Really indepth artice on Indian's new 108 water cooled V Twin

[fourteenfour]

Inside the Indian 108

[TEWKS]

And where it's going, or at least its first stopover. A lot to like if this type of motorcycle is your bagger. 

 

More here

[Hosstage]

I am not a fan of those flat black plastic filler panels, especially on the bottoms of the bags. Not really sure of the function or design purpose of those. I think it cheapens the look of a premium motorcycle.

Anyone remember the Honda Element?

[TEWKS]

Funny, my eyes questioned that at first glance also. Wouldn't be a deal breaker though.

[Paul De]

If your into cruising on a bagger this looks to be a great offering.  HD has got to feel the heat and you can see it in that their pace of innovation has stepped up in the last few years.

[TEWKS]

I've read or heard a few say "Road Glide Rip-off" which I guess is easy to see with the frame mounted fairing. But then my thought went right to Ford, Chevy, Ram and others...They all make pick-up trucks, with a cab and a bed. The same but different. 

 

I think it's going to be a seller for Indian.

[fourteenfour]

Actually the black plastic that turned me off is all on the fairing, the extensions make it look like the original design did not deliver the wind protection expected and they were too far in the process to go back and correct the fairing. It makes it look very unrefined compared to the Harley Road Glide. Water cooling did not help at all with weight, it is nearly 850 ready to ride. In the end there is just too much black plastic that should been a painted surface, like that one piece immediately below the seat.

[Hosstage]

12 minutes ago, CommuterChris said:

Actually the black plastic that turned me off is all on the fairing, the extensions make it look like the original design did not deliver the wind protection expected and they were too far in the process to go back and correct the fairing. It makes it look very unrefined compared to the Harley Road Glide. Water cooling did not help at all with weight, it is nearly 850 ready to ride. In the end there is just too much black plastic that should been a painted surface, like that one piece immediately below the seat.

 

I have to agree with you on all aspects of your post.

[Hank in WV]

Is the bag lid fastened? It looks quite odd to me.

[TEWKS]

11 hours ago, Hank in WV said:

Is the bag lid fastened? It looks quite odd to me.

 

It appears to be locked down but I haven't actually seen the bike in person. Maybe the speaker mounted in the lid looks odd to you?

[TEWKS]

Love the dash layout but what appears odd to me is the handlebar position. It looks like there would be no clearance at full lock. Sure it's an optical illusion. 

[realshelby]

Wasn't even interested in reading this till this morning. 

 

I have a different take on the plastic panels. They look well thought out to me. The lowers on the bags...could that area touch down at extreme lean angles? Or in a parking lot tipover? Replaceable? What about the panel on top of the bags....I have seen bags beat to death from boot marks, this would help!

 

 Fairing edges really make sense to me, having that angle no doubt helps aero performance and since it will be a bug and rock collector it cannot chip. Appears to be part of the rear of the fairing allowing more room for speakers and stuff. 

 

Easily the cleanest look on a cruiser as far as hiding/protecting the radiator. 

 

I really like the looks of the fairing. Modern with the classic undertone. Finally, an electrically adjustable windshield! 

 

Not sure I would compare the valvetrain to 100 year old radial engine design, but I love me some hydraulic valves that don't need adjustment! This would be a "change the oil and ride" type of bike. Looks like it would eat up miles.  Unless it has too small a fuel tank and poor mileage?

 

The looks of this bike are much more pleasing to me than the Harley version. That is just me, I get the H-D crowd will want to pick it apart. This HAS to worry Harley management! Not looking to trade my RT for one today. But I will guarantee I would ride one before my next bike purchase. 

[TEWKS]

24 Fast Facts on the Challenger 

 

[Marty Hill]

It sure wins the ugly contest.

[wbw6cos]

Definitely not a fan of that color.  I do like the red colored one, though.

[TEWKS]

Never been a fan of the matte finishes myself but that one kinda caught my eye.  

 

The numbers.

 

[Pappy35]

I hate cruisers!

 

...now, having gotten that off my chest: I really like this bike (not that color)! Go Indian!

[Hosstage]

I've never liked the look of the Harley RoadGlide, don't like the fixed sharknose fairing. I'm more a fan of the traditional Batwing fairing.

This bike makes the RoadGlide look good.

[Ponch]

It's a lot of money for what it isn't. Not many color options like a HD(I hate matte paint), doesn't come with good passenger accommodations and it's still obese. I think it'll be dead reliable and makes decent power for a vtwin, but when I look at bikes in the same price range, better can be had. I think Polaris is short sighted in thinking HD is their only competition at this price point. 

