Gogoro Reveals Its Upcoming Electric Smartscooters Will Cost From $4,100

Gogoro, the Taiwan-based startup that raised $150 million in stealth mode before unveiling its flagship electric scooter, has finally revealed how much the vehicles will cost.

In a press conference today, co-founder Horace Luke (HTC’s former chief innovation officer), said that a Smartscooter will cost NTD$128,000 (about $4,140) to pre-order in Taiwan, where Gogoro is currently running a pilot program with support from Taipei City and neighboring New Taipei City.

As Luke pointed out, this is more than a 125cc gas scooter that costs NTD $81,000, or $2,620 (a relatively high-end price bracket). When government subsidies for electric vehicles and the cost-savings of using Gogoro’s batteries instead of gas are considered, however, the company claims that overall cost of owning a Smartscooter will be less than its gas counterpart after two years of use.

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Gogoro hasn’t said yet which countries it plans to expand to after Taiwan, but most of its inquiries have come from India, China, Brazil, and Thailand, where gas scooters are popular modes of transportation.

If it does expand to those markets, Gogoro will go up against other electric scooter makers like HERO in India, which sells models for as low as $300. Gogoro differentiates with an extremely easy to use battery-swapping system and an app that lets Smartscooter owners monitor the performance of their vehicles, but it remains to be seen if customers are willing to pay a higher upfront cost or if the company will be able to build the necessary charging infrastructure in other cities.