Hero eMaestro: All You Need To Know

Hero will soon launch an electric scooter based on the Maestro Edge. Here’s all the dope on it

Hero MotoCorp showcased its upcoming electric scooter, the eMaestro, at the 2020 Hero World. It gets the petrol-powered Maestro Edge’s bodywork and some of its underpinnings but uses an electric powerplant. Here’s all you need to know about the upcoming eMaestro. 

It gets distinctive styling:

The Hero eMaestro gets the same bodywork as the petrol-powered Maestro Edge. However, it stands out from its ICE-powered sibling thanks to the use of a new headlamp, a white paint job and copper coloured wheels, front suspension and transmission case. 

It gets new-age features:

The eMaestro gets an LED headlamp and a full digital instrument console. Other features include keyless entry and cloud connectivity. Given that Hero MotoCorp owns a large stake in Bangalore-based electric startup Ather Energy, we expect the eMaestro to get quite a few features from the Ather 450X electric scooter. 

It gets a powerful electric motor:

Hero has not released the electric motor or battery specs but has mentioned that the eMaestro will get a powerful permanent magnet motor. Interestingly, the Ather 450X also uses a permanent magnet synchronous motor so it is possible that both electric scooters could share the same electric powertrain and lithium-ion battery pack. The Ather 450X’s electric motor delivers 6kW of peak power and 26Nm of torque with a range of 85km. Hero could tune the eMaestro to deliver slightly less performance for better range. It gets a reverse gear too. 

It gets old-school scooter shift mechanism:

The eMaestro gets a left handlebar twist grip to switch between Drive, Neutral and Reverse. It is similar to the gear shift mechanism on old-school scooters such as the Bajaj Chetak and Vespas but a lot less clunky. 

Underpinnings are similar to Maestro Edge:

While the eMaestro will have a modified frame to accommodate the battery pack and electric motor,  it uses the Maestro Edge’s telescopic fork and monoshock suspension. Even the 12-inch front and 10-inch rear wheels have been carried over as have drum brakes on both ends. The eMaestro could come equipped with CBS and low rolling resistance tyres. 

Expected pricing and launch date:

Given that the prototype showcased was in the final stages of testing, we expect Hero to launch the eMaestro by August-September this year. Hero has a penchant for pricing its models lower than the competition and we believe the eMaestro will be priced around Rs 1 lakh to undercut its direct competitors, the Bajaj Chetak (Rs 1 lakh - Rs 1.15 lakh) and TVS iQube (Rs 1.15 lakh).

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