Right now, we seem to be on the verge of a major green mobility revolution in the Indian automotive industry. The Government of India has announced and started making E85 petrol available at select fuel stations. However, if the recent Iran-US peace deal and stability in the Strait of Hormuz are sustained, crude oil prices could potentially fall back to pre-conflict levels. Given such a scenario, should a new car buyer opt for a flex-fuel vehicle, an EV, or a conventional petrol/diesel vehicle from their preferred brand?

autocar.india

•2d

The Orbiter is a sensible electric scooter that focuses on maximising range and practicality, and of the two options, the Orbiter will be the safer bet in the long run. Do bear in mind that the Orbiter's performance is quite mellow, especially in Eco mode, and if your daily commute involves a lot of flyovers or riding in hilly regions, then you will have to use the scooter in City mode as well as keep the throttle pinned. The Ampere Magnus will likely be a bit more affordable, but in the real world, small quality-related niggles are more common than they should be, and after-sales can be patchy depending on your city.One thing to watch with the Orbiter is that the top 3.1kWh variant's price will be over Rs. 1 lakh on-road in your city, so you may have to stretch your budget by a small amount.If stretching your budget is simply not an option and you must have an EV from a reputed brand, choose the Hero Vida VX2 Go 3.4, which should give you enough range and performance.Try to take test rides of the Orbiter and VX2 before you make your decision.

autocar.india

•4d

Since you seem like a leisurely weekend rider who wants to keep the machine for a longer duration and you lean towards off-road riding, we'd recommend you to pick between the 350cc Triumph Scrambler 400X and KTM 390 Enduro R. Of the two, the Triumph bike is the more sensible, practical and daily-use friendly machine while the KTM is the more fun and niche option. The Scrambler's 350cc engine has the better low and mid-range spread of torque but the Enduro's 398cc single is fun when you chase the redlines. While both have off-road capabilities (the Enduro way more so than the Scrambler), they are good fun to use on the road to ride to your favourite twisty bit of tarmac. Some points to bear in mind are that the KTM bike has a super tall 895mm perch and comes with tubed tyres. While there's not much you can do about the seat, you can fit 19/17-in alloy wheels from the Adventure to sort out tubeless tyres for yourself. Coming to the Triumph, since you have mentioned you are from SoBo, you don't have a service centre nearby as of answering this query - authorized service centres are located in Goregaon, Nerul and Thane. There's also a massive price delta between these two and if you aren't looking to spend more, the Triumph is the better option. The best way to decide between them would be to take a comprehensive test ride of both and see which one you like the most. While there is a big price delta between both, since you're using the bike as a leisurely tool and are going to keep it for a long time, make the stretch for the Enduro if you like it. The X-47 (even with its larger battery pack) won't give you a realistic riding range of much more than 220km on a single charge (and this will be in the least powerful Glide riding mode, so performance will be quite gentle). Electric bikes are still quite a nascent market, charging stations are also very rare to find in most places and this is why for your needs, going with a petrol-powered bike makes more sense. Also, kudos to you for keeping the RX alive and using it daily!