Ola S1 Pro VCU Being Silently Upgraded: Report

Last Updated on May 17, 2022 by Anu Joy

After the recent MoveOS 2.0 software update, Ola is now rolling out a hardware update to its Ola S1 Pro electric scooters. According to a report by 91mobiles, the Ola S1 Pro scooters are getting their VCU (Vehicle Control Unit) replaced to support future firmware upgrades. Electric vehicles are software-driven and simple bugs could cause a major disaster. Recently, Ola EVs received flak due to various software related issues. With this move, the company is trying to ensure that all its vehicles receive regular updates and offer a stress-free experience to the buyers. 

The report states that new batches of the Ola S1 Pro scooters are being shipped with the new VCU. Older scooters are set to receive the new VCUs. Units delivered before March 2022 will be eligible for the upgrade. Apparently, the older models come with a VCU that doesn’t have the required amount of RAM and internal storage to support future software updates. However, the report doesn’t reveal the amount of RAM that has increased or the size of the storage. 

The Ola S1 and Ola S1 Pro electric scooters came with a VCU, which was powered by an octa-core processor and was equipped with 3GB RAM by default. The VCU is the brain of the vehicle which controls the battery management, power output, onboard diagnosis, throttle inputs, and thermal management, among other parameters. The new VCU could offer better driveability, improved range, enhanced battery charging speeds, and also improved battery health to avoid fire related incidents.

Ola recalled 1,441 units of its electric scooters last month after various software related problems and a battery fire incident. It is unclear whether those units received the upgraded VCU. Ola Electric’s CEO, Bhavish Aggarwal, shared a post of a user who managed to ride the Ola S1 Pro for 202km on a single charge, which is more than the claimed 181km. The user states that the vehicle was driven in traffic as well as on the highway. However, the user is unsure if the VCU of his scooter, which belongs to the January 2022 batch, was replaced.