Okaya Faast F4 first ride review
The Okaya Faast F4 is the flagship model with almost double the range than any of the other scooters in the company’s portfolio. The claimed 160km range comes courtesy of the two 2.2kWh batteries giving it a total capacity of 4.4kWh. Along with the high range numbers, Okaya does demand a hefty Rs 1.14 lakh ex-showroom for you to roll the scooter into your garage. This makes it a direct rival to scooters like the Ola S1 Pro and the TVS iQube S which offer a lot more in terms of features. Does the Okaya pack a strong enough punch to be the natural choice amongst such strong competition? Read on to find out.
Okaya Faast F4 design
The Okaya Faast F4 has a sharp design which looks particularly striking in the yellow colour scheme that you see in these images. Upon further inspection it becomes apparent that the scooter looks very similar to most of the other electric scooters in the market with similar body panels, switchgear and instrument console layouts as well. Speaking of switchgear and instrument consoles, the Faast F4 uses a very basic negatively backlit LCD display that showcases the bare minimum in terms of ride data. This would be fine but in today’s day of connectivity and colour TFT cluster and especially considering the high asking price it would have been nice to see a more premium instrument cluster. Even the switchgear feels built to a cost with rather utilitarian feeling switches used to switch between the three ride modes.
Coming to the practicality bit, the F4 has a generously sized cubby hold on the front apron with enough place to store a wallet and your phone. You can even charge your phone on the go using the USB port that is placed near the storage space. This storage is the most you’re going to get because upon opening the boot of the scooter you’re greeted with not enough space to even store the charger of the scooter. You can store a wallet and book at best, which is disappointing considering the under seat storage is one of the primary USPs of a scooter. In terms of lighting you get LED illumination across the board which is expected, given the price tag. The scooter is available in seven different colour options, so you should definitely be able to find one to suit your taste.
Okaya Faast F4 battery and performance
The Okaya Faast F4 is powered by 2 batteries that put out a total of 4.4kWh that send power to a motor that is capable of 1.6bhp of nominal power and 3.3bhp of peak power. As with most electric scooters, you get off the line fairly quickly and the acceleration feels strong till about 30kmph after which it is a not so rapid climb to its claimed 60kmph top speed. The throttle response is not the best in terms of calibration, feeling slightly jerky. That could stand to do with a better tune. There are three riding modes to choose from but the difference between the modes is not night and day. The change in acceleration is not so perceivable and it is only the top speed that changes with each mode. Okaya claims about 160km of range in the real world but the actual number is closer to 130-140km, if ridden frugally. This is great but do bear in mind that you are not going to be covering this distance at any speed and neither will you be able to carry the charger along. Speaking of the battery, it can be topped up in around 5-6 hours using the provided charger which is rather large in size.
Okaya Faast F4 ride and handling
The Okaya Faast F4 uses a rather basic chassis setup. 12-inch tubeless wheels, drum brakes with CBS at both ends, a telescopic fork setup upfront and twin shocks at the rear. The riding position of the Faast F4 is quite awkward with the high floorboard. The floorboard is tall because the second battery is placed there but that really compromises the riding position. The awkward riding position is compounded further by the suspension setup. The front is rather stiff and has a jarring quality when navigating potholes or speed breakers. Because of how your body is canted courtesy your feet being so high the softer rear suspension isn’t helping much either. Taller riders will find this riding position quite uncomfortable. In my opinion this issue could be rectified by having fold out foot pegs even for the rider. In terms of brakes, the drum brakes do get the scooter to a halt but there isn’t any urgency in the way that they do so. For the asking price the least that would be expected is a front disc brake to improve braking performance.
Okaya Faast F4 verdict
The Okaya Faast F4 is a good looking scooter that doesn’t do anything radical in terms of performance or even range in today’s day and age. Yes it does do a real world 130km but that is just one side of the story. The performance is far from exciting, the feature list is very short and the riding position and ride quality leaves a lot to be desired. Now all these points wouldn’t bother me so much if it weren’t for the high price tag. At Rs 1.14 lakh ex-showroom, Okaya is demanding a sum similar to that of the TVS iQube S which is a far better proposition in terms of features, build quality, performance and even TVS’s larger service network. So, if you are really keen on getting the Okaya Faast F4, I would suggest holding off until the company gets these issues resolved.
