In a market filled with electric scooters from various brands, it’s easy to miss the good ones. Many often ask which is a good electric scooter to buy, and I have recommended so many, but one scooter I’ve personally wanted to recommend is the River Indie. However, having not ridden it extensively, I was worried about the size, as it may be too big for many. Now, my opinion has changed.
Having ridden the Indie for over a month and putting in some serious kilometres, the scooter has grown on me, and here’s what I think the Indie is, and who the scooter is for.
River Indie review: Living with it
The River Indie reminds me of my Indie, Nia, who has a lot of traits. The scooter is large, but once it gets rolling, the bulk vanishes. The ergonomics are superb, and the rider triangle is comfortable. The large seat offers a lot of room to move around, and so does the floorboard.
The option of having footpegs – although intended to be used if carrying any load in the floorboard – is a boon, as the legs are not cramped in one position. During my time with the Indie, I did commutes, office and back, a lot of running around for chores, and did every possible thing a human would with a scooter, apart from carrying water cans and gas cylinders, of course, and the Indie took it in its stride well.
Charging was another aspect to mention, as it takes four and a half hours to charge fully, and that’s quick compared to many EVs out there. Accessing the charging flap is a bit tricky, as the front storage unit needs to be open to access the flap release, but this is something one would get used to. This also avoids the flap from opening every time the door is touched.
River Indie review: The ride
This is where the Indie shines. The ride and handling are the closest you get to a motorcycle. The large 14-inch wheels and chunky tyres offer a load of confidence, and in the pothole-ridden roads of Bangalore, where most (nearly all) scooters slow down, the Indie just glides over like an adventure bike.
Show the Indie some corners, and it eagerly diven in, offering a lot of confidence. There were times I scraped the centre stand around corners without even realising how much lean angle I was able to get from an electric scooter.
Next is the performance, and the Indie has a lot of it. The 4kWh battery pack delivers 9bhp and a top speed of 90kmph. This sounds in line with all other EVs on sale; however, it is the way the power is delivered that makes it interesting. Unlike other scooters, the large wheels and suspension setup soak up the bumps so well that one hardly has to slow down, and that 9bhp of power can be carried constantly without slowing down.
The River Indie gets three ride modes: Eco, Ride, and Rush. I hardly used the Eco mode, and sparingly used the Rush mode. I was on Ride mode, and the performance I got was more than enough, and I consistently got over 80km range. This was plenty of range for my day-to-day usage.
River Indie review: Will I recommend it?
Yes! The Indie may not have a fancy touchscreen TFT dash, a speaker system, or phone connectivity. The Indie’s design may not appeal to many. The Indie is not a compact scooter either. However, all these are of no point when a vehicle doesn’t do its primary job: run.
The Indie never missed a beat, and all it needed was to be charged. The instrument cluster did not have any bugs, and there were no distractions for the rider. The scooter offers a large boot space, a phone charging port, built-in protection, a ton of accessories to go with it, and is just built well. The Indie is versatile as an Indie, and no one can go wrong.
