India-based Croc EV is a startup that looks at the significant gap between the capabilities of a two-wheeler and those of a regular three-wheeler. The gap is significant, and with the fast growth of e-commerce, there is scope for a delivery-oriented light vehicle platform targeted at the commercial/delivery segment. This week, we caught up with Gayatri Jadhav and Aditya Puppala, the two co-founders of Speedloop Auto, the startup that has created the Croc EV, a one-of-a-kind electric trike for the delivery business.
Tell me about Croc. What is the history of Croc? Where did you guys come up with the idea, and what was the motivation?
Gayatri Jadhav: Aditya and I both met at Ashok Leyland. That’s where the spark of making something on our own, building something from the ground up, came. So we were more core into commercial vehicles and understanding the problems of the commercial vehicle industry and the value chain. At Ashok Leyland, we have actually learned a lot about commercial vehicles, and that’s the root for us to start Speed Loop Auto.
While in Chennai and exploring the city, we encountered multiple two-wheeler riders who had modified their vehicles by adding a carriage to the back, welding it in place, and using them for business purposes.
So we saw this, and we questioned ourselves, why does the two-wheeler need to be modified for commercial application? Why are there no vehicles readily available for some basic business applications or commercial microcommerce segments? We saw on the other side big three-wheelers which are already in the market having a payload carrying capacity above 500 kg, and that’s where we identified the gap between the market in the under 300 kg payload segment. We understood that there is nothing like an organized or compact commercial vehicle which is available for a payload capacity below 300 kgs, and that’s what triggered the development of a compact vehicle like Croc.
So that’s the beginning. In 2020, we started, and it’s been five years since we designed and developed the vehicle from the ground up. Now the product is certified by ARAI, and we have also received multiple state approvals. About two months back, we started deliveries to our key customers. We are currently working with key e-commerce companies that like to distribute using the vehicle for last-mile distribution.
Aditya Puppala: Yeah. From an engineering perspective, the reason why we went with two wheels in the front, one wheel in the rear, and why it is a three-wheeler. As we know that we are looking for something that is an upgrade to a two-wheeler, which is legally a commercial vehicle, while two-wheelers are not. At the same time, it should not add a lot to the cost of acquisition. It should also be suitable for people who are used to riding two-wheelers so that they can confidently switch over to our vehicle.
So the core idea was to actually retain as much DNA as possible from a two-wheeler design. When we know that we have to carry cargo on it, maybe like Gayatri said, up to 300 kgs, we know that a two-wheel layout will not work out because of the inherent instability that happens when you load beyond a specific point. That’s when we thought a three-wheeler was the right layout, because, regulation-wise, it is also a bit lighter than a four-wheeler.
But then, in a three-wheeler also the existing layout that is one wheel in front and two wheels in the rear, becomes unstable when it shrinks down in size. We had seen that with a couple of OEMs then, launching these small three-wheeler kind of category, and there are a lot of reports of safety incidents, which we know is happening because traditional three-wheelers are not stable beyond a particular dimension, what we are targeting.
So the dimensions of what we are targeting are just like a two-wheeler. It can go on a small street, and it’s very easy to zip through traffic. So, in those dimensions from an engine point of view, the two-wheel front is much more stable because of the low center of gravity, it has better weight distribution, and the cornering stability is better, the braking stability is better, and the comfort is actually better. The comfort is closer to a two-wheeler than a large three-wheeler on potholes, and you don’t feel that many vibrations on our vehicle. That’s the reason why we chose that layout, and the dimensions are already imprinted because we wanted to be as close to two wheels as possible.
If you see the ergonomics, we retain most of the ergonomics from a scooter, not a motorcycle, because it should be easy for even women to drive. When we talk about distribution, there’s a lot of stress that happens in a day. We wanted that to be very easy for the people. So that’s why we went with a kind of moped or scooter-like ergonomics, where there is a step-through well in between. So that’s the reason why the vehicle is compact, almost like a two-wheeler, other than a couple of obvious components like steering and the payload box. So that’s the original idea of Croc EV, a small micro commercial vehicle for people who do not have access to purchasing a three-wheeler worth 3.0-3.5 lakhs (USD 3500-4000).
Very interesting. The way I’m looking at it, it’s a vehicle where you have the steering at the front, and the drive unit at the back?
Aditya Puppala: Yes, correct.
What are you using? A single wheel hub motor for this?
Aditya Puppala: No. Because we need a lot of torque, we actually do not use hub motors. We use a mid-drive motor and then a gearbox.
So it’s an E drive unit, actually, that you have?
