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.
FTR stands for “flat track racer”, but even the Indian FTR 1200 Race Replica is much more than that and not the narrow-focussed bike many might think. It arrives in Australia in three models all at ride-away prices: FTR 1200 basic black for $20,995; FTR 1200 S in red and grey or titanium and black for $22,995; …
More spy photos have emerged for the upcoming Challenger bagger from Indian Motorcycle believed to be powered by a liquid-cooled 1770cc engine called the Powerplus. The bike looks like a “challenger” to the Harley-Davidson Road Glide. The images are courtesy of Tim Ledford and were taken in Colorado in July. “We tried to get them to stop …
Indian Motorcycle has increased engine capacity to up the ante over Harley-Davidson with select Thunderstroke models now having a 116 engine, replacing the 111 (1818cc). Actually it’s 115ci (1884cc), but it’s still a 20% power boost over the 111. The “116” was previously an aftermarket upgrade big bore kit, but is now standard in the …
For 2020, the Indian Scout gets a new model and a limited edition to mark its 100th anniversary, plus better brakes, tyres and a host of accessories for current models. However, there is no word on updates to the rest of the Indian range nor the expected Challenger models powered by a new liquid-cooled 1770cc engine …
Indian Motorcycle is about to unveil a new line of Challenger motorcycles powered by a liquid-cooled 1770cc engine called the Powerplus. The move was leaked in a video from the company dealer conference in the USA. The video has now been taken down, but is still available on Motorcycle.com. Powerplus V-twin The video confirms our tip in …
Indian motorcycle is marking the 100th anniversary of the Scout model with a NOS custom drag bike with a dustbin fairing that looks like an old jet fighter plane. The Appaloosa, named after America’s fast horse breed, is based on the Scout Bobber. It will compete in the quirky Sultans of Sprint series throughout Europe …
Indian Motorcycle is not only building a new engine, but also seems to be updating its current Thunderstroke 111 with variable valve timing or VVT. Last month, images surfaced of a heavily disguised Indian tourer, possibly called the Raptor, with a fixed fairing and a different engine, believed to be quad-valved and water-cooled. It is …
A national roadshow of pre-production Indian FTR 1200 models has been deemed a success with “a number of $1000 deposits” being taken. The pre-production models have been on show at various Indian dealers over the past month. Indian Motorcycle marketing boss Christopher Gale says the roadshow was a success with “showrooms full of people at …
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 …