Reviews

Hero Photon e-bike review

Smooth ride, awesome pickup, high quality motor ensured that we loved riding this thing!
High charging time, Low top speed undermine an otherwise awesome e-bike.
By Raphae Halim & Farah Halim on June 15, 2015 09:37 am
We @ PluginIndia drove the Hero Electric Photon, a zippy electric bike on Mumbai roads. We just turned the key and the bike was ready to go. No ignition required. So silent you could hear the birds and the leaves rustling in the wind. The humming sound when you turn the accelerator is quite ‘electric’. Our first reaction to it was ‘Wow!’ and to our surprise it delivered, and more. We reviewed the vehicle from a user’s point of view. As far as technical specifications are concerned we did compare it with the Honda Activa.
However when we used it we realized that it had some unique features and other than some basic things like ride quality and ease of use, it was a good idea to just review it for what it is.
Picture
In-hub 1500 Watt BLDC motor
We drove the bike around town for 4 days in various conditions. For a vehicle that has only 65 - 80 Km max range one would only envision short rides around the suburbs and maybe sometimes around town. This is mainly because the charge time of 6 to 8 hours is quite steep and this bike does not have a quick charge feature nor is there any special infrastructure to do it. Owners would have to arrange for electric outlets on their own. Which is ok if we’re on a regular route but quite a bit of uncertainty if visiting a new location. 
Price and Availability
  • Price (Mumbai): ₹ 52,490/- + Octroi + RTO Registration + Insurance.
  • In Mumbai there are only three locations - Mulund, Bhandup, and Thane.
Long Term Ownership
  • Battery Charging: 350 - 400 charge cycles of approx. 65 - 80 Kms ride.
  • After 2 - 3 Yrs battery replacement cost = ₹ 15,000/- to ₹ 18,000/- approx.
  • Service charges including battery rotation every three months = ₹ 500/-(₹ 250/- Fixed Rate + ₹ 250/- Battery Rotation).
  • Service Plan: 12 service in 1000 days. 1st, 2nd and 4th are free services. The other 9 are paid services. They includes complete test of wiring, controllers, disk brakes and battery rotation.
Total 3 year scenario
  • ₹ 52,490/- + ₹ 2,362/- (octroi) + ₹ 1,500/- (insurance) + ₹ 1,500/- (registration) + ₹ 6,000/- (service charges) + ₹ 2,800/- (Electricity cost ₹ 5/- - ₹ 7/- per unit)
  • ₹ 66,652/- for 3 years. No extra petrol and oil costs!
  • Only if the usage is greater than 28,000 Km will the batteries need replacement (350 charge cycles with 80 Km per charge). This will add another ₹ 18,000/- to the cost bringing it up to ₹ 84,652/-
Use Case Scenarios
  • First Ride: Mulund to Santacruz (East). Aim: Pick up and get familiar. Distance: 29.5 Km. Mode: Mixed L (Low) & H (High), mostly H.
  • Second Ride: Night around Santacruz (East). Aim: Check handling in narrow lanes, nearby streets, and slopes. To discharge the battery and check performance on low State-of-Charge (SOC). Distance: 16.5 Km. Mode: H. With pillion rider. Observation: The battery indicator dropped to red. Performance: No significant drop in speed. Charged the vehicle overnight - 6 Hrs to 100% SOC.
  • Third Ride: Santacruz (East) to Nariman Point and back. Aim: Long ride, handling in crowded city streets, incline, decline, battery performance, distance covered with fixed mode of operation. Distance: 54 Km. Mode: L going, & H returning  (Watch Video at the Top)
  • Fourth Ride: Santacruz (East) local travel. Aim: Drop off & Pick up kids, local runabout. Distance: 4 Km. Mode: Mixed, mostly L.
  • Fifth Ride: Santacruz (East) to Mulund. Aim: Drop off bike. Distance: 29.5 Km. Mode: Mixed, mostly H.
  • Total Distance: 133.5 Km.
Picture
At the Iconic Marine Drive road in Mumbai
Picture
Spectacular View of Marine drive from the Hanging Garden hill
So here is our take on the HeroElectric Photon:
Performance : 4 out of 6
What’s Good
  • 0 - 20 Km/hr great pickup. Torque 2.6 Nm @ 1 rpm compared to Activa’s 8.74 Nm @ 5500 rpm. Can definitely take a lead at signals.
    Thanks to the in-hub 1500 Watt     BLDC motor.
  • Easy to manoeuvre. Low centre of gravity as batteries located below seat & storage compartment.
    Enough weight (    111Kg) to hold it’s ground even when a bus or truck passes by at high speed. Good balance and handling.
  • The ride quality, which is the basic feature of any bike, has been taken into account very well by HeroElectric.
  • Accelerates well even when battery discharged below 30% even with three people onboard!!!
What’s Not
