Brand-new Ather 450S in the service centre before delivery. Extremely disappointed. What would you do?
Honestly, I'm extremely frustrated and disappointed.
Buying a new scooter was supposed to be an exciting experience. I completed 100% payment, and the showroom got the scooter registered in my name. Instead of taking delivery of my brand-new scooter, I've spent the last week repeatedly calling the dealership and customer care, chasing updates on a scooter that I haven't even taken home yet.
On my scheduled delivery day (28 June), the sales executive unboxed my assigned portable charger for the first time in front of me. When it was plugged into the scooter, it displayed "Setting Up" → "Not Connected" and refused to charge.
The showroom staff first told me it was because of "Optimised Charging." I immediately pointed out that Optimised Charging is available on the 450X, not the 450S.
Instead of fixing the issue before delivery, I was asked to take the scooter home anyway. I was told that once I rode it and the battery percentage dropped, it would start charging automatically. I simply wasn't comfortable accepting a brand-new scooter with a charging issue, so I refused delivery.
After that, things only got worse.
Over the next few days, I kept calling the dealership. More than once, I was told that the scooter was ready for delivery, only to later receive another call saying the delivery had been postponed because the scooter had been moved to the service centre.
Then I was asked to accept delivery using a different charger and bring my brand-new scooter back to the showroom myself or service centre after a few days so they could fix it. I was just told it is an "internal problem". I refused because I don't believe a customer buying a brand-new vehicle should have to accept a temporary workaround and immediately schedule a service visit.
What disappointed me even more was that, during another conversation, I was told that my scooter had already been charged to 100% using my assigned charger before delivery. That didn't make sense because the charger was still factory sealed and was opened for the first time in front of me on delivery day.
I raised a support ticket with Ather Customer Care and sent a detailed email to Ather Corporate explaining everything. I was told I would receive a callback within 24–48 hours.
It's now 4 July, and I still haven't received a single call or email from anyone. The Ather app still shows an active service job card and ticket.
What hurts is that my first experience as an Ather customer has been following up on a scooter that's already in the service centre before I've even taken delivery. I haven't ridden it home once. I haven't signed the delivery papers. Yet I've already spent days chasing updates and dealing with uncertainty instead of enjoying the excitement of buying a new vehicle.
I'd really appreciate hearing from existing Ather owners:
Has anyone experienced something similar?
Would you still accept delivery after this?
Would you ask for any additional checks before signing the delivery documents?
Am I wrong for refusing delivery until everything works exactly as it should?