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https://fb.watch/k4_QxBjV0G/?mibextid=l2pjGR
Story time: In the year 1901in Springfield Massachusetts Indian Motorcycles was founded by George Hendee. They produced motorcycles until 1953. In 2011 Polaris Industries purchased the Indian Motorcycle Company and began producing bikes in their manufacturing plants in Minnesota and Iowa. And this is where we are today. Over the last eight years Polaris has brought the Indian brand back to life. And with that, we at Torqued Magazine got the golden opportunity to test out the new 2019 Indian Scout ABS. Let’s see how far these bikes have come along.
We picked up our bike at the local Indian dealer. In our neck of the woods the dealer is about an hour and a half away from Torqued Magazine headquarters. Upon first overall impression it was a beautiful bike. Our test unit came with a windshield, saddle bags, and a back rest. I really like the paint scheme and layout of the bike. The seat was comfortable the handlebars felt like they were at a good height as well. I really like the look of the two exposed rear shocks on the bike as well. And the engine, wow. It looked immaculate, as was it perfectly sized to be crammed into the bike frame. Those twin heads just looked perfectly placed in that bike. And add those chrome dual exhaust pipes and esthetically we have a visual winner.
Let’s hit the road:
Being late fall, we were in primo riding weather for the return from the dealership. We thought to ourselves, how can we test this machine out, how can we give it a working. That answer came quickly maybe 10 miles into our ride. With an accident on the freeway causing a complete closure of the road we were essentially frozen in place. Over the next 2 hours we moved maybe 2 miles. Immediately came to though how will this bike with it’s liquid cooled engine handle this? Will the stop and go overheat it? In short the answer, no. The Scout stood up to the challenge and didn’t flinch an inch, as we the rider were boiling over from the pain of the being in traffic.
Test #1 passed.
Finally being able to get this bike on open road was a dream. I’ve riden a lot of bikes and I have to say this is the smoothest bike I’ve ever been on. And when I say smoothest I mean in all aspects of the ride. The shocksfelt dialed in from the get go. The V-twin engine power deliver is so smooth. The gear changes via the wet clutch to the 6 speed transmission are off the charts for smooth. I never once had a jerk or missed shift. And let’s just admire these brakes. I’ll say it again, smooth. Both wheels enjoy 298mm sized rotors, with the front wheel having a dual piston and the rear and its single piston calipers. I can’t say enough about the grip and bite of these breaks, yet maintaining constant non-jerking friction all through the process of stopping from any speed.
Our test bike was the 1133 cc sized engine model, which puts out an impressive 100 horsepower. It comes with a 3.3 gallon fuel tank, and is fuel injected. The bike is advertised with a peak torque of 72.2 ft. lb.
We tested that torque out by putting a series of various sized riders on the bike. And believe me we had some big boys on this bike. The results were just what we expected. It had good power and smooth power delivery no matter what sized rider or load it was moving. It handled that load climbing some of the steepest canyon roads we could find.
And speaking of canyon roads, I for one love the twisties as I call them. The great curvy canyon roads we are blessed with having so close to us. On a brisk fall day we put the Scout through it’s rigors on a curvy canyon road. I had my reservations at first due to the cold pavement and the size of this bike. 15 minutes in those reservation were gone. The scout handled like a champ. I really enjoy the engine placement on the bike. It gives it a great low center of gravity while maintaining that center of mass to make it easy to lean that bike over into a corner. It handled every corner and every abrupt braking scenario I threw at it. I can’t say enough good things about this bike.
It looks good, feels good, and it truly performs good. The 2019 Indian Scout ABS gets my approval.
