The electric two-wheeler segment in India is continuously expanding with newer and newer players entering the market every year. In 2021 alone we saw the entry of electric scooters like – Ola S1, Bounce Infinity E1, and Simple One. Along with these we also saw the foray of Mumbai-based start-up Earth Energy EV into the electric two-wheeler segment. The company had announced that it will launch 3 new EVs in India, and now it’s finally ready with its first product – the Glyde electric scooter. We recently got a chance to briefly test the scooter, and know what it is, and how it rides.
The Glyde range is offered in two options – a low-speed Glyde SX with a top speed of 25 kmph, and a high-speed Glyde SX+, which can go up to 90 kmph. Both are electronically limited. Also, the former doesn’t require a driving licence or registration to ply on Indian roads. The scooters are manufactured locally at Earth Energy EV’s production facility in Vasai, Mumbai, and the company says it was able to achieve 98 per cent of localisation with the Glyde range. In fact, the only parts that are imported are the battery cells and the LCD panel for the instrument cluster. While the cells for the SX+ come from South Korea, the display unit and the cells for the SX trims are imported from China. Everything else has been sourced locally in India.
Visually, you might not call the Glyde an attractive scooter in the conventional sense, however, spend some time with it and it will grow on you. The beefy front apron gets a busy design with bold sculpted lines and a large headlamp unit, which comes with halogen lights. However, when it comes to the build quality, we noticed several panel gaps and exposed wires, while plastic quality was also sub-par.
Having said that the models we rode were pre-production units and Earth Energy EV says the vehicles that will be delivered to customers will have better finishing, however, the plastic quality won’t change. The scooter also gets motorcycle-style indicators upfront, while at the rear the indicators are integrated into the taillight assembly.
The Gylde SX range also comes with a wide seat with nice and supple cushioning, along with a sold grabrail at the back. The scooter comes with 18-litre of under-seat storage capacity, which is decent in size, and while some groceries, a small handbag or a half-face helmet might not be a problem, you won’t be able to fit a full-size helmet here. Believe us, we tried. Also, there’s no under-seat light either. The mirrors are also a tad bit small, but they can be adjusted to get a decent view.
In terms of the features, the scooter comes with a vertically positioned 5-inch LCD instrument display, however, here too we could see that finishing wasn’t proper. The panels were slightly miss-aligned on these test bikes. having said that the display itself is quite decent and offers a host of information like speed, range, riding mode, temperature, battery health and more. You also get a dark mode option along with Bluetooth connectivity, which allows you to pair your phone for notifications and turn-by-turn navigation. All these functions are controlled using the right-side switchgear. Also, for safety purposes, the menus can only be accessed when the scooter is in a stationary position, and the kill switch is engaged.
The scooter also comes with a reverse function, and to engage it all you need to do is long press the starter button. Once the reverse gear is engaged you it will be shown on the display, along with a beeping noise. Single press the power button once more to disengage the reverse mode. The left switchgear has the standard buttons for pass light, high- & low-beam, indicators, and horn.
Suspension duties are handled by telescopic front forks and dual spring-loaded shock-absorbers at the back. Earth Energy also offers a 12-inch alloy wheel up front and a 12-inch steel wheel at the back both shod in 90/90 sector tubeless tyres. The Glyde scooters also come with disc brakes at both ends.
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