  • Low ground clearance of 140 mm compared to 153 mm of Activa. Main stand scrapes high / broad speed breakers.
  • Cannot overtake auto-rickshaws. Top speed: Eco Mode: 30 Kmph, Power Mode: 45 Kmph.
Styling & Controls : 7 out of 11
What’s Good
  • Most people we showed the bike, did not notice at first, but when shown, found the in-hub BLDC motor quite intriguing. The drive is the wheel itself. The only “moving” part.
  • 18 Ltr storage space under the seat and accessory holder in front. 
    Enough weight (    111Kg) to hold it’s ground even when a bus or truck passes by at high speed. Good balance and handling.
  • Bright blue turn indicator light and red horn buttons on the handle. Bright visible brake, & signal lights.
  • Front Telescopic Suspension.
  • Disc Brakes.
  • Horn is loud - Since the vehicle is silent, to get attention of the pedestrians and to get noticed in a noisy traffic environment.
  • Comfortable and well designed seats give the rider the comfort they desire. Smooth leather patch to ease the friction between rider’s thighs and side of seat.
What’s Not
  • Plain jane design, doesn't stand out. No electrifying design.
  • Over all hardware should be improved. Indicator buttons, and Eco / Power mode switch needs to be better. Quality of nuts and bolts too need improvement.
  • When the bike gets stuck in a pothole it doesn’t have the power to come out on it’s own. Need some extra boost power there.
  • Analog battery charge meter shows correct battery usage only while accelerating, goes down to the red mark only after 70% battery consumed. 
    A proper State of Charge (SOC) reading is required.
Efficiency & Range : 2 out of 3
What’s Good
  • Advertised range: Eco Mode: 80kms, Power Mode: 50kms. Achieved range: Eco Mode: 80kms, Power Mode: 65kms
  • We rode 80 Kms to a charge in mixed mode city driving. So if we take the cost of full charge at 1 unit of electricity to be INR 5, the fuel economy is 6.25 Paise per Km.
What’s Not
  • Reduces speed by 5 Kmph on inclines with a pillion rider. Should not have any issues if the slope is less than 8 degrees.
Charging : 3 out of 7
What’s Good
  • 1500W (output) BLDC motor
  • Uses a 5AMP or 15AMP Socket. The charger’s plug fits in any 3 point socket designed for 220-240V.
  • The charger is specially designed to avoid over charging
What’s Not
  • No regenerative breaking.
  • The charger LED shows red when charging, green when charged. If the socket is not fully connected, it still shows green and shuts down. We suggest the charger LED light should be amber if the connection is not well established, to avoid misleading the user.
  • No quick charge, or solar charging.
  • Battery type: Lead Acid Battery VRLA 33AH / 48V. It takes 6 - 7 Hrs to charge.
Extra Features
  • Light Weight Fob with Anti-Theft Alarm.
  • Mobile Charging in the under-seat storage
  • Miniature Circuit Breaker (MCB) switch as an added security system to shut down the e-bike and disable the ignition.
Other Perspectives
  • We spoke to another e-Bike user. He has a HeroElectric Optima. His main concerns were that the accessories and spares should be of better quality, and that the early adopters should not be forgotten once the product takes off. Some benefits should be given to them as well like the 30% government subsidy that is available now.
  • We gave an automobile engineer a test ride and spoke about the experience. The feedback from him was that the company should use better quality buttons. Improve quality and looks. Enclose the wiring within the frame. Enhance the look of the rear wheel as the in-hub BLDC motor deserves more admiration. Best for runabout not for highways. Pillion rider comfortable. Ride quality is perfect. Accelerator grip had a different feel, needs getting used to.
    Technology is great but implementation of the same needs improvement. "Cheap is not always economical".
    Photon is certainly economical, why make it cheap (quality wise) ?
    
The Indian mindset will change once the success stories start coming out. We need to reward the pioneers who have taken the initiative to adopt the future earlier than others.
Customer & Dealer Interview - Video
Final Rating
Thank You!
The PluginIndia review team would like to thank the following people for being very nice and co-operating with us in order to work on this review.
  • Mr Dhanraj Chopra and Mr Nitiraj Chudasama of Hero Electric
  • Mr Himanshu Thakker at Shree Jai Jalaram AutoCrafts, Mulund, Mumbai 

Other Links
Hero Photon Web Site
Hero Photon Feature List
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