Aditya Puppala: Correct.
And the front wheels are just doing the steering, and all the loading space is at the front? What sort of steering mechanism are you putting there?
Aditya Puppala: We have done a lot of engineering on steering because, particularly, that’s the most difficult part of this vehicle, given that the axle is located much farther from the steering column. Currently, we are just using the standard way of steering, like we have a rack and pinion like a car, and then we have a bevel gearbox to do the 90° transfer.
So it’s a very simple steering mechanism, the standard that the industry uses. There are versions of even a power-steered vehicle, which we are closing development on, but right now it’s a manual steering. It’s just slightly higher than a two-wheeler but much lower than a three-wheeler in terms of steering effort.
What is the top speed that you have engineered the Croc for? What is available at it?
Aditya Puppala: So the engineering we have done is for a 60 kph top speed, but we understand in the market there are a lot of different applications, as the sector is unorganized. While the four-wheeler commercial vehicle sector has applications that are already standardized, in our case, that is not yet settled, so we wanted to keep the options varied. So we have a low-speed variant also, which is limited to 25 kph.
We have a high-speed variant also, so we have both of these available. The low-speed operates at around 40 paisa per kilometer kind of operating economics, while the high speed is at 80 paisa per kilometer operating economics.
So they have their own applications, and they fit in their own zones.
Are you currently offering two variants, both low speed and high speed or what is the play?
Aditya Puppala: The low speed is currently available and being used primarily. It plays a crucial role in e-commerce deliveries. That’s one of the major markets for us for low-speed vehicles. High-speed will be available starting from April 2026 onwards. We are still in the final stages of certification for it.
So when you say you’re B2B focused, where is the interest coming from? Is it fleet operators or is it logistic companies directly, or are delivery platforms also showing interest?
Aditya Puppala: Yeah. So the end demand actually flows in from e-commerce companies. Ultimately, the whole ecosystem is actually built on the end demand because it is not easy for a vendor or individual to take a new vehicle in the market to Amazon or Flipkart and start doing operations.
There’s an actual system for it where we have to validate the vehicle, then the respective company has to release a demand mandate telling us that I need these many vehicles in this region, and then the vendors take it from there. So the ecosystem is like we have an influencer, which is the e-commerce company, who is the end user of it, who pays ultimately for the shipment, on which it is delivered, but the vehicle buyer will be either an individual or a small fleet operator.
So there used to be large fleet operators 2-3 years back, companies that were driving the bulk demand, like orders of 100-200+ vehicles at once, but we are seeing more democratization in the purchase. We are seeing more small vendors who are buying 5-6 vehicles coming in and adding to the fleet. So ultimately, the end buyer is going to be a small fleet operator or an individual, or a driver entrepreneur specifically created by the e-commerce company.
How does the pricing work out for the Croc, and where do you see it being positioned?
Gayatri Jadhav: Croc has multiple variants. We have given multiple application variants for customers to choose from. So the pricing starts anywhere from INR 100,000, and the highest high-speed variant will range around INR 250,000.
So INR 100,000 (USD 1150) is for the low-speed variant and INR 250,000 (USD 2900) is for the high-speed variant. Smaller battery as well for the low-speed variant?
Aditya Puppala: Yeah, 100,000 is not specifically for low speed. In the low-speed range, we also have a 2.0 kWh pack, which has a 40 km range, and then we have a 3.0 kWh battery with a subscription model. So 100,000 is for the battery subscription model.
So the 100,000 product is the one that has a smaller battery and the battery subscription? How much is the subscription per month for that?
Aditya Puppala: So we can expect anywhere between INR 1300-1500 per month.
For INR 250,000, I’ll get the high-speed variant with the bigger battery pack. How big is the bigger battery?
Aditya Puppala: Actually, we have multiple options there also, but if we talk about around 80 km range, we are talking somewhere around the 5 kWh pack.
In the vehicle configuration, where is the battery placed? Is it below the cargo space?
Aditya Puppala: No, we have the battery pack in the floorboard, where we have a large space where we can fit anywhere from a 2.0 kWh to a 7.0 kWh pack.
Is it going to be a fixed battery pack for all formats, or are you planning a removable one?
Aditya Puppala: The 2.0 kWh and 3.0 kWh packs are removable. provided the customer needs that choice. We have designed it around the fact that if there’s a fleet operator who buys 10 vehicles, maybe not all vehicles will go more than 30 km a day. But if one vehicle has to go 50-60 km or even 100 km more, it may need an immediate charge without changing the vehicle. So we gave the option of removing and charging, removing and swapping with their own additional battery packs.
