The more affordable Bajaj Chetak will be launched in India next month and it will help expand the electric scooter’s variant lineup
We recently told you that Bajaj Auto is preparing to launch a new variant of the Chetak next month in India and it has now been leaked online. The highly popular Chetak nameplate was revived years ago as the brand’s first electric vehicle and it has been garnering good sales volumes, courtesy of its expansion in availability across different parts of the country.
With the electric scooter segment getting increasingly competitive, manufacturers are strengthening their respective ranges by adding more affordable variants to adhere to a wide band of consumers and Bajaj will join the party soon with a new entry-level Chetak. Last year, Bajaj introduced a major update to the Chetak series as its range and features list were improved.
Now, the homegrown auto major looks to pump in more volumes by essentially stripping down the existing model in terms of equipment offer to position it aggressively. It lacks alloy wheels and disc brake setup as more affordable steel wheels and drum brakes are employed. A less expensive physical key slot is also part of the package.
The monochrome instrument console returns snubbing the LCD unit and new colour schemes will also be added. The twin open cubby holes (one on each side) are also part of saving costs as they come in place of the lockable glovebox. Bajaj could employ a smaller battery pack as part of cutting costs and its performance numbers could also be reduced.
It is devoid of a hub motor too. Currently, the Bajaj Chetak is retailed in Premium and Urbane trims with the former using a 3.2 kWh battery pack enabling a claimed riding range of 126 km while the Urbane variant is equipped with a 2.9 kWh battery pack, capable of a range of 113 km in the Indian Driving Cycle. The latter could be used in the upcoming variant as well.
The 2024 Bajaj Chetak Urbane is priced at Rs. 1.23 lakh (ex-showroom) and we expect the more affordable variant to cost around Rs. 1.05 lakh (ex-showroom). Bajaj will also launch the “biggest Pulsar ever” – the Pulsar NS400 next month.