BGauss RUV350: Review

BGauss is a Chakan-based EV startup that has been in the market for four years now, and in that duration, the brand has steadily grown to currently stand in the seventh position in the EV two-wheeler space. The company has managed to sell around 40,000+ e-scooters in the market with its current portfolio. The company aims to hike up those numbers with the introduction of a new model to its portfolio, the RUV350, which stands for Rider Utility Vehicle.

According to BGauss, the RUV350 has been designed to provide the user with a robust, utilitarian and feature-packed offering, along with large 16-inch wheels to deliver superior ride quality and experience. Now, we’ve spent some time with the GBauss RUV350 at its manufacturing facility in Chakan, Pune, for a first ride experience of the e-scooter.

Step-through retro design with large 16-inch wheels looks appealing.

BGauss RUV350: Design and Features

Design-wise, the RUV350, is different from other e-scooter offerings in the market due to its step-through retro design with large 16-inch wheels. While the RUV350 resemblances the now-discontinued D15 model in BGauss’ portfolio, its design has been updated featuring a new hexagonal LED headlamp with a chrome bezel, faux air vents in the front apron, new graphics and updated equipment. The seat is long and wide with contrast stitching highlighting the seat’s contouring, the grab rail is a moulded tube-type instead of a cast. The RUV 350 comes with a 15-litre underseat storage and can accommodate a half-face helmet apart from a few other items. Interestingly, BGauss has smartly utilised the bottom section of the floorboard area for an additional space (4.5 litres) for the portable charger. This way the underseat storage remains usable for keeping items and the helmet properly.

5-inch colour TFT screen is touch-sensitive and is offered on the mid and top variants.

On the feature front, the RUV350 comes with a 5-inch colour TFT touch-sensitive screen that is IP67 rated. The unit is Bluetooth-enabled to provide turn-by-turn navigation updates and call alerts. Furthermore, it also provides the rider with ride statistics, two digital document storage, has different display themes, and comes with auto-brightness adjustment. Next, the RUV350 is equipped with cruise control, hill-hold assist, fall sense and three riding modes, with custom and adaptive riding modes to be introduced later.

Smart usage of under floorboard space for storing the charger.

Overall, in terms of design and features, BGauss has done a good job of smart storage options and features to make the RUV350 an interesting and quirky scooter. However, the quality of plastic surfaces and overall fit-finish doesn’t feel up to the mark. Also, the font size of the readouts on the home screen of the instrumentation is quite small making it difficult to read information while on the move. Now, BGauss has mentioned that the test units are initial production units and the concerns will be rectified with a textured pattern for the plastic panels and the fit-finish will also be improved.

BGauss RUV350: Ergonomics

With a seat height of 785 mm, it is very easy to get astride the RUV350. The floorboard height isn’t too high off the ground so the legs remain comfortable on the go. The handlebar is positioned comfortably but is slightly lower and closer to the rider, due to which, touches the knees while negotiating tight corners. Taller riders need to take note of this as it will be inconvenient especially while taking U-turns. The seat cushioning is firm yet soft, and although we had limited time to spend with the scooter, it should be fine for daily in-city riding.
 

The in-wheel hyper drive system barely requires any maintenance compared to belt drive.

BGauss RUV350: Performance, Battery and Charging

The RUV350 employs an in-wheel hyper drive system which, according to BGauss, is more efficient than a conventional belt drive system, due to reduced losses. The permanent magnet synchronous motor is rated to deliver a peak power output of 3.5 kW and a peak torque output of 165 Nm. With this setup, BGauss claims that this powertrain requires even lesser maintenance and the efficiency in comparison to a belt drive system remains consistent at 90.2 per cent, regardless of the kilometres clocked.

All the lighting on the RUV350 is LED and is available in five colourways.

BGauss has equipped the RUV350 with three ride modes - Eco, Ride and Sport, where the top speed in Sport mode is 75 kmph with an acceleration from 0-40 kmph in 5.8 seconds. Meanwhile, the true range in Eco mode is rated at 120 km on a full charge.

15 litre underseat storage can accommodate an half face helmet and few other items.

Speaking of charge, the RUV350 features a fixed 3kWh battery that is located in the underseat area. Featuring an aluminium casing, the battery pack has an IP67 rating and is cooled using air that is channelled from the vents in the front fairing. For the charging bit, BGauss is offering three charger options that include a 500W, 840W and 1350W charger, depending on which is the time it takes to charge the battery from 0-80 per cent.

The large wheels inspire confidence to carry more lean into corners.

BGauss RUV350: Ride and Handling

From the ride and handling point of view, the RUV350 benefits from the larger 16-inch wheels that contribute to delivering a motorcycle-like ride quality and it manages to take on road undulations in a better manner compared to small wheels. The scooter feels agile and is decent as far as the ride experience is concerned. The larger wheels also inspire confidence while cornering and if nothing, definitely add to the overall appeal of the RUV350.

Now, the RUV350 isn’t a fast EV to get all spirited and excited about, but at the same time, it isn’t boring or sluggish to ride. It rather strikes a sweet balance of economy and power depending on the ride mode selected. While Eco and Ride feel similar in terms of feel and acceleration, Sport does pick up the pace with a sharper feel at the throttle.

Overall ride quality is good and is nimble ay manoeuvring.

The suspension setup on the RUV350 includes a telescopic fork setup at the front and a 5-step preload adjustable monoshock at the rear. While the ride felt pliant for most of the experience, we couldn’t test the damping and rebound in real-world road conditions since we rode the scooter within the premises of the manufacturing facility. 

Drum brakes lack the required bite and feel on application.

The RUV350 gets 130 mm drum brakes at both ends, and the overall bite and feel of the brakes doesn't inspire confidence. This is more apparent when you have to brake hard; for instance, in an emergency. BGauss, in our opinion, needs to rectify this by increasing the bite, especially at the front, which should be manageable mainly due to the larger wheels.

All metal body is one of the highlights of the RUV350. 

BGauss RUV350: Pricing and Verdict
 

The BGauss RUV350 might not be an entirely new EV but is better, is more feature-packed, and does check out as a good e-scooter in terms of performance, ride quality and equipment. The step-through retro design with the large wheels has an appeal to it which grabs attention. However, on coming up close, the poor quality level of the plastic panels and fit-finish becomes visible making one want to reconsider purchasing one.

BGauss is offering the RUV350 in three variants, with prices starting from Rs 1.10 lakh for the base it goes up to Rs 1.35 lakh for the top-spec variant (all ex-showroom), which according to us, is in the ballpark of the other rivals in the EV market segment.

The RUV350 isn't fast, but does pick up the pace in Sport mode.

For the asking price, the BGauss RUV350 is a good e-scooter in the EV two-wheeler space for everyday in-city commuting and it does pack well on the feature-front, but provided you are okay with the not-so-great quality and finish levels. That said, we feel a more competitive price tag would have been nicer to encourage prospective buyers and go for the RUV350.