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Cruiser
Posts: 209
| stopped by my local dealer[Cherokee trikes of Greenville] and took about a 5mi. demo ride, on a chieftain.without getting into details. I was impressed with the smooth ride and handling. When I rode off on my vision...I was still smilin'. I love it when people will roll their window down in traffic and ask about my vision. |
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Visionary
Posts: 2300
Georgia, west of Atlanta | I've test rode Chieftains twice. Good bike. Shifts nice, good stereo, good botttom end power. Wind protection no where near our Visions. I doubt the engine potential is anywhere near our Freedom 106s unless alot of headwork is done, it is a 2 valve pushrod engine with a single throttle body feeding both cylinders just like a Harley........... |
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Tourer
Posts: 573
Central Illinois | Let's hope it is better than a Harley, even though the configuration is similar. |
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Visionary
Posts: 2300
Georgia, west of Atlanta | The engineering is better, one piece crankshaft on plain bearings and better valve geometry. What I was referring to for performance potential is the 2 valve pushrod design and the common intake plenum......... |
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Visionary
Posts: 8144
New Bohemia, VA | The SL Indian is a fine built mashine that is fun to ride. I've said this before in that Polaris put a lot of stuff into and onto the new Indians, but made them sit and look like the old Indians. I had expected some more modern styling, keeping true to the heritage of the brand. Indian was always about power and innovation and had they stayed afloat I believe that the motorcycle landscape would look much different than it does today. In fact, I believe if they had stayed afloat, they would have built the Vision. The crazy thing is, the engineering of the Vision has gone into the new Indian. Go figure...
Edited by varyder 2014-03-23 6:54 AM
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Visionary
Posts: 1365
Central Maryland | They had Indian demo rides at Chesapeake Cycle yesterday, near Annapolis. I was there but opted out of riding one. I was concerned that I would have bought one; after riding it....
They are nice bikes. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 281
| willtill - 2014-03-23 8:40 AM
They had Indian demo rides at Chesapeake Cycle yesterday, near Annapolis. I was there but opted out of riding one. I was concerned that I would have bought one; after riding it....
They are nice bikes.
Indeed!
I'm the lucky owner of two Visions and a new Spirit Lake Indian. They're all great machines. As much as I love the Indian, it's not a Vision. But then, it's not trying to be. Still, the Indian is quick, handles great, feels lighter at a stop, and has a very smooth suspension.
The Indian definitely has the edge with the torque. It's a torque monster!  |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 802
| I took a demo ride at the San Diego dealer last Saturday. I rode a Chieftain and it really showcases how far Polaris has come. It's a very nice bike but, as others have said, it is no Vision. I heard a lot about how quiet and smooth shifting the trans is but it didn't seem noticeably better than my '13 Vision much to my disappointment. The engine is strong but runs out of poop early on. The fairing and screen are very effective with no buffeting at all. The handling is a bit odd in that the bike initially leans easily but then has to be pushed to get it to go over further. The seating position is very Harleyesque up close to the fairing but then I'm used to the Vision's stretched out seating. It is comfortable, though. I noticed a lot of heat coming up from the engine after we exited the freeway and it was only 75F out. The brakes seemed about the same as ours. This bike is loaded with electronic upgrades all very well executed it seemed to me. The fit and finish are world class.
The number one improvement in my mind is the suspension. It's unbelievable. I've never been on a big bike that rides like this one does. So plush and controlled particularly from the rear. They are running basically the same type of linked suspension as the Vision except that it is canted forward with a high end Fox air over oil, double tube shock. The Vision runs a 600 lb spring while the Indian uses a 400 lb spring. They both use a similar shock to wheel ratio of about 2 to 1 and length of wheel travel. The bikes weigh the same without the Vision's trunk hanging out the rear. Since the Vision has to contend with the trunk I'm sure that's why they equipped it with such a strong spring. I run without the trunk which gives a stiff ride in the rear. The Indian's softer spring allows for sag which is more rider's weight vs the Vision whose sag is almost entirely the bike's weight. The result is a very controlled and compliant ride. Just sitting on it you can bounce it up and down with just your own body weight. The KYB shock we have is a rudimentary emulsion type while the Fox on the Indian is an air over oil type with a floating piston separating the air from the oil. The Fox also uses a top out spring which the KYB isn't equipped with. I wondered about installing the Fox on my bike but the KYB has a clevis lower mount while the Fox has an eyelet. Too much trouble. Now a 450 lb spring in the Vision? Hmmm.... :-)
Marc |
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Glendale, AZ United States | I had the opportunity to ride all of the new Indian Models about three months ago during a demo event. Nice fit and finish and the keyless ignition threw me off for a bit considering the classic styling of the motorcycle. I'm over six feet tall and didn't like to look down to see the guages and what was going on with the bike or the the fairing on the Chieftain in my face. I think the nail was hit on the head in the sense the Indian is a completely different bike compared to the VV. It makes for a worthy bar hopper and HD replacement, even though I have a buddy of mine that has put about 9K on the bike since he purchased it about four months ago. Go figure, to each his own.  |
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Indian demo rides
