Oben Rorr EVO Review: An Owner's 72-Hour Nightmare

Why I bought an Oben in the first place

I'm not anti-EV. I've owned an Okinawa and a TVS iQube, and nine months before this I bought a River Indie when River had a single showroom 45 km from my home. Friends told me I was mad. That scooter has been flawless, and River's delivery and service were honest from day one.

That experience is why I ignored the warnings about Oben. I wanted to back a young Indian EV company again. The Rorr was a milestone gift for my son, who had researched it and test-ridden it, and I'd already budgeted for a second Rorr for my niece once the first one settled in. Oben was about to win a multi-bike, word-of-mouth customer. Here's how that went.

Booking, waiting and paying in advance

By October Oben held 100% of my money and I held a series of dates that kept moving. The 45-day promise I paid ₹25,000 for became 146 days.

Insurance and registration before I'd seen the bike

On 13 October — five days before delivery — I got an automated message from ICICI Lombard: a comprehensive policy had been issued in my name against a specific engine and chassis number. Nobody had asked me to sign anything or choose cover.

The policy included add-ons I hadn't asked for, and left out the two covers I consider essential on an EV: Return to Invoice and battery protection. I objected in writing to both Oben and ICICI Lombard the same day. Oben's answer was that this is their standard procedure and the policy would stay as issued.

I then learned the bike was already being registered and would arrive with permanent HSRP plates. Dealer-point registration is common in Delhi, but doing it before the customer has inspected the vehicle means that by the time you see the bike it's legally yours — rejecting it at the showroom is no longer a practical option.

Delivery day: three power cuts and a throttle with a mind of its own

Delivery was fixed for Sunday 18 October — the only day my family could all come. That morning the showroom tried to push it to Monday or Tuesday. When I said I'd then only come the following weekend, they agreed, but asked us to come after 3 PM.

At billing I was charged ₹2,500 for PDI. I asked for the signed PDI checklist. I was told I couldn't have it. I also paid ₹6,000 for the 5-year extended warranty. Paperwork dragged on until about 4:30 PM.

As I was leaving, I was told — more than once — to keep the bike in Eco mode, below 40–45 km/h, and above 50% charge for the first 15–20 days. Nobody mentioned any such limit when I was buying a performance motorcycle.

The flyover

Oben doesn't sell accessories for the Rorr, so I rode straight to Ruff N Tuff Bike Accessories in Karol Bagh, with my sons following on our River Indie. On the main road the Rorr started making a harsh grinding noise with strong vibration — far louder than on the test ride.

Climbing the first flyover on the GT Road / Tis Hazari stretch, power dropped sharply; the bike was crawling uphill with heavy vehicles behind me. I switched to City mode to get out of danger. Within about two minutes:

• the console went completely blank,
• the motor cut out,
• the bike was dead in a live traffic lane.

I spent two to three minutes pushing it to the side while calling the dealer, who didn't answer. After switching the ignition off and on several times it restarted. It cut out twice more before Karol Bagh.

Faiz Road: the bike kept moving

In stop-go traffic on Faiz Road a new problem started: the bike began creeping forward without any throttle input. To avoid hitting the vehicle ahead I had to hold the brakes and switch the ignition off at every stop. When I called, the dealer said he'd never heard of this, and told me to finish the accessory fitting and drop the bike back on my way home.

Independent witnesses

While fitting ₹8,500 of accessories, the technicians at Ruff N Tuff noticed the same things on their own: the throttle response was erratic and the bike lurched forward by itself inside the workshop. Their advice: “Sir, don't ride this home — take it straight back to the company.”

We finished at 9:20 PM. The showroom was locked. I was told on the phone to take it home and bring it back on Monday.

Day 2: the service visit and the flatbed

I took Monday off work and handed the bike over first thing, asking for it to be fixed by evening. What happened during the day I learned later from Oben's own Area Service Manager:

• A showroom rider took the bike across Delhi to Oben's Peeragarhi service centre for software flashing and diagnostics.
• During the work the battery's state of charge fell to about 45% — below the 50% level below which, I was told, Oben policy doesn't allow a bike to be ridden or delivered.
• So the bike came back to Krishna Nagar on an RSA flatbed tow truck. On its second day of ownership.

When I came to collect it, I had to sit in the showroom while it was charged back above 60% before they'd hand it over.

The frozen dash — on video

On the night of 18 October I recorded the instrument cluster locked on 37 km/h in ECO mode while the bike was moving. Speed, battery range and riding mode all stop updating. You're riding blind.

After the service visit I was assured the software had been updated and the problems cleared. Within minutes of riding away, the grinding and vibration were back. I sent my video to the dealer and formally asked for a replacement bike or a full refund.

Oben's response

“…vehicle replacement or a refund cannot be offered as per current company policies.”Oben Electric, by email (ticket OB115314)

Instead I was asked to hand the bike over to Oben's Okhla workshop. Given what happened on the last service visit, and that the bike is my main evidence, I declined to give up custody without a written commitment.

I then sent the full case file to Oben's investors, Stride Ventures and We Founder Circle. Shortly after, the relationship manager — the one person at Oben who had actually helped me — stopped answering my calls and messages. I've been told by people in the sales network that he was instructed not to contact me and is under pressure to resign. I can't independently verify that, but I can confirm the silence. If true, blaming a front-line salesperson for a fault that showed up on the bike's first ride is exactly backwards.

Update, 28 October: the screen goes blank in traffic

Ten days after delivery — and after the service-centre visit that was meant to fix the electronics — I was riding in evening city traffic when the TFT screen went completely blank. It stayed lit but showed only an empty outline: no speed, no battery range, no riding mode, while I was moving between cars.

This is the same family of fault as before. A patch didn't fix it. The bike is still with me, still unsafe to rely on, and Oben's position is still “no replacement, no refund”.

My own mistakes (so you don't repeat them)

1. I gave up all my leverage. Paying 100% months in advance left me nothing to hold back. Keep a meaningful final payment until you've inspected and accepted the vehicle.
2. I handed over Aadhaar and PAN on a verbal promise. Share KYC with a written note of exactly what it may be used for.
3. I accepted the bike without the PDI sheet. The moment they refused it, I should have refused to sign the delivery note. A paid inspection with no record isn't an inspection.

More in our EV buyer's checklist.

What Oben could have done instead

This could have been a good story. Before delivery: “Your bike has arrived — come and do the PDI with us, check battery health, approve the insurance add-ons, and we'll register it once you sign.” After Day 1: “A power cut on a highway on your first ride is a safety issue. We're replacing the bike with a factory-tested unit, moving your accessories across at our cost, and investigating this one.”

That costs one motorcycle. In return Oben keeps a loud advocate, a second sale already budgeted, and its investors out of a customer dispute. It chose policy instead.

Where it stands now

I have filed a complaint with the National Consumer Helpline (Ministry of Consumer Affairs), supported by payment records, the insurance correspondence, both failure videos, the Karol Bagh workshop's observations and my notes of what Oben staff told me. The next step, if unresolved, is the District Consumer Commission under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. I'll update this page as it moves.

Consumer trust is the one thing you can't build in a factory. — How to file your own complaint →

Oben Rorr review: FAQ