The OLA S1 pro has managed to grab my attention. I’ve not faced any of the problems mentioned by people regarding the accidental actuation of the reverse gear or overheating.
The Advent of EVs has thrown a curveball at petrol heads and they have improved to a point where you can no longer ignore them. Especially the OLA S1 pro has managed to grab my attention. All the problems which had plagued the S1 Pro at its launch have been taken out with the OS2 update. I’ve not faced any of the problems mentioned by people regarding The Accidental actuation of the reverse gear or overheating.
If anything, only the sensor for opening the boot failed, but that again gave me an insight into how the after-sale service of Ola works, and I came back impressed because the service was good; they came here they changed the sensor, and I’ve had no problems with it whatsoever.
It has been slowly but surely chipping away at all my skepticism about the problems plaguing it to a point. I 100 prefer this over my Activa, which has served me lordly over the past 20 years without any problem.
Comfortable
What has stood out is how comfortable the S1 Pro is compared to the competition. There are very few Vibes and barely any sound, which I love.
I fit on it just fine. There’s a decent amount of legroom even though the leg board is not flat. Also, the seat is nice and wide and well-padded for the rider and the pillion. In terms of suspension quality, this is the best in business because you have nice, Supple, plush ride quality over broken roads. At the same time, they also hold up nicely at higher speeds and give you really good support under braking.
Performance and Range
8.5-kilowatt motor and 58 Nm torque of Ola S1 Pro are enough to propel you well over 100 kilometers an hour. The S1 Pro inspires confidence thanks to its balance suspension, powerful braking system, and wide back and front tires. This performance is also backed by a really impressive range. Thanks to its 3.97-kilowatt-hour battery pack. Which takes about six and a half hours to charge completely. Then it’s good enough to take you about 130 kilometers in the normal mode and 100 kilometers in the sport mode.
Even more impressive is that you can eke out the same range even when cruising on the highway as high as 70 kilometers an hour. All you have to do is slot it in the cruise control mode. Which can be activated up to 80 kilometers per hour, and let the system do its magic. Adjust the torque accordingly to help you eke out the best range.
When you’re riding around in the city, even with a pillion, you can still extract the same range as long as you’re not going above 45 kilometers an hour. If you have all this power, why not utilize it, right?
So, in that case, when I was riding in the sport mode, and the throttle was at its abusive best, I mean, the range just dropped by another eight odd kilometers, and this was the same case even in the hyper mode, which is the most important which can Propel this up to 116 kilometers an hour and has the best torque delivery when you get on this.
Speed Modes
Even then, the drop in the range was similar, only eight odd kilometers, but after riding around in the city in the hyper mode after 23 kilometers. It switched to the normal mode to prevent the battery pack from overheating. I could only go back and ride in the hyper mode after about 15 minutes. Also worth noting is when you have only about 23 odd kilometers left range, you are forced to ride in the Eco Mode. Which is the least powerful, and you cannot go over 40 kilometers an hour.
Boot Space of Ola S1 Pro
Also, from the Practical front, you get a massive 36-liter boot in Ola S1 Pro which is big enough to swallow most of what you’re carrying in the city other than your full-face EC-approved helmet.
Seat Height and Ground Clearance
The seat height is also approachable at 792 mm despite its solid 165 mm ground clearance. At 125 kg, it’s easy to manage and move around in the parking lot.
Navigation and Music System
The navigation also works well, and you also get speakers to listen to your music on the way, like connecting your phone to the S1 Pro via Bluetooth.
Needs Improvement in Ola S1 Pro
Acceleration
As good as it all sounds, there still needs to be more room for improvement, especially regarding the throttle response. Right now, this has been designed to make this less intimidating. There’s a small delay when you first crack opens the throttle, which presents a unique set of problems because it makes taking quick u-turns a bigger chore and a more carefully planned Affair than it ought to be.
Also, when riding it on an incline, the way this has been designed is that no power goes to the rear wheel if you have your brakes on. You must let go of your brakes completely before transferring the torque. When you’re on an incline, especially with the pillion, and you let go of the brakes and get on the up, the delay is enough for the Ola to start rolling back. Which can be quite scary, so that needs to be looked into.
Tripmeter
Secondly, the most shockingly, the Ola S1 Pro does not have a standard trip meter. Because the current one on this resets after every trip, which can get annoying if you are trying to accurately check out how much distance you have covered and how much range you still have left.
Ola S1 Pro Battery Status
Also, to access important information like how much battery you have consumed and how much the battery pack is heating up, you can only access it in the settings menu. Which is only accessible when you’re stationary and not when you’re on the move. I think these items should always be accessible on the dash.
Buttons of Ola S1 Pro
I also like self-canceling indicators but there are quite a few of these buttons. So, even after a month to switch off the indicator, I still have to look down, which is not the safest thing.
Also, I want Ola to make better use of the region. There’s a big untapped potential to extend the range even more if people choose how many regions they would like to kick in.
I’m excited to see how many of these issues have been resolved or addressed in that OS3 update,because that’s going to play a crucial role, especially with the state subsidies being taken away and the cost of the Ola S1 and S1 Pro getting higher and higher which now costs almost 1.5 lakhs on the road in Maharashtra.
thank you for the info.