E-Trio has partnered with an R&D team in San Francisco for rolling out around 5000 affordable electric vehicles in the Indian market in 2019
Hyderabad-based electric vehicles start-up, E-Trio Automobiles becomes the first company to get Automotive Research Association of India’s (ARAI) approval to convert retrofitted car kits in Alto and Wagon R into all-electric ones. A retrofitted car refers to electric vehicle (EV) conversion in which the car’s combustion engine (Petrol/Diesel based) and connected components are replaced with an electric motor and batteries to create an all-electric vehicle.
Commenting on the retrofitting concept, Sathya Yalamanchili, founder, E-Trio, said, “Retrofitting is the way to go and need of the hour and these smart cars currently are the most efficient and economical cars compared to our counterparts in the market.” He added that E-Trio’s vision is to create e-mobility that would result in pollution-free India.
E-Trio in EV market
E-Trio plans to enter the Indian market with a capacity of 1000 cars per month to be fitted with an electric motor and battery kit. These retrofitted electric kits have been sourced from China and Korea while the Controller is built by the start-up in-house.
The company has been testing cars for the past two years and their immediate goal is to roll out at least 5000 cars in 2019. It has partnered with a Research and Development team from San Francisco for faster and more effective roll out of its retrofitted electric kits for electric cars in India. E-Trio plans to introduce affordable EVs in India to boost electric mobility in the country.
E-Trio develops Alto and Wagon R
E-Trio has got the nod from ARAI to develop an electric motor that does not require any gear and can travel up to 150 km on a single charge for Maruti Suzuki Alto and Wagon R. It claims higher safety standards besides charging facilities anytime and anywhere.
The start-up is in the process to get kit approvals for other fast-moving models in India. They are currently in discussions with some leading car manufacturing companies from Japan and Thailand.