Vida VX2

Just 6 months back, Hero launched the updated V2 lineup of Vida electric scooters which improved upon the V1 with better range and performance. The VX2 takes the same formula but makes it more accessible. The battery as a service package helps drop the outright purchase cost of the scooter less than of the traditional petrol scooters and makes EVs more accessible. Plus the removable batteries can be charged at your home or office like your smartphone to eliminate the charging discussion once and for all. 

I have ridden all of the electric family scooters on sale in India and was excited to try Hero’s take on an affordable e-scooter. So can this be the first EV for your family which you can buy without any hesitation? Let's find out 

Vida VX2 Design

The Vida VX2 looks very cool and funky, and we got to ride the 3.4kWh variant. The design is quite sober and simple, yet it manages to look modern and young. This is achieved by striking the right balance between a sober and simple design - and very vibrant color options and modern design elements like LED details in headlamps and taillamps. It looks premium. 

Vida VX2 Colours

There are 7 colour options to choose from - all of which look good. These are Nexus Blue, Metallic Grey, Matte White, Autumn Orange, Matte Lime, Pearl Black and Pearl Red. Among these, the Metallic Grey comes with contrast orange accents and looks quite sporty. But my personal favorite is the Pearl Red as it makes the scooter stand out in a crowd quite easily. 

Vida VX2 Wheels

The 12-inch alloy wheels on both ends come with machine-finished elements which look stylish. The tyres too are wide and suit the overall profile of the scooter. 

Vida VX2 Build Quality

But then comes the rest of the scooter. Its quality starts feeling very average. There are uneven gaps in the panels, the switchgear makes the whole panel move and the key is especially low quality and feels quite cheap. While the scooter looks premium, getting up close tells a different story. 

Vida VX2 Safety Features

The Vida VX2 gets a disc brake at the front and while there is no ABS, it does get a combi braking system which applies a front brake in tandem with the rear brake to ensure optimal stopping power. The mobile application also allows you to have geo-fencing and remote immobilization. 

Vida VX2 Convenience Features

The scooter also comes with a 4.3-inch colour TFT display in the top variant. The lower Go variant gets an LCD display of the same size. The TFT display looks good and the information is clearly visible with large fonts, and the colors also make reading the display in direct sunlight easier. Pairing the phone gets you features like call and SMS alerts, turn-by-turn navigation and audio controls via the switchgear. 

Storage And Practicality

Underseat Storage

The 27.2-litre underseat storage is a bit disappointing. We have seen electric scooters with massive boots but because the Vida has the removable batteries, the space is compromised. Even a regular-sized backpack will have difficulty sitting in and you will have to store individual items or pack them on smaller packets. 

Vida VX2 Frunk

The front storage is quite handy. A lot of stuff fits easily here and because it's deep, you dont have to worry much about it getting thrown out on a bump. There is also a dedicated place to keep a phone with the USB charger just above it to make things more convenient. I just wish that it was a covered storage so the items remained safer. 

Vida VX2 Floorboard Space

There is enough space on the floorboard. You can easily accommodate smaller suitcases and bags there and there will still be space left for your feet on the side. 

Rider Comfort

The Vida VX2 remains accessible to most members of the family. I am 5’7” and could easily get my feel to the ground. The seat height is kept low which means even shorter riders will feel confident on the scooter. And while the weight of this scooter is on the higher side, it doesn't feel heavy at all, especially while riding. And when it comes to parking - the convenient park mode with both front and reverse modes makes it easy to get out of tricky spots without a physical workout. And then comes its floorboard positioning, which is at a good height for shorter riders. But if you are taller than me, about 6 feet, then the handlebar will touch your knees while taking a u-turns.

Pillion Comfort

Here - things are not as straightforward as they were for the rider. The seat cushioning is good and firm and it is fairly long and spacious as well. However, this seat is a little narrower at the back which makes the pillion move around a bit. And especially when this scooter is running, the suspension at the back moves a lot in comparison to the front one because of which the pillion keeps moving constantly. This makes the journey uncomfortable for your plus 1. 

The Vida VX2 comes with a 6kW motor which feels peppy to ride. It offers enough power to make quick overtakes and make your daily commutes fun. The bigger advantage however is that the power delivery is quite smooth which makes it very usable for everyone in the family. 

City Performance

Technically, there are three ride modes in the Vida VX2. The most economical one is Eco, then City and finally Sport. The acceleration in Eco is smooth and a little laid back. But it is not so slow that it becomes a problem riding it in the City. In fact you can happily ride it in eco for your daily commutes. But the speed here is limited to 45kmph which can make overtakes difficult - but there isa fix for that which we will get to a bit later. 

Then comes the City mode in which the limit is removed and the scooter can reach a higher speed enough for overtakes. The acceleration is quicker which makes it suited to even the more rapid runs in the city. Finally comes the Sport mode in which the acceleration is fast and it is fun to ride. The performance is exciting and I did not need any more acceleration even while making quick overtakes. So whatever your mood is, or depending on which member of your family is riding it, this scooter can adapt itself. All three of its riding modes are very usable. 

And then - there is a Boost mode. This mode does not give the scooter more power, but auto switches the mode to sport when you need more performance. Let's say you are in Eco and you have to overtake someone quickly - so you open the throttle more aggressively. If the Boost mode is on, the scooter will automatically switch to Sport mode and allow you to have quicker acceleration and a higher top speed. When you close the throttle, the scooter will revert back to the Eco mode. This makes your overtaking and city rides more effortless.

