Ultraviolette F77 review, road test

There’s nothing quite like the Ultraviolette F77 in India today. Its top speed isn’t much higher than a Yamaha R15 or a KTM RC 200, but its roll-on acceleration numbers can put some much larger, multi-cylinder bikes to shame. Then again, at Rs 4.55 lakh (ex-showroom, Bengaluru), the F77 commands a rather hefty asking price. To figure out where the F77 slots in, we’ve put it through its paces in the real world.

Wherever it goes, I’ve noticed bystanders taking an interest in the F77 and asking me what it is. Those interesting ‘winglets’ you see on the sides serve two purposes – to redirect cool air towards the battery pack and motor, and serve as crash protectors. The edgy mirrors aren’t very functional and to adjust them you need to push the lenses themselves as the stalk stays in place.

Fixed mirrors look cool, but could stand to gain more practicality.

While quality levels are pleasing all over, the charging port’s flap is quite flimsy and could stand to be sturdier. The 5-inch TFT dash is well-laid-out and it almost feels like it’s out of a ‘90s arcade game. While the dash is ready to support Bluetooth connectivity, Ultraviolette’s app isn’t functional, which means we can’t say how well the system works, although we have been told it is in the final stages of development.

Dash is well-laid-out and has a very video-gamey feel about it.

There’s also a blank tell-tale light with the traction control symbol on the dash, with the company telling us that it will be incorporated into future models. The optional Rs 26,650 Boost charger we got can be strapped to the rear seat via an integrated mounting system, although this is only for charging, and Ultraviolette doesn’t want you to ride with the heavy charger strapped to the seat. The boost charger can top up the F77’s 10.3kWh battery at 75km per hour or around four hours from zero to full. The regular charger doubles that time, but the boost charger weighs around 7.5kg, which makes lugging it around a hassle.

Boost charger is heavy and pricey, but it halves the charging speed.

The ergonomics are a mixed bag for me because, at 5ft 11in, I have no complaint with the legroom on offer, but my upper body is positioned in line with a committed sportsbike. While this is great for when you want to turn up the pace, using the bike in any other scenario is uncomfortable. More forgiving ergonomics would help in improving the rider’s comfort quite a bit. The seat also split opinions and while I found it fine, others thought it was too firm.

Suspension strikes a good balance between comfort and sportiness.

For such a committed machine, the preload adjustable suspension units at both ends are surprisingly well-damped without robbing you of feel or poise when you turn up the pace. The new MRF Steel Brace rubber (a Metzeler M5 lookalike) is grippy and suits the bike very well.

New MRF Steel Brace tyres give you loads of confidence to push.

At 207kg, this top-spec F77 Recon weighs more than every 1,000cc superbike and there’s no hiding from that in low-speed scenarios.

Happily though, soon as the pace rises, the weight no longer becomes a concern. What will dissuade you from speeding up, especially on our poor roads, are the brakes. Bite is adequate, but on quite a few occasions, the front brake lever would go stiff with the ABS kicking in when I would clamp down hard. 

Braking performance is adequate, but the ABS is a little intrusive.

When you put the bike in its top Ballistic mode, the fun that can be had with its energetic acceleration is very addictive. To give you an idea of just how quick the bike was, in our roll-on acceleration tests, the F77’s figures were more or less in line with the Kawasaki Z650RS! This isn’t entirely surprising when you factor in the 95Nm torque figure, which is more than the Street Triple 765, for reference.

Winglets serve to cool the battery, motor and act as crash protectors.

While acceleration from a dead stop is a little sluggish (UV has purposely done this to make the bike less intimidating), once you cross the 20kph mark and twist the throttle, it takes you merely a handful of seconds to cross the 80kph mark. After this point, acceleration trails off dramatically  as you cross the 100kph and 120kph thresholds. While the 145kph electronically capped top speed is nothing special, the awesome roll-on acceleration makes this bike a thrill like no other in the city. The F77’s huge 10.3kWh battery meant that this was the first two-wheeler where we adopted the car team’s methodology for range testing. We ran it from 100 percent to 50 percent SOC while logging the odo at every 5 percent SOC drop.

Tactile and intuitive switchgear is borrowed from the TVS RR 310.

This was done in the lowest Glide mode over a combined cycle, including fast-flowing roads as well as congested traffic, simulating both city and highway conditions. Extrapolating the data, we arrived at a range figure of 221km on a full charge.

In Glide mode, acceleration is quite neutered, but even so, we were able to manage a speedo-indicated 92kph, although acceleration after 80kph was very sluggish. I also noticed that when climbing a flyover, if my speed was above 75kph, it would drop by a couple of kph, but once I was back on a flat surface, it would climb back up again. Still, Glide mode is perfectly usable in the big city, but with a bike like this, you want to spend all your time in Ballistic mode. Doing so will have the range drop far more significantly and you’d get closer to 150km of range if you ride flat out all the time.

We’ll list out the things we felt have room for improvement first. The ergonomics are too racy, the brakes could do with more power, there’s a bit too much plastic on the bike – although the quality in most places is not an issue. The boost charger is also heavy and quite pricey, but it’s something you’ll need if you plan to take on the significant commitment of touring on an F77.

However, there are a lot of reasons to applaud the F77 as well. Its acceleration is very intoxicating, and there were absolutely no electronic glitches, which is shockingly rare from an EV start-up. The 200km+ range means you can take it for a short weekend ride, which is how most sportbike owners tend to use their bikes. There’s no denying the fact that at Rs 4.55 lakh, the F77 Recon is a highly pricey proposition with a very limited dealership reach across India right now. But, if this is a first taste of what direction electric mobility will take, sign me up.