It’s not swapping; it’s just that I buy an extra battery pack and I remove and swap when required. So we gave that opportunity here.
Got it. When you say production, where are you planning to produce this?
Gayatri Jadhav: We have our microfactory at Pune. The current capacity of the factory is for 250 vehicles per month. With our semi-automated manufacturing process, we are achieving close to 300 vehicles per month. With some investment in tooling and some automation, we are planning to do over the next six months, we’ll be able to achieve production of 250 vehicles per month and more in a single shift.
As we come from a manufacturing background, as I was in Ashok Leyland and part of manufacturing quality, we understand that the poor production of the product can cause difficulties, even if the idea and development happen elsewhere, the birth of the product will happen in manufacturing.
So we have designed our factory in such a way that we will be lean in manufacturing and also depend on our vendors who are around us within a 50 km radius.
So we can get most of the key components just in time to our factory and assemble the vehicles. That’s our plan. So our factory is a unit. All the manufacturing of our components is done by our vendors across Pune.
Where are you in the funding stage and raised funds? How is it? How is this venture funded?
Gayatri Jadhav: Our initial breakthrough started with government grants. We were supported through them. We built our prototype, and then we actually pitched to the investors. So we have onboarded a couple of angel investors who have invested and funded the initial journey of Speed Loop Auto. We have raised a round from angel investors only so far. We have also worked on a traditional model, like working with a nationalized bank.
There are multiple schemes which were offered for MSMEs, like the CGTMSE (Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises) scheme and nationalized banks. We have approached them and got funds for tooling investment and factory investment, as well as working capital for production. So that’s how we are actually currently moving ahead in terms of funding. This is the current stage we are in the process of preparing for raising a round.
So, till now, the journey is through government grants, schemes, and bootstrapping? And now you want to do a proper funding route?
Gayatri Jadhav: Yeah.
How does the order book look currently?
Gayatri Jadhav: We have end demand generated from e-commerce companies that are in Pune. We started from this region only. So in Maharashtra itself, we have raised around a demand of 100 vehicles.
We are actually pushing that demand through vendors, driver owners, as well as financers. So that’s how we are planning to meet the demand for the e-commerce companies. On the other hand, our vehicle is very specialized, and it can be used in multiple application modes also. So we came up with a unique model where the vehicle can be used as a moving food cart application. So we are working with the government of Maharashtra to deploy around 7,000 vehicles for women to get more job opportunities. The vehicles will be distributed across multiple districts in Maharashtra as a food card application. The complete inside development of the food cart application has been developed by us. This is fully electric powered, and that’s how we are also creating employment as well as focusing on the B2B segment as a whole.
That sounds interesting. The food cart application. How big is the cargo space in the front?
Aditya Puppala: So, in terms of load capacity, we can do up to 100 kgs, but in terms of volume, it’s around 400 litres of space. For e-commerce deliveries on a two-wheeler, if we can carry 40 parcels on the Croc, we can carry 150 parcels in a safer way in our vehicle. That’s the difference in load volumetric capacity.
Gayatri Jadhav: I would like to add that this is for the Croc EV low speed. We are also targeting anything under 300 kg payload. We are also having upcoming models with a higher payload carrying capacity of around 250 kgs.
For something like a food cart application, if there is any electrical circuitry needed inside the cargo space, have you engineered for that as well?
Aditya Puppala: Yes. We have done it for powering up the basic electric devices that aid in the cooking and the whole process; we can do that.
How does the future look?
Aditya Puppala: What we’re working on is targeting the below 300 kg segment. There is a lack of rightsized vehicles, both for commercial and personal utility applications, starting with commercial applications, which started with one product lineup, that is, Croc.
Then we have a 250 kg model that will be next year. Then we are already working on a personal utility like model, which is an L2 category vehicle, which has a smaller payload, but it’s more of a two-wheeler legally.
We have things that are common between these three models. Under the 300 kg threshold, there are a lot of applications that India needs, but only a few are actually being catered to right now. We see the potential of a 60,000 vehicles per year kind of volume, somewhere in the next 4-5 years.
So the market we are working towards is something that will be either a personal utility or a commercial vehicle, where currently the user is either not earning, or maybe they’re earning less than 500 rupees per day. We want to boost their earnings to 1,500 rupees per day. That’s the ultimate core idea of what we are working towards to increase the earnings of the end users, which we already are seeing through the e-commerce deliveries, where someone who is carrying like 40-50 parcels delivering within a amount of period is able to carry 80+ parcels. So the earnings are actually being multiplied while the cost is being reduced because it’s an EV.