Highway Performance

The 3.4kWh variant gets a claimed top speed of 80kmph, while the 4.4kWh variant reaches 90kmph. It lets you get onto the highway and cruise safely. The acceleration remains brisk even at higher speeds and you won't feel unsafe among faster moving traffic. But this will deplete the range quite rapidly. 

Range

The Vida VX2 Plus comes in two variants 3.4kWh and 4.4kWh which gives IDC (Indian Driving Conditions) claimed range of 146km and 187km, respectively.
If you are going to ride the 3.4kWh variant  in a mix of all modes, then it will give you a range of around 80km. If you run it in Eco mode, then it will run up to 100km. And if you are going to run it in Sport mode, then it will give you a range of around 60-65km. 

Charge Time

The Vida VX2 offers multiple charging options. The most convenient of which is the removable battery setup. The scooter comes with 2 removable batteries which, with the on-board charger, can be charged from any plug point. You can carry these approx 10kg batteries up to your flat or office and charge them like you charge your smartphone - which is going to solve the charging problem for almost everyone. Charging both batteries can take up to 6 hours. And of course, there is fast charging which can charge the scooter fully in just 2 hours. 

Charging the 3.4kWh battery pack 3 hours and 33 minutes to charge from 20% to 80% which drops down to 62 minutes through a fast charger. Whereas the 4.4kWh battery pack takes 2 hours 28 minutes to charge 20 to 80%, and through fast charging it can be done within 65 minutes.

With the onboard charger, you can also plug the scooter to charge via a plug point without having to take the batteries out as well. 

City Handling

The Hero Vida VX2 feels very stable. At city speeds, I felt that maneuvering it is easy and inspires confidence. It is quick to change direction in traffic and that combined with its peppy performance makes passing traffic easy. 

Highway Handling

Even close to its top speed of 80kmph, the VX2 feels very stable and confident. It easily at 80kmph and even with fast moving traffic around - remains composed. 

Brakes
The front disc brake is well tuned and offers ample stopping power. Even the combi-braking system works well and if you are in the habit of pulling the rear brakes first - it ensures that the font is also engaged which helps reduce stopping distance. 

Ride Quality

If you are riding the VX2, things are comfortable. The front suspension is a bit soft so it absorbs the potholes well. But the rear suspension is a little stiff - to balance the weight of the batteries. Hence, the pillion feels the road surface more. When you are going over a speed breaker at normal speed, then it will not bother the rider at all. However, the pillion will feel more movement and while it wont hurt, there will be a constant movement which will tire you. 

The Vida VX2 is a good electric scooter which makes a lot of sense for everyone. My favourite part is its charging convenience with the removable batteries which you can take home or an office and charge like a smartphone. On top of that, it also offers an excellent balance. The looks offer a good mix of funky and sober design, it also has good features, it's comfortable and the performance is very smooth. 

But there are some things that should have been better. First of all, its quality is disappointing and the key is bad. Then the under seat storage should have been better and the pillion comfort is also average. But these things don't cause a big enough issue and won't trouble you in everyday life. 

And finally, this whole package is very affordable. Even without BaaS, the price of VX2 can justify this package very well. And whether you buy it under BaaS or not, having it as an option has surely made the electric scooter more accessible to the masses. 

Price And Variants

The VX2 is offered in two variants - Go and Plus. The Go variants had 3 sub-variants– 3.4kWh, 2.2 kWh RQ and 2.2kWh. And the Plus variant also has 2 sub-variants– 3.4kWh and 4.4kWh. 

Price Table

(all prices are ex-showroom)

But you can also buy the VX2 with the Battery as a Service or BaaS. To put it simply, this means that you don't have to pay the cost of the battery while buying an upfront scooter and you can pay for them later as a variable EMI depending on how much you ride the scooter. This means that the purchase cost of the scooter becomes less by a big margin. With BaaS, the Vida VX2 Go can be yours for about Rs 55,000 and the top variant will cost you Rs 65,000.

The most logical plan according to me is the three year plan. For this, you will have to pay roughly Rs 20,000 per year but the good thing is that you don't have to pay it all at once. You can pay it quarterly or half yearly. But there are two things to keep in mind. 

Firstly, the running cost of the scooter becomes Rs 1 per kilometer. While this sounds good and seems less, the running cost of a regular electric scooter is between Rs. 0.25 to 0.50. Which will also be the running cost of the Vida VX2 if bought without BaaS. So this will work at double the running cost. The second thing is that if you are paying Rs. 20,000 for three years, then it becomes Rs 60,000. This means that you have covered the total cost of purchasing the scooter within three years. But yes, because it is expensive to ride, you will end up paying extra. Note that the prices are as per what they were at the time of writing.

But don't be disheartened because Hero is offering some benefits exclusively to BaaS customers. They have three advantages.

The main rivals for the Vida VX2 are the Bajaj Chetak, Ather Rizta and the TVS iQube. All of these e-scooters offer more underseat storage, features and performance than the Vida. However, the Vida manages to offer good range and a very convenient charging solution with removable batteries that the other two don't. If you can’t charge the scooter in your parking and want an easy purchase option, the Vida VX2 with its BaaS option is definitely something you should consider. 

Here is how the Vida VX2 competes with the Ather Rizta in images.