This Funky Electric Scooter Can Do 96kmph!

Electric scooters have an undeserved reputation for being slow and boring, but British manufacturer Zapp is aiming to change that with its new i300 e-scooter. The Zapp certainly lives up to its name - 0-70kmph in just 4.1 seconds and on to an electronically-limited top speed of 96kmph courtesy of a 14kW permanent magnet motor. Zapp claims that the i300 has performance comparable to a 300cc scooter and on the basis of these numbers, we’re inclined to believe it.

The motor draws its juice from two 5cm thick removable 1.25kWh battery packs weighing just 5kg each and housed in the floorboard. These allow the i300 a range of 60-90km in Eco mode. When they run out, a standard three-pin plug can be used to charge up both batteries to full in less than four hours. So far so good, but the unconventional design doesn’t seem to have any sort of underseat storage space, right?

Well, Zapp has got you covered. It offers a hard luggage bin that can accommodate a spare battery or two open-face helmets. There is also the option of a ‘luggage shelf’ onto which riders can attach their backpack. In terms of underpinnings, the 31mm USD fork and monoshock get preload-adjustability. The 250mm front disc is bitten by a four-piston caliper and assisted by a 190mm rear disc in bringing the i300 to a halt. Single-channel ABS is standard.

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The oddball design is functional too. The chassis is comprised of two single-piece members made from aerospace-grade aluminium and Zapp claims to have aerodynamically tested the i300 as well. It even gets a colour TFT display, 14-inch alloy wheels and low profile tyres.

The emergence of multiple genres within the electric segment is an indication of just how rapidly the market is growing. While the choice of e-scooters was once limited to dreary, slow urban commuters, we can now pick between city runabouts, performance oriented sporty e-scooters and even some that are aimed at going off-road. Unfortunately, while the Zapp is a very interesting product, there is no chance of it coming to India. The i300 sells for €6300 in Europe, which works out to around Rs 5.02 lakh excluding import duties and local taxes. The closest e-scooter we have in terms of performance is the Ather 450 priced at Rs 1.18 lakh (ex-showroom).