Askoll eS3, on power and autonomy to become increasingly attractive [ROAD TEST]

Askoll eS3 – More and more manufacturers are entering the world of electric mobility, among these an all-Italian company has emerged in recent years, which in its various offices around the world manages to employ around 2.500 people. The company in question is Askoll, a leader in the production of high energy efficiency electric motors in various fields, which a few years ago began to invest, in our opinion successfully, in the production of electric scooters. The opportunity to get back on one of their scooters is to try the new eS3, updated version and even more powerful than its "brothers" eS1 and eS2.

Askoll eS3 is a scooter born from the need to offer the market an electric mobility solution that could cover greater autonomy than the products currently in the catalogue. eS3 in fact, thanks to the new electric motor and two lithium ion battery packs it reaches 70 km/h and has a range of 96 km (calculated according to Directive 168/2013). These performances are achieved through a development of the electrical part, but also thanks to some improvements in the accumulators.

The electrical part, in particular, has a magnetic component made of rare earths and the use of these noble materials is a first factor that increases the efficiency of the technological heart of the vehicle. The part relating to the batteries - located under the saddle - has been implemented, with the same space as eS1 and eS2, through the use of better performing cells (the famous “18650” – also used by Tesla for some cars). The adoption of this technology has increased power density available bringing the system from 1 kWh to 1,41. Clearly the mechanical part was adequate, to handle this increased power and was also added a forced ventilation element, which contributes to maintaining peak values ​​over time. Some elements such as the front LED lights help the system consume more efficiently.

What autonomy does the Askoll eS3 scooter have

According to the company that approved the scooter, it has a maximum range of 96 km. However, as always, it must be taken into consideration that this value was obtained according to specific tests, which may differ from daily use, a bit like what happens with cars. We always try to explain that when you drive any electric vehicle, an "evolved" style must be adopted, to optimize autonomy. This It doesn't mean having to drive like snails, or deprive oneself of the typical freedoms of the combustion engine, but it means simply use a pinch of head by adopting, for example, long braking and avoiding continuous accelerations that are too sudden. As part of our test we had the opportunity to try the Askoll eS3 scooter on the track and, after several laps, we drained about 50% of the energy, covering about 35 km. It must be said though use in these conditions is not really representative and therefore it is conceivable that to provide more truthful results (for better or worse) we should have it on trial for at least a couple of weeks. What we can tell you is that, most likely, you will be able to cover the distance necessary to complete your daily commute and even make some progress.

The average life of Askoll batteries

One of the questions we asked ourselves almost immediately concerns thehypothetical battery life, not so much in terms of autonomy, but rather in terms of material duration over the years. We all know, for example, that when we buy a mobile phone we get good performance at the beginning but then during the first months of life we ​​see a progressive decline in performance which forces us to always have the charger at hand. It should be noted first of all that the batteries mounted on the Askoll eS3 are clearly different from mobile phone batteries, but above all they do not suffer from the memory effect in the slightest. Askoll tells us that the batteries are ready to undergo over 600 charge-discharge cycles without losing any performance. It must be said that a charge from 50% to 100% counts as half a charge and so on. There are also ways to extend the average life of the accumulators, for example by avoiding reaching a peak with the charge and avoiding completely discharging the energy. For example, a charge from 5% to 90% allows the batteries not to be too stressed and extends the life of chemical elements almost exponentially. All things considered, Askoll believes that it is even possible to travel 100.000 km on batteries without having any major drops in performance..

Last consideration regarding the batteries placed under the saddle: they can be detached and transported easily. This condition was necessary for example to offer the possibility of also recharge at home thanks to the intelligent transformer, but also to avoid losing the entire value of the vehicle in the event of theft. Small thing, not necessarily revolutionary from an innovation point of view, but absolutely worthy of mention because in this way it means being able to recharge truly anywhere.

How to drive the new Askoll eS3

In the past we have already had the opportunity to ride electric scooters from the Italian brand and in our test drive, at the Vairano track, we did not detect any elements that would make us not recommend purchasing them. In this version there are no particular aesthetic changes and in fact we are talking about a vehicle that delivers the driving pleasure of the two smaller models, but with 9 Nm of torque compared to 6 Nm, in addition to an autonomy to the limits of the journey necessary to get to Bergamo from the gates of Milan and return. We would have perhaps dared something more on aesthetics, but perhaps it's best to focus on functionality, at least for now.

The braking started again, if the rear brake is used and it is instead exclusive when using the front brake. The mixed-pattern tires are designed specifically for Askoll and they performed very well on the wet track.

The price of 3.490 euros (with availability from June) is not exactly the most reduced, but you need to consider a few key factors: First some Regions do not require payment of the tax for several years or forever, while the maintenance in these cases is essentially reduced to zero. Then there is the undoubted advantage of being able to use electricity instead of petrol, which is good for the wallet, but also for the environment.

Test clothing:
Jacket: Alpinestars Motion Waterproof Jacket
Pants: Alpinestars Denim Pants – Raw Indigo
Shoe: Alpinestars Vulk Shoes
Gloves: Alpinestars Masai Gloves
All these items are part of the Alpinestars 2016 collection which you can find described in this article (link here)
Helmet: Scorpion Exo-920