By Raphae Halim
Affordable Electric Vans are important to enable small businesses move cargo across the city or for small distances. The Diesel cargo vans used by small businesses nowadays are noisy, emit PM 2.5 pollution and should be electrified ASAP to reduce emissions and reduce our use of imported oil. So we reached out to Kinetic Green, makers of electric cargo vans, asking them to show us their product which could benefit small businesses. They showed us the Kinetic Green, Safar Shakti Star, which we took on a spin.
This is the Kinetic Green Safar Shakti Star electric cargo loader. This made in India product is being sold nationwide in 100+ dealers.
Design
Video : Real Time Ride
As you can see from the video, we loaded around 250 kg dummy load and took the Safar Star on a spin. The quietness of the loader without vibrations was awesome feeling.
After riding this, we really feel disgusted when we see a loud Diesel loader now...
- Kinetic have ensured the width of the Safar Shakti Star is narrower than cargo loaders seen in our roads
- The narrow design is to ensure the vehicle can enter narrow roads to deliver goods
- Some of the wires hanging at the bottom, does not give a good impression
- 55 km range & 110 km range with double battery
- 25 km top speed
- 3.6 kWh Lithium Ion battery pack
- 400 kg payload capacity
- 6.5 kW peak power delivered by the BLDC motor
- 3 hours for a full charge using a 15 Amp socket
Video : Real Time Ride
As you can see from the video, we loaded around 250 kg dummy load and took the Safar Star on a spin. The quietness of the loader without vibrations was awesome feeling.
After riding this, we really feel disgusted when we see a loud Diesel loader now...
Pricing
The company has told us that the Safar Shakti Star costs around Rs 2.2 lakhs which includes Rs 40,000 FAME 2 subsidy. Which is affordable considering the savings they will make from not using oil.
The Battery
The battery pack is mounted at the bottom below the driver seat and can accommodate 2 batteries for extended range. They are providing 3 years warranty. Exicom, the Gurgaon based company, which provided battery for the Okinawa iPraise electric scooter is making batteries in India for Kinetic Green.
Kinetic Green says they have a mobile app, which connects to the battery for state of charge information. They did not show the app when we visited the campus.
They did not disclose the chemistry being used at the time we rode this. Essentially the quality of the battery is something we hardly get information on from these manufacturers but it would be good to know and hopefully if we get this information, we will add it here.
The company has told us that the Safar Shakti Star costs around Rs 2.2 lakhs which includes Rs 40,000 FAME 2 subsidy. Which is affordable considering the savings they will make from not using oil.
The Battery
The battery pack is mounted at the bottom below the driver seat and can accommodate 2 batteries for extended range. They are providing 3 years warranty. Exicom, the Gurgaon based company, which provided battery for the Okinawa iPraise electric scooter is making batteries in India for Kinetic Green.
Kinetic Green says they have a mobile app, which connects to the battery for state of charge information. They did not show the app when we visited the campus.
They did not disclose the chemistry being used at the time we rode this. Essentially the quality of the battery is something we hardly get information on from these manufacturers but it would be good to know and hopefully if we get this information, we will add it here.
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Final Thoughts
This is a great option for small businesses. The fact that Kinetic Green has 100 dealers all over India is a good sign. The company also sells huge number of electric rickshaws.
So they have the experience in making such vehicles. 25 kmph is a limited speed. But for short distance deliveries this is a huge money saver.
Do you own a business? Would you consider an electric cargo loader?
Further Reading
More Electric Cargo Vehicle options