Contradicting Okinawa’s claims of getting designed and developed the Okhi-90, an nearly an identical product might be discovered on Chinese e-commerce web sites.
Haryana-based Okinawa Autotech has grown to develop into India’s second highest vendor of electric scooters. Its newest product in India is the Okhi-90 and you may learn all about the launch right here. As with its earlier scooters, the firm is claiming that this has been designed and developed in-house, and, as with its earlier scooters, we’ve got discovered an an identical product obtainable for bulk buy on Chinese e-commerce web sites.
This time round, Okinawa has even devoted a bit of its product launch video (viewable on the firm’s YouTube channel) to ‘the crafting of the Okhi 90’. In this part, the firm claims that the product was seeded in January 2020, the design was rendered that March, clay modelling was accomplished by August, after which, the prototype was prepared by March 2021, with endurance testing being accomplished by February 2022.
While trade insiders will recognise this as an unrealistically fast timeframe to finish a brand new product from scratch, Okinawa is striving to create the picture of this being a totally in-house growth. In truth, the firm responded to our electronic mail question stating, “It has been designed and manufactured in India.” However, we’ve got now discovered what seems to be an an identical product from a Chinese firm and it is referred to as the Wuxi Shenyun SY-T500.
The similarities between the Okhi-90 and Wuxi Shenyun SY-T500 go right down to the precise form of the bodywork, the design of the wheels, the LED head and tail-lamps and even the chrome garnish throughout the bodywork. Apart from the badges, the solely distinction we are able to see is that the press photos from Okinawa present the scooter with totally different chromed mirrors. However, the scooters displayed at Okinawa’s launch occasion didn’t have these mirrors.
As we’ve got reported earlier than (see under), Okinawa seems to be following this enterprise mannequin for many of its merchandise. To be completely clear, this can be a enterprise mannequin {that a} overwhelming majority of two-wheeler EVs offered in India observe, with Ather, Bajaj and TVS being just a few notable exceptions. Ola Electric has additionally taken its personal route by shopping for out Dutch start-up Etergo after which re-engineering the scooter for our market.
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The motive this mannequin is so in style is as a result of all these rising start-ups can strategy an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) or an Original Design Manufacturer (OEDM) to do all the design and growth work that will in any other case be an impossibly massive expense. China is stuffed with corporations that promote these low price merchandise in bulk. The product spec can also be usually customisable to the purchaser’s necessities, which might be why the quoted spec on Wuxi Shenyun’s web site is totally different to what’s quoted by Okinawa.
The product then goes on sale in India with a sure stage of localised parts with a view to meet the FAME-II subsidy. The important distinction between Okinawa and most different EV companies doing the identical factor is that Okinawa continues to brazenly declare that these merchandise are its personal.
Also see:
Is the Okinawa Praise genuinely Indian?
Is the Okinawa Cruiser e-scooter an Indian or Chinese product?
The EV invasion