Engine and performance: A near locomotive feel
The Indian Chief Vintage, in a way, fulfilled my childhood dream of driving a locomotive! Indian Motorcycles boast a tremendous amount of torque. The Thunder Stroke 111’s basic architecture is based on the V-twins found in classic Indian Motorcycles. The air and oil-cooled V-twin comes with beefy parallel pushrod tubes. The left side works towards the air intake while the right side is dedicated to drive.
The Thunder Stroke also incorporates heritage inspired design elements such as the angular fin valve covers, classic 2/3rd head to cylinder neck down bodies and distinctive downward ported exhaust headers. As many as eight sensors feed the ECU data by taking over 400 measurements per second to ensure optimum fuel-air mixture. That’s that with the technical jargons. Here is how the motorcycle performs in real like.
The 1811cc engine puts out a massive 139Nm of torque which pulls the 380 kilogram (with full tank of fuel) motorcycle with “utmost” ease. Why do we emphasise on utmost? Try moving the motorcycle around without starting the engine and you would soon realise what we are talking about.
But this does not mean that you would have to hit the gym two times a day and have a burly physique to ride the motorcycle. Once in action, you barely feel the weight and it is fairly easy to manoeuvre the Chief Vintage. Taking a U-turn though, with the 2634mm length, is quite a task and you end up doing some leg exercise.
The torque kicks in from the lowest of RPMs and is delivered throughout the range. And although the motorcycle is meant to be an ideal tool for leisure cruising, it propels to three digit speeds in a matter of seconds. The six-speed manual transmission is crisp and precise and except a couple of false neutrals (throughout the day), we did not find anything to complain about. The throttle-by-wire system ensured smooth acceleration without excessive wheel spin. Long highway voyages are fairly easy thanks to the cruise control feature. Lock the motorcycle on a particular speed using the cruise control and let the electronics do the rest!
The Chief Vintage that we received for testing was loaded with an aftermarket slip-on free flow exhaust which added to the grunty sound and more power.
But what would be sufficient to stop a near 400 kilogram piece of mass moving at three digit speeds? This requires some really potent braking capacity and the job is nicely executed by 300mm dual floating rotor four piston caliper dual brake at the front and single floating rotor two piston caliper 300mm at the rear which come standard with anti-lock brakes. Once the anchor is dropped, the motorcycle comes to a standstill in a remarkably short amount of time giving the rider the confidence of late braking.
Ergonomics: The Couch Competitor
The last five motorcycles I rode were naked roadsters. So hopping on the Indian Chief Vintage was like jumping from an iOS device to the vintage circular dial telephones of yore. The first thing you realise is the couch-like comfy seat that you place your rear on. It’s wide, well padded and sculpted for optimum riding comfort. Then you reach out for the handlebar which is inclined towards the rider with the grips curving inwards for easy accessibility and straight forward riding posture. The foot boards, like typical cruiser motorcycles, are forward placed. The rider’s triangle somewhat resembles the sitting position on the couch on a lazy Sunday (well, minus the handlebar).
Once in motion, you come to realise how easy it is to ride the motorcycle. Of course, one may have a really difficult time in bumper to bumper traffic but that’s not where the Chief Vintage is supposed to be ridden. Cast aluminium frame handles the weight and massive power of the motorcycle quite well. You can lean into a corner with immense confidence thanks to the sturdy frame and wide, soft-compound tyres. The well distributed torque is a blessing doing the same.
Taller gear range means less frequent shifting. Engage the third gear and you can ride the Chief Vintage like an automatic transmission motorcycle on city roads. The motorcycle holds its ground with ease as the Godzilla-like-weight provides maximum stability even on higher speeds. The 18-inch windscreen comes handy as it deflects all the oncoming air over the rider, further enhancing the aerodynamics and avoiding any windblasts.
The ride quality, thanks to the suspension setup and the soft, well padded saddle make uneven surfaces feel like a baby’s smooth skin. Taking it over a few bad patches of roads made us realise that the suspension setup and the soft saddle work extraordinarily well and, at times, you may not even realise that you rode over a small pothole or an uneven surface. And if the comfort level is still not enough, you can get yourself a rider backrest as an accessory for those long highway hauls. Comfort aspect for the pillion too has been thoroughly thought of. Our photographer friend stepped up to the task. Although he did suggest that a backrest would come handy, he was fairly satisfied with the shape, design and padding of the seat.
There are a few niggles though. Firstly, it is fairly difficult to push the motorcycle backward and you just can’t pray enough for a reverse gear. Moreover, the non-adjustable clutch lever may cause trouble if you’ve got small hands. But that is something that one can live with.
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Good one Shashank!
I think at that cost i would like to have futuristic windshield too showing my mails, the weather forecast, playing my favorite music and reminding me that i have a shot gun (like Arnold one) in the back and also that police is behind me otherwise i am not buying it!