Daily motorbike news, views & reviews
Indian Motorcycle began in 1901 in Springfield, Massachusetts, US, and has been in production ever since under a variety of owners. In 2011, Polaris bought the company and moved production from North Carolina to Minnesota and Iowa. In August 2013, Polaris relaunched the brand with three totally new Chief models. The premium brand now also includes the Roadmaster full-dresser tourer and the 1133cc Scout. Indian is a well-known brand for its long history and the popular 2005 Hollywood film, The World’s Fastest indian. MotorbikeWriter has attended world and local launches for Indian products and regularly road tests them and takes them on tours to assess their performance, handling, comfort, value and suitability.
Indian Motorcycle looks set to surprise with several new Apollo variants of its popular FTR 1200 (pictured above), as well as a new Raptor tourer and dark versions of its Scout range. Two images have been sent to Motorbike Writer that seem to come from brochures that show the FTR 1200 Apollo Tracker, Street and …
Indian Motorcycle looks like it could be throwing down a challenge to Harley-Davidson’s popular Road Glide tourer with a fixed-fairing model. A reader whose name has been withheld has provided us with these spy photos showing a heavily disguised Indian. The fairing is quite obviously fixed to the frame, rather than the forks. On the Road Glide …
Challenger is the third new model name Indian Motorcycle has trademarked since last December when they trademarked Raven and January when they added Renegade. The trademark filings in the US and Europe have got the industry buzzing about a possible model assault from a company which has been fairly steady in its lineup for a few …
Indian Motorcycle Australia has acquired several pre-production Indian FTR 1200 models for a roadshow of eastern Australia ahead of their arrival in July. The flat-track-inspired bike is in Melbourne until March 23, then Canberra Motorcycle Centre (March 25-26), Steel City Motorcycles, Wollongong (March 27-28), Sydney (March 29-April 1), Brisbane (April 10-14 and Brisan Motorcycles, Newcastle (April 17-20) …
Throttle and bottle may not usually mix, but it does when Indian Motorcycle and Jack Daniel’s get together to produce yet another gorgeous limited-edition motorcycle like this Springfield Dark Horse. For the fifth year, the two American icons have collaborated with Klock Werks Kustom Cycles. In the US and Canada the bike will cost $36,999 (about $US52,600) …
As if the Indian Roadmaster isn’t special enough, the company has released an Elite version with a 600-watt stereo system and gold-leaf paint that took more than 30 hours to paint by hand. Indian Australia spokesman Christopher Gale says they have already sold one of the $52,995 (ride-away) limited-edition bikes to a Perth customer. He says …
Indian Motorcycle last month trademarked the name Raven and now they have added the name Renegade pointing to a possible model assault. There are no details further available from Indian Motorcycle, so we can only speculate about the new models. Renegade name A Renegade is “a person who deserts and betrays an organisation, country, or …
Indian Motorcycle has one of the best audio and infotainment systems on a motorcycle and it has just got better with a free software upgrade and phone app. The new software will allow riders to plan their trip on their desktop computer with up to 100 waypoints then send it remotely to their bike’s infotainment …
Even before the Indian FTR 1200 arrives there is already a host of accessories available for the bike including two types of Akrapovic slip-on titanium and stainless steel mufflers. These accessories should help defray some of the criticism of the exhaust and plump seat. It may also thwart some of the aftermarket suppliers from producing their …
Since Indian Motorcycle unveiled their flat-track-inspired FTR 1200 on October 1, the company has been swamped with interest from potential buyers. In announcing their third-quarter results, parent company Polaris says the announcement of the FTR 1200 has received unprecedented interest. They claim the website and social media announcement has had more than 80 million global …