Yamaha’s first electric scooter for India, codenamed as RY01 and based on River Indie, has been captured on camera for the first time in Bengaluru.
We earlier told you that Yamaha is working on its first-ever electric scooter for the Indian market, which will be based on the River Indie. Now, the e-scooter has been spotted testing for the first time in Bengaluru. Being internally codenamed as Yamaha RY01, it is likely to go on sale by the end of 2025 in India. Yamaha’s electric scooter will be produced by River at its factory in Bengaluru. Yamaha RY01 electric scooter will rival Ola S1, Ather Rizta, TVS iQube and Bajaj Chetak in the domestic market.
Going by the spy-images, Yamaha electric scooter will get a radical makeover and different design language as compared to the River Indie. The most prominent styling updates are at the rear with a new tail-lamp cluster which has been positioned quite higher than the Indie. The spy pics further reveal that the side panels get a complete overhaul with a slab-sided appearance.
The front apron too has been redesigned along with the new headlamp unit. It is expected that Yamaha RY01 will not get the luggage mounting bars in the same rectangular shape under the seat as the River Indie. Though, the crash protectors on both sides of the front apron are still visible in spy shots. Since it is based on the Indie, it will share a few elements with it such as 14-inch wheels, swingarm and the fully coloured 6-inch LED screen.
River Indie tips the weighing scale at 143 kg, which is quite heavy in terms of electric scooter. However, it offers the highest under-seat storage space of 43 litres. We expect the Yamaha e-scooter to be a lightweight model with a more conventional appearance. In all likelihood, it will not be presented on Indie’s theme of “SUV of scooters”.
Since it will share the 4 kWh battery pack with River Indie, we can expect a range of somewhere around 100 km in Eco mode on a full charge. The battery will be paired to a mid-mounted 6.7 kW electric motor which will propel the electric scooter to clock a top speed of 90 kmph. Yamaha’s first electric scooter for India will be a premium offering with price around Rs 1.50 lakh (ex-showroom). For reference, River Indie is priced at Rs 1.44 lakh in India.
Despite being manufactured by River, Yamaha will retail the new e-scooter from its network of dealers. Meanwhile, the Japanese two-wheeler brand is also working on its own global platform for electric vehicles and the first scooter based on it is likely to launch in 2026-27. The company is taking inputs for the new EV platform from the R&D teams in various countries, including India.
