mr. Swadesh Srivastava, Head of Emerging Mobility Business Unit (EMBU), said, “In line with our philosophy of providing the highest quality products to our customers, we remain committed to bringing the best of Electric Vehicles (EVs) for our customers across the globe. The ongoing geopolitical situation has resulted in enormous supply chain issues and shortage of various components, including semiconductors. Keeping customers as the top-most priority, we, therefore, feel it would be prudent to unveil the first EV product around the upcoming festive period instead of July as earlier announced. We are accordingly gearing up for the launch of VIDA – Powered by Hero – in the festive season.”
It is worth mentioning that the two-wheeler giant filed multiple trademarks for the name ‘Vida’ back in November last year. These included trademarks like Vida Electric, Vida Mobility, Vida EV, Vida MotoCorp, Vida Scooters, and Vida Motorcycles. Production of the upcoming e-scooter and other battery-powered models will be carried out at Hero’s new manufacturing plant in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh.
Significance Of the name ‘Vida’
Deliveries of the electric scooter are expected to begin post launch. During the unveiling of the brand’s logo and the ‘sunrise’ visual identity of Vida, Dr. Pawan Munjal, Chairman & CEO, Hero MotoCorp, gave some insights about the brand name. He revealed that Vida means life, and the brand’s sole purpose is to create a positive impact on the world and move us all forward in meaningful ways.
On this occasion, Hero MotoCorp also rolled out a US$100 Million Global Sustainability Fund. This fund will aim to establish global partnerships, spearheaded by the BML Munjal University (BMU) and Hero MotoCorp, with the objective of nurturing more than 10,000 entrepreneurs on ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) solutions that have a positive impact on the planet.
Expected Details of Upcoming E-scooter
Hero MotoCorp has been tight-lipped about details of the upcoming electric scooter, however, an earlier teaser shed some light on it. The e-scooter sports a conventional underbone design and stands on 12-inch front and 10-inch rear black alloy wheels. It also didn’t feature a hub-mounted motor which means it could be powered by a mid-ship mounted electric motor with a belt drive.
While the launch of the scooter is delayed, by the time deliveries start later this year, there would be enough charging stations set up at Bharat Petroleum pumps in most of the major cities. Given the nature of Hero MotoCorp’s business, we expect the upcoming electric scooter to be priced aggressively around Rs 1.5 lakh, ex-sh.
Source: Bike - rushlane.com
