Should I buy Piaggio Electric or Mahindra Treo?
Among Electric Vehicles, 2 and 3 wheelers lead the penetration of EV in the country. It is expected to reach 70% adoption by the end of this decade, a recent report by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and KPMG predicts. Since these vehicles' operating cost is much lower than the vehicles with Internal Combustion Engines or ICE, there is a high probability of shifting towards EV, significantly in the business-to-business segment. This segment's growth has been steady despite the current circumstances, with a sale of 1 Lakh 3 wheelers in 2019 alone accounting for a penetration rate of 14.3% in the segment. With major brands releasing new EVs, Piaggio's Ape-E-City and Mahindra's Treo are gaining massive popularity in the E-Autos segment.
Piaggio's Ape-E-City
Ape-E-City is the new and popular leader in the Auto Rickshaw category. Ape has a passenger capacity of a driver and three passengers. It also comes with a 3 year or 1 Lakh km warranty, whichever is earliest. These are the primary specifications and features of the vehicle-
- Advanced Li-ion Batteries
- Zero Emission
- Zero Noise and Vibration
- Blue Vision Headlamps
- Automatic Gearbox
- Waterproof Motor
- Dual-tone interiors and Doors for safety
- Full digital display indicating battery percentage and kilometres covered.
Technical specifications of the vehicle are listed below -
- Lithium-Ion 48V battery
- 4.5 kWh Battery capacity
- 5.4 kW Power and peak Torque of 29Nm
- Top speed of 45 km/h
- Range of 68km per battery swap
Swappable Batteries:
Ape-E-City supports swappable batteries, which is implemented with the help of Sun Mobility. Customers can check the status of their battery location of swap stations through a smartphone app. Users can visit the nearest swap station and exchange their depleted batteries with charged ones within 10 minutes, eliminating the wait time required to charge the battery. The money will be deducted as per usage, and it is estimated to cost around 110 - 130 Rs per battery exchange. This brings the cost of driving to about 2 Rs per Kilometre. Piaggio's Ape-E-City is priced at 1.98 Lakhs.
Mahindra Treo
The first company to introduce an electric Auto Rickshaw in the country, Mahindra launched Treo with a passenger capacity of the driver and more passengers. It also comes with a 36 months warranty. These are the primary specifications and features of the vehicle-
- High Gradeability of 12.7 degrees makes it easy to climb slopes
- Side Doors for Passengers' safety
- Inbuilt rear crash guard
- Noise-less and vibration-free ride experience
Technical specifications of the vehicle are listed below -
Although it will require about 4 hrs to charge the battery, the cost per charge accounts for around 65 Rs. Due to this, the cost per km significantly decreases to 50 paise per km. Mahindra Treo is priced at 2.22 Lakhs.
Our Choice
Two major factors influence the decision-making process. Piaggio's swappable batteries play an essential role. It eliminates the waiting time required to charge the batteries but increases the cost of driving, and offers a low range compared to Mahindra's Treo. Treo does offer a lower cost of driving, and a better driving range does help with the waiting period required for charging. If the users want to opt for a faster swap and minimal waiting period, Ape proves to be a better option, and for a better range, Treo fulfils the role.
