Honda Files Patent For Its U-Go electric-scooter In India

The U-Go seems ideal for Honda to kick start its electric journey here in India, but will it?  

The Honda U-Go is a handsome electric scooter currently on sale in China and the Japanese bikemaker has decided to patent its design in India, just like it did with the ADV350 maxi-scooter. We also know that Honda has plans to offer electric two-wheelers in India. Hence, it begs the question, is the U-Go part of Honda’s electrification plan, or is the filing of the patent application standard industry practice?   

The U-Go features sleek, sharp and minimal styling, like a toned-down version of the Simple One. It features a smart-looking LED headlight and DRLs. It also features an LCD digital instrument cluster that displays the basics like speed, odometer, battery usage and range. You also get practical bits like USB charging, anti-theft alarm and a 26-litre under-seat storage as well.

The U-Go is driven by a BLDC hub-mounted motor. In China the motor is rated at both 1200 watt and 800 watt. Powered by a removable 48V 30Ah Lithium-ion battery pack, the scooter’s claimed range is 75km per charge. It can be extended to 130km with dual battery packs. The e-scooter has a modest top speed of 53kmph.

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Patenting designs and names in major markets is a common practice among automakers. Despite the arrival of maxi-scooters from Yamaha and Keeway, Honda, despite having patented its ADV350 scooter in India, has not expressed any desire to enter the niche segment.  

Although Honda has proposed to establish battery swapping stations at HP fuel pumps, it’s unlikely that we will get the Honda U-Go in India anytime soon. That said, the Japanese marque may use this scooter as a platform to test its swappable batteries for the future. In fact, it had started testing its battery swapping tech for its upcoming electric scooter (likely to be called the Honda Activa Electric), last year. 

If an electric scooter is what you’re looking as your next buy, check out the Ather 450X, Ola S1 Pro, Bajaj Chetak and the three new TVS iQube Electric variants.