Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: Which Ola electric scooter should you buy?

Ola Electric introduced a new entry-level electric scooter, the Ola S1, in India on August 15th. The Ola S1, with a slightly reduced price tag, offers an entry into Ola’s lineup. The Ola S1 retains much of what we know about the Ola S1 Pro. However, it makes some alterations and omissions to keep the prices in check. We pitch the siblings up against each other to see exactly what the differences are.  

Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: price in India

Ola Electric has priced the Ola S1 at Rs 99,999 (ex-showroom before subsidies), thus undercutting the Ola S1 Pro’s Rs 1,39,999 (ex-showroom before subsidies) price tag. The sticker price on the Ola S1, however, is valid for a limited time only as the introductory price is applicable on the first batch of stock. Ola Electric might re-adjust the price on the S1 once the stock evaporates. 

Ola Electric has also introduced a new 5 years warranty program that can extend warranties on both the scooters, and owners can get coverage on the motor, battery and other components. 

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Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: design

The Ola S1 and the Ola S1 Pro are identical to the core when it comes to the design. The length, width and height are 1,859mm, 712mm, and 1,160mm, respectively for both scooters. The wheelbase and ground clearance too are also exactly the same at 1,359mm and 165mm, respectively. However, given the smaller battery, the S1 is 4kg lighter than the Ola S1 Pro. 

That said, both the scooters look modern and futuristic with clean design lines and a unique droid bot-inspired front headlamp cluster. The Ola S1 comes in Jet Black, Porcelain White, Neo Mint, Coral Glam, and Liquid Silver colour options. The Ola S1 Pro gets all the shades on the S1 and some more which include – Matt Black, Jet Black, Midnight Blue, Anthracite Grey, Millenial Pink and Marshmellow. 

Ola Electric has introduced a new Khaki Green colour and is a ‘Freedom Edition’ special that will be sold for a limited duration. Much like the Gerua colour that was introduced earlier, this too is a unique colour option. 

Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: performance

The Ola S1 and Ola S1 Pro are closely matched, and most of the trickery happens with software. The base S1 and the flagship S1 Pro both utilise an Interior Permanent Magnet (IPM) Motor that produces rated power of 5.5kW and peak power of 8.5kW. Both the scooters have been rated at 15 degrees of gradability and will offer decent load carrying capacity. 

However, Ola has electronically limited the top speed on the S1 to 95kmph while the more expensive S1 Pro model pushes up to 116kmph. 

Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: battery and range

The more affordable S1 adopts a smaller and lighter 3kWh battery pack in place of the larger 4kWh battery pack found on the S1 Pro. This results in an ARAI-certified range of 141km for the S1 as compared to the 181km on the Ola S1 Pro. Ola Electric also boasts of a true range of 128km and 160km on the Ola S1 and the Ola S1 Pro, respectively. 

The Ola S1 Pro, given its larger battery size, takes a tad bit more time to charge up via a household socket as it takes about 6 hours and 30 minutes. The smaller battery on the Ola S1 takes about 5 hours to charge, according to the company. 

Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: features

Both the Ola S1 and Ola S1 Pro electric scooters are well equipped. The Ola S1 twins get a 7-inch colour TFT display that runs on MoveOS, Ola’s proprietary vehicle control software. Ola claims that even the base S1 will get future MoveOS updates, including the MoveOS 3.0 that’s expected to debut during Diwali 2022. 

Ola S1 Pro features

The Ola S1 and Ola S1 Pro get features such as navigation, control via a companion app, music playback, reverse mode and more. Ola Electric has, however, reserved the Cruise Control feature for premium S1 Pro. In the future as well, the Indian EV company could reserve some features for the S1 Pro. 

Ola S1 vs Ola S1 Pro: verdict

The Ola S1 twins are competent products, and the S1 Pro model has established itself in the market despite some glaring issues at the beginning of its production run. The S1 and S1 Pro offer a good feature set, practicality, range and power. The S1’s lower price point opens up to a larger audience, especially consumers with lower range requirements. The S1 Pro continues to soldier on with some unique features, colours and better range. Thus, the choice primarily comes down to the individual’s requirements and needs.