[TEWKS]

Yeah, no tour pack while in tour pack territory as far as pricing goes. Should at least have a detachable passenger backrest as standard equipment to make up for it. 

 

Thought this with Victory and now with Indian. They're competing with HD who (like / love or hate them) have a long and successful history selling motorcycles. Why not undercut their (HD) prices by thousands of dollars on any new competing model they put out to draw in the tightwads um, frugal among us?  Brand loyalty or a buck in your pocket, hmm. 

 

Now, I'd use this as an advertising tool but I'm sure it could be spun negatively...i.e. "Inferior product" First year discounts to bring people in sounds good to me. 

[Ponch]

On 11/2/2019 at 8:11 AM, TEWKS said:

Yeah, no tour pack while in tour pack territory as far as pricing goes. Should at least have a detachable passenger backrest as standard equipment to make up for it. 

 

Thought this with Victory and now with Indian. They're competing with HD who (like / love or hate them) have a long and successful history selling motorcycles. Why not undercut their (HD) prices by thousands of dollars on any new competing model they put out to draw in the tightwads um, frugal among us?  Brand loyalty or a buck in your pocket, hmm. 

 

Now, I'd use this as an advertising tool but I'm sure it could be spun negatively...i.e. "Inferior product" First year discounts to bring people in sounds good to me. 

 

It only comes with a one year warranty too. They didn't win me over at all. 

[fourteenfour]

8 hours ago, Ponch said:

 

It only comes with a one year warranty too. They didn't win me over at all. 

 

which, the Victory bikes?  The current Indian's have two year unlimited mileage warranties.

 

I have to compare the Challenger to my new RT, vastly overweight and overpriced. The protection of Indian's twins is as bad as the Harley's. With separate lowers you get gaps in protection and for some reason both brands suffer that air flow problem from forks to tank that can cause buffeting, not sure if Challenger will have that issue but I am not in the market for one just after seeing specs and picture; a ride pretty much cannot change my mind

[TEWKS]

9 hours ago, Ponch said:

 

 They didn't win me over at all. 

 

I'm still unsure on the looks of the frame mounted fairing (not a road-glide subscriber either) but, do love the cockpit view on this bike. 

While not an expert moto journalist, this guy's reaction to the bike was fun to watch. I think he was won over. 

 

[Ponch]

2 hours ago, TEWKS said:

 

I'm still unsure on the looks of the frame mounted fairing (not a road-glide subscriber either) but, do love the cockpit view on this bike. 

While not an expert moto journalist, this guy's reaction to the bike was fun to watch. I think he was won over. 

 

He's also a cruiser rider that owns a victory. How many people have we read about here and on other forums than came from heavyweights to a RT and were amazed. The extra weight does nothing for the rider and I'd bet the new RT would spank the crap out of this obese MC. I didn't get the feeling it was all that quick from the video. In fact I was left wondering why he was excited. 

[Ponch]

3 hours ago, CommuterChris said:

 

which, the Victory bikes?  The current Indian's have two year unlimited mileage warranties.

 

I have to compare the Challenger to my new RT, vastly overweight and overpriced. The protection of Indian's twins is as bad as the Harley's. With separate lowers you get gaps in protection and for some reason both brands suffer that air flow problem from forks to tank that can cause buffeting, not sure if Challenger will have that issue but I am not in the market for one just after seeing specs and picture; a ride pretty much cannot change my mind

In one of the magazine reviews it was listed as a 1 year warranty. They could have misprinted it. I owned a 1600 Nomad before I got the RT. About a 250lb difference. After riding the RT on a test ride, I felt like I was riding a motorcycle again. What boggles my mind is that if you want the IMU, it's a significant increase in price from the base model, which isn't cheap to begin with and then there are the limited color choices and I hate the primer look. I just don't see the value. It's a complicated metric for me, but basically nothing out there ticks all my boxes for wanting to get into that kind of debt. The upside of HD and the Indian is simplified maintenance. I could do it all myself. I couldn't with a K bike and that adds to the cost of ownership. The downside is an obese bike that isn't as competent as a BMW or Goldwing for that matter. If BMW simplified their maintenance, I'd probably take the leap. 

[Pappy35]

I generally agree with the overall sentiment here though I loudly applaud Indian for pushing modern tech in that market bubble. If I were in the market for a non-working (daily driver I mean) motorcycle, depending on actual cost, I would take a good close look at that new 1800cc cruiser BMW just officially revealed. I like it's look much better than that mule that was showing up in spy photos.

[TEWKS]

John Burns Seems To Like The Challenge-r