2014 Indian "Thunder Stroke" 111 V-Twin

I'm young enough that Indian doesn't mean a ton to me - I'm happy to have the Indian represent nostalgia, because thats what I think when I see photos of old Chiefs and Scouts.

The idea that Victory is the performance brand is what kills me - they're just as heavy and lazily tuned as any other big twin, with some of the newer bikes being the worst offenders in the industry in terms of lean angle.

I'm almost 58 and Indian was gone a couple years before I was born.....they don't mean much to me in terms of seeing many on the road, riding one, etc.

I think they will cover both bases pretty well though....nostalgia is built into the appearance of that motor, and it's design shows that it's intended to be a strong performer in the company it will be keeping.

I think they're going to do very well with it.

If so I think thats a big mistake on Polaris's part. What polaris should do is dissolve the Victory line completely into Indian.

The Victory engine and bikes technically speaking are great. If they cosmetically redesigned those "Las Vegas gambler" themed Arlen Ness abortions to look like 21st century versions of bikes Indian may have built and gave them names like Scout, Crazy Horse, Tomahawk, White Buffalo, exc. I might actually consider buying one!

Again one of the biggest marketing problems for Victory 'aside form being Ness Abortions' Is the name Victory itself. To me, at least, Victory has never really found its own identity! And as a brand has always sort of seemed adrift. Thus, I ain't buying one.

But if it was INDIAN...

All Victory touring bikes....the Aluminum framed models, have some of the best cornering clearance in the industry. Not to mention the most suspension travel. If any newer models suffer from what you're saying, it's the Judge.

Indian went out of business 6 years before I was born, and I have never had any interest in them. The old Chief is what I think of when I think of Indian, and that's what most people probably think of as well. Other than the Burt Munro thing, I've never heard of racing Indians, other than back during the boardtrack era.

As far as Victory, I see them mostly as choppers, with a couple of touring bikes thrown in. All those Vegas, Hammer, Jackpot, and 8 Ball bikes sure look like custom choppers to me. They are built strictly for looks. All of them have huge rear tires, just like the used to be Harley clone choppers. If they intend to compete with Harley, they definitely need to expand their model range, other than just changing the look of their one model slightly and giving it a new name. They basically only have 2 models, the choppers, and the touring bikes.

My guess is that the new Indians will sell, but in small quantities. Victory is the same way. Polaris does not seem to have a problem with this, most of their profit comes from ATVs, snowmobiles, and PWC. I wish they had stuck with the original V92C. At least kept it in the lineup. It actually looked like a motorcycle, instead of some kind of "custom"

Jerry, Victory has only had TWO fat tired bikes ever! The Jackpot & Hammer. That's it! Of the six steel framed models in the current lineup four have traditional sized rear tires. They are, Boardwalk, High-Ball, Judge and Vegas.

Also, Polaris has been out of the PWC business since 2004!

The guy you hate is Michael Song, he designed the Vegas.

The V92C looked to me like a group of unrelated motorcycle parts that were just used with no design plan or consideration of overall appearance.

The Vegas and those that came later, love 'em or hate 'em, have a style and consistency of design.

That said, appearance-wise, I can't understand the Victory Vision. At all.:huh

the V92C was as ugly (IMO) as a mid 80's Japanese cruiser....not the same, just using it's level of ugliness as a yardstick

The Victorys are doing well here, I see many of the Ness styled bikes and Visions around. I love the powertrain, and if I was going to spend large money on a bike for style points and get a good motor in the deal - it would be one of the Victorys.

The Spirit of Munro. Brought to you by Polaris Industries and Indian Motorcycles.

Here's to your success!



Riding it:

Gotta hand it to 'em, GREAT VIDEO!

And the "pilot" is one of the best Moto Guzzi mechanics around. Used to race...

Harleys have, or used to have, that bits and pieces look. That was one of the things that attracted people to them. When the Japanese started trying to copy them, theirs were to seamless, to refined, to perfectly finished. (the original Suzuki Intruder comes to mind) With the Bolt, it looks like Yamaha finally nailed the bits and pieces look. Unfortunately Harley is moving away from it. Just look at the left side of an '03 or older Sportster, then look at an '04. The '04 looks very Japanese ish with it's fake rounded sidecover instead of the square battery box. You will notice this Japanese look on many newer Harleys. The older Wide Glide was a beauty. The new one looks, well, Japanese. The older British bikes were the same way. My '66 Bonnie had no sidecovers. It was not symmetrical in any way. A motorcycle is not supposed to be designed like a car.

And I don't get the Vision either. If they wanted to be different, they certainly accomplished that.

Where's the bike already??? I'm getting a bit anxious...

Who that be?

Regards, Paul

That "fake rounded sidecover" isn't fake. It's simply a side cover. Like it or not, new motorcycles are FI and modern motorcycles use more electrical components than older bikes. The newer style side cover on the Sportster is more than a battery box. It also hides the fuse box and various other electrical wiring and "things". If you were to open one you'd see that it's STUFFED. It's pretty easy to hide such things on bikes with fairings, or with bikes that have space under the seat and/or tank. But part of the compromise brought about by the silly idea that you have to have a low seat to make a functional motorcycle, is that you loose the space that could otherwise be designed beneath it. If you want to maintain a relatively clean look on a naked bike like the Sportster you have to put all that wiring somewhere and there's really very little hidden space available on the Sporty. Styling preferences aside, the covers are a design compromise. Motorcycle design is all about compromises and packaging of the various components has always been a thorn in the side of the stylists.

Todd Eagan. THE Todd Eagan of GuzziTech.com. Has a garage full of Moto Guzzi's.

Aaahhhhh, thanks. I dropped more then a few $$$$ at GuzziTech when I owned a 1200 Sport. It sure ran good with the GuzziTech magic installed. Sold it with 20k miles when the electrical gremlins started making random appearances.

Regards, Paul

This is worth a quote. Now I want an Indian. I sure hope the road bikes sound like that...and I wonder what kind of speed they can get out of one with the fairing? Sturgis outing you say???

I didn't mean the cover itself was fake. But Harleys in general have never used sidecovers. Sportsters have always had the oil tank on the right side, and a rectangular battery box on the left side. The Sportster never had anything it didn't actually need (other than that eyebrow over the headlight) and they never hid things, they put all the mechanical parts out in the open. The mid '80s FXRS used sidecovers, and I always thought they stood out like a sore thumb.

All of this is of course my own personal opinion, as styling always is. Your Forty Eight is one gorgeous bike, which I would love to have in my garage.

The new Chief will be revealed Saturday, August 3 at the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum (linky). I won't be there for it as I will not arrive in Sturgis until Sunday. Indian has demo rides all week so I hope to get a test ride in if my patience doesn't expire waiting in line . Also looking forward to seeing the Spirit of Munro as it is scheduled to be on display.