This Startup Helps You Convert Your Honda, Suzuki Or Any Other Scooty Into An EV

Starya Mobility holds four patents concerned with different aspects of the technology. The company has also developed an app that helps people keep track of important information about their scooters such as ride history, mileage and power etc.

New Delhi: Innovation is constantly happening in the dynamic world of electric vehicles (EV). Both new startups and legacy companies are making headlines in the space. Starya Mobility is one such startup that made news in the EV industry.

Starya Mobility recently announced raising $2 million (around Rs 16.4 crore) from Ah! Ventures and Exedy Clutch India and others.

The company was incorporated in July 2018 with a vision to make cutting-edge EV technology affordable to all. “Now that’s a good vision to have but then we need to start somewhere. We need to see what exactly is the market or what is the product and How exactly, at least we can start off?!” CEO Ravikumar Jagannath told Benzinga.

Defining The Product

“What we have developed is India’s most powerful truly indigenized, electric propulsion retrofit kit,” Jagannath said. “It’s a kit that has 6-6.5 kilowatt of power at the peak. The scooter can reach a top speed of almost 85 kilometres per hour and has an acceleration of 0 to 40 in 3.6 seconds and gradeability for almost 17 degrees and mileage of at least 75 to 80 kilometres. So, it is one of the best products that there can be.”

“In the highest mode, the blaze mode – as we call it – you can almost get a torque of 185 Newton meters at the wheel. The highest speed that the system can produce on a flat road with a single rider is almost up to 85 kilometres per hour when the battery voltage is about 51 volts. When it is an eco mode on a flat road with a single rider with speeds below 40 kilometres per hour, we have clocked up to 80 kilometres of mileage”, he told Benzinga.

Starya Mobility holds four patents concerned with different aspects of the technology. The company has also developed an app that helps people keep track of important information about their scooters such as ride history, mileage and power etc.

Hurdles They Faced

Even though the idea put forward by Starya Mobility addresses a major problem, it also poses a lot of questions about the possible challenges in terms of regulations and legalities.

“The most important thing is that our kit has been approved by ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India). We are India’s only electric propulsion kit that has been approved by ARAI whose kilowatt rating is about four kilowatts,” Jagannath said.

“Our electric propulsion kit has been designed in such a way that technically it can fit into almost any gearless scooter,” he added saying that barring a few vehicles like the old Bajaj Chetak or the Honda Kinetic, almost all scooters are compatible with the product.”

Now apart from the technical compatibility, there is also a legal compatibility that needs to be figured out. “In other words, ARAI has to approve every model that you want to put on the road today.,” Jagannath adds.

“As of today, the company has Honda Activa approved and every three months from today, the company will be getting another scooter approved by ARAI.”

Jagannath also said that the company plans to have approvals for most scooter models including TVS Jupiter, Honda Dio and Suzuki Access within the next 12 to 15 months.

How To Get You Scooter Converted Into An EV

So, how can a customer get their scooter transitioned into an EV through Starya, what would it cost and how does all of that work? Jagnaath explains the two ways people can get this done currently.

“The first way is that you pay Rs 90,000 and you become the complete owner or for a very limited period, maybe for the first 500,000 customers we also have a plan where we say, give me 40% of the money and buy the battery pack and the charger. The propulsion kit, the Bluetooth logger and the app will be on subscription at one rupee per kilometre for the next 50,000 kilometres.”

This way people will end up paying only for the amount of service they use, just like for electricity or a prepaid mobile phone recharge. Once a customer subscribes to the service, they can recharge their scooter through the app with any amount and then travel for that many kilometres. For example, a Rs 30 recharge will let you travel 30 kilometres.

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