Gogoro Delight: The scooter from Taiwan, for women
Taiwanese scooter manufacturer Gogoro has launched a new scooter in its home nation, the Delight, which is designed for women.
The Gogoro Delight is a scooter with a surprisingly unique target audience, and comes from a company whose aim is to democratise electric mobility.
Taiwan has been in the news over the last day-or-so thanks to a visit by US politician Nancy Pelosi, who was the highest-ranking American politician to visit the country in over two decades. China's refusal to acknowledge Taiwan of course made the heightening tensions that resulted from it entirely unpredictable.
The positive relations between the US and Taiwan exist for numerous reasons that are of little interest to a website for motorcycles, but Taiwan’s democratic system of government is of course in-line with the foreign policy of the US.
That democracy is also represented by the Gogoro, it could be argued. “Our mission is to put smart, portable electric power within reach of every urban rider in the world,” Gogoro’s website reads.
Gogoro’s aims do not stop at the motorcycle, but extend beyond it. They intend to create a data-driven “ecosystem.” Gogoro says that “For us, data is nothing without application, so we’re constantly exploring how we can leverage it to make ownership, sharing, swapping, and partnership experiences better.”
Gogoro says it can collect up to 400 million data points per month, and can use those to increase the efficiency of its ecosystem.
The data side of Gogoro and its ecosystem sounds deeply dystopian. Gogoro says it can use the data to better-locate future charging stations, which it calls “GoStations.”
That is because part of Gogoro’s extra-vehicular services include dedicated stations where riders using electric two-wheelers powered by its batteries can simply take out their battery at a “GoStation” and swap it for one which has been charging in the charging point.
When the rider arrives at the charging station, the idea is that they have a bank of batteries to choose from. This would eliminate charge times, but would only work on a mass scale if the vast majority of people were riding scooters powered by Gogoro batteries.
In that case, Gogoro’s data-driven ambitions can be seen in a positive way. Whether each individual person is happy with their riding data being shared with a manufacturer is a more philosophical debate.
A similarly philosophical debate could be had about the Gogoro Delight. This is a scooter which is designed primarily for - and marketed primarily at - women. Gogoro’s slogan for the Delight is “Designed by her, for her.”
Such a philosophical debate would probably be more like a shouting match between people who are not actually listening to each other. But, certainly, it is a curious marketing strategy from Gogoro.
So, let’s avoid the philosophical quagmire for the sake of both your sanity and mine, and focus on the thing which is actually interesting about the Gogoro Delight: the Gogoro Delight.
It is a relatively bulky scooter, with a seat big enough to take two people, curved lines and a choice of one of four colours: blue, green, rose gold, and white.
It features a seat height of 729mm; a lighter stand that Gogoro says “helps lighten your parking effort by 25%;” a walking mode; and cushions for the rider’s knees.
Additionally, there is a refillable fragrance in the storage compartment. About this, Gogoro says: “Like an oasis, the Refillable Fragrance Capsule helps adjust your mood, awaken your heart, and bring the focus back to yourself.”
The Delight is derived from the Gogoro 2 Series. Indeed, Gogoro sells a “2 Delight” here in the UK, but it does not feature the same women-first marketing.
But, the Taiwanese Delight’s 2 Series base means its riders might be able to expect a 93-mile range, 8.6 horsepower, and a top speed of around 30mph.
