Kinetic Green E Luna

First launched in the 1970s, the original Kinetic Luna was an iconic moped of its time. It was looked at as an aspiration by many and became the common man’s best friend to travel from point A to B, even along with a lot of luggage. Few also used it to increase their business' reach by using it to transport smaller goods and sell it in other towns, cities and villages. Sadly, the Luna was discontinued in the year 2000. But now, the iconic Luna has returned in an electric Avatar. We got a chance to review it and here’s how it turned out to be.

The Kinetic E-Luna retains the same silhouette as the original Luna moped. The E-Luna has a minimalist and practical design. Even though the design is simple and straightforward, the E-Luna looks good. The square headlight cowl houses a round headlight and there is a tube which is part of the frame and is the only coloured part of the body. It only has functional parts and doesn’t have any plastic fairing, for looks.

The E-Luna is equipped with a 1.2kW motor providing a 50kmph top speed. The electric moped feels a bit underpowered and has a slow acceleration. But after reaching above 45kmph, the moped holds the speed quite well.

However, it shines when carrying heavy loads or while riding with a pillion. In our test, the E-moped easily carried a well-built pillion of around 80kg without any issue. It doesn’t feel quick with a pillion, but doesn’t struggle to ride either. It has a decent performance as a multi-utility electric vehicle. It can easily be ridden around the city and can handle last-mile deliveries. 

The E-Luna now comes in two different variants: X1 and X2. The X1 has a 1.7kWh lithium-ion battery pack and claims to deliver a range of 90km. The X2 variant, on the other hand, gets a 2kWh battery pack, promising a range of 110km. In our test, the X1 variant delivered a range of 54.8km on a single charge, riding with a mix of riding solo and with a pillion.

The suspension on the E-Luna is set on the firmer side and is developed for carrying loads. That’s why when riding solo, you may feel a few bumps and undulations. However, while carrying loads or when riding with a pillion, the suspension works better than when riding solo. But, it is also worth noting that the suspension may bottom out if loaded with more than 150kg payload.

At 96kg, the E-Luna is a lightweight vehicle and also has a slim and sleek body. This helps to make it very agile and easy to maneuver on the city streets. Being a good-handling moped, it rides through traffic pretty easily. The 16-inch spoke wheels on both ends are wrapped with TVS Eurogrip tyres, which provide good grip and also inspire confidence, even on wet roads. 

The drum brakes on both ends are equipped with a combined braking system (CBS) and do the job of stopping the E-Luna decently, but could have been better. And you need to rely more on the rear brake than the front.

The Kinetic E-Luna has a well-padded and spacious split-seat setup. The seat doesn’t feel too hard or too soft and the E-Luna can be ridden the whole day without the rider getting uncomfortable or feeling any pain. The E-Luna offers a neutral and comfortable riding posture, thanks to its easy-to-grab handlebar and mid-set footpegs. The pillion seat is also comfortable and roomy, but riding with a pillion for long distances can get uncomfortable for the pillion.

The Kinetic E-Luna is equipped with a small but easy-to-read LCD instrument cluster, which displays all the important details including the speed, distance travelled, battery, and range DTE (distance to empty) readings. However, the range shown isn’t very accurate. The battery level indicator uses bars instead of percentage, this fails to provide you with a proper idea of how much charge is left. This also increases range anxiety as the battery bars drop down rather quickly from full to 50 percent and then the last few bars deplete more slowly.

The utilitarian features of the E-Luna include a luggage hook on the floorboard area and a removable pillion seat. The pillion seat can easily be taken off by unscrewing a few bolts and then you have a large area at the back to mount luggage like boxes, bags etc. However, the E-Luna doesn’t have an underseat storage space, which could be a deal breaker for some people.

The Kinetic E-Luna is an interesting electric two-wheeler. It may not be for everyone, but can be the perfect vehicle for those with small businesses and someone who is involved in home delivery, courier or similar stuff. Because it can easily transport a decent amount of goods and luggage. So, if you are someone who needs an electric two-wheeler for a similar use case, then the E-Luna can be the perfect EV for you.