Electric mobility has been pre-dominantly crowded by the Chinese, whether you like it or not. Even in India, the number of electric two-wheeler brands is astonishing and more so when you realize the percentage of Chinese imports. The ease of importing these products, rebranding them and offering as an affordable alternative to ICE scooters in India is the simple reason for this influx.
That said there are brands like Ather and Ola that have made it big prompting mainstream manufacturers to launch their electric offerings. Now, we have the Bajaj Chetak and the TVS iQube to choose from. But the highlight is Suzuki’s first electric scooter that was unveiled recently. It has been spotted testing in India on multiple occasions. We even got to see the design patents sometime last year confirming its existence. And now, in a somewhat hush-hush manner, Suzuki has debuted the Burgman electric or the e-Burgman in Japan.
While the brand hasn’t fully revealed details, it is enough to make an impression of what the scooter could be. And since it will undoubtedly make its way to India, let us tell you everything you need to know about it.
Styling
The e-Burgman looks similar to the Burgman Street 125 sold in India. It borrows the same bodywork and styling although with a change in paint scheme that makes it a tad more futuristic.
This includes a white body with blue highlights on the upper and side panels. The electric Burgman also continues to sport the full-LED headlamp, short visor and LED tail lamp. That said, even the step-up seat is the same as the petrol-powered version.
Even most of its dimensions are similar to the Burgman Street. Both scooters have a height of 1140mm and a seat height of 780mm which is accessible even to shorter riders. However, the electric Burgman is slightly wider at 765mm and shorter in length. As compared to the Burgman Street’s 110kg kerb weight, the e-Burgman is also much heavier at 147kg thanks to the electric powertrain.
On the exterior though, the only difference in its styling is at the rear. The section now looks much more open without the exhaust, shorter tail and electric motor.
However, with almost the same dimensions and styling, the e-Burgman is likely to have the same or similar riding ergonomics as the petrol version. Now, the Burgman Street offers a comfortable riding posture providing the rider either a neutral leg position or a stretched out leg position. While it is yet to be seen whether the floorboard space and height is different on the electric Burgman, we can expect it to be no different than the Burgman Street 125.
Performance
A few specs of the scooter have also been revealed. While we expect these to improve with the production version, at present they are anything but impressive. The electric scooter comes with a 4.0kW motor. Now this is slightly smaller than the TVS iQube’s 4.4kW motor but on par with the Bajaj Chetak electric scooter.
But when it comes to rated power, with 0.98 kW on offer the e-Burgman seems like a slump against both its rivals that offer 3-3.8kW of rated power. Having said that, the max torque is rated at 18Nm- which is only a tad lesser than the Chetak’s 20Nm.
Range
However, more surprising is its range. The Suzuki e-Burgman is said to offer just 44km in a single full charge. And that is only possible if the scooter is ridden under 60kmph. Now this output is far from impressive for an electric scooter that is expected to be used for intercity commutes. More so when compared to its petrol-powered sibling that would offer better performance from its 125cc engine.
Even its range is not spectacular when you consider its rivals that offer upwards of 90kms of range in the real world. However, Suzuki is still in the process of testing the electric scooter and we can expect the full-fledged version to offer credible amount of range. It could also be offered in different variants that offer different range just like the TVS iQube- which is yet to be launched in its top-spec ST variant.
Now, the patent images suggested that the e-Burgman would get a fixed battery pack. However, the scooter will use a swappable unit that would enable it to be part of the consortium for standardizing swappable batteries that includes Honda, Kawasaki and Yamaha as well.
Features and hardware
Now, Suzuki hasn’t divulged details of the hardware and features the e-Burgman comes with. But, with the images, we know it comes with telescopic forks and a disc brake at the front which are likely to be the same units as on the petrol-powered version. However, the rear rides on dual-shocks unlike the Burgman Street 125 that uses a monoshock.
And looking at its specs and hardware, we expect it to come with basic features. It could get connectivity as standard along with ride modes and a TFT screen as well. But given that the competition also has slightly more fancy features, Suzuki should up the game with the feature list or come to the table with a list that is on par with the market.
Expected pricing
Now, the Suzuki Burgman Street 125 is priced at Rs 94,672, ex-showroom. On the other hand, the e-Burgman’s direct rivals- the TVS iQube and Bajaj Chetak are priced between Rs 1.11 lakh to Rs 1.25 lakh. With Honda announcing the Activa electric’s debut sometime next year, the e-Burgman is also likely to be launched around the same time. Or if Suzuki plays it well, the electric scooter could be launched even before that. We can expect it to be priced in the ballpark of Rs 1.20- 1.30 lakh, ex-showroom.
So what are your thoughts about the Suzuki E-Burgman? Would you consider buying it or does the Ola S1 Pro, Ather 450 or the TVS iQube seem like a better option right now? We suppose only time will tell…
