Well the wife and I took off work to enjoy the 60+ degree weather today even though it was overcast all day.

We rode a total of 277 miles and covered Lexington, NC, Salisbury, NC, Concord, NC (stopped at Pat Rogers Speedway HD) and then I got the brainstorm to ride on down to Indian.

Gastonia, NC
Exit #22 off I-85
Then right on Indian Trail

Well I have taken the wife to almost every motorcycle dealership brand wise that there is. She is a die hard Harley fan and if I had bought anything else she would have left me. Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, BMW, Victory, IronHorse you name it she liked NOTHING.

Maybe I should not have taken her to Indian because she fell in love with them. We have an agreement that we are NOT going to sell or trade our first Harley the 08 SG. But we are shopping and looking forward to buying a second bike. We had pretty much decided that an Ultra Classic would be our next purchase in a year or so. Well I may receive orders to buy an Indian instead.

105 Cubic Inch Motor
6 Speed Baker Tranny

I will say they make a very nice product. It is comfortable to me and looks beautiful. Some color combinations are not for me but others were nicer than anything I have seen on a Harley. The seats are the most comfortable I have sat on and the overall fit and finish far exceeded the SG we own. They are longer and they feel very light with the center of gravity being lower than the HD.

They are very proud of them but there are not any other options to buy. I did not know that Indian was founded in 1901 and is older than Harley even though they were out of product for a while.

Currently they have 17 dealers and many service agreements with indy's around the country. The warranty is two years unlimited mileage and if you break down they will cover all towing with a certified motorcycle towing company, provide auto transportation if required, cover hotel and dinner and fly the parts in air overnight if required.

He said they will build a total of 700 of the 2009 models with 50 people currently working at the plant in Kings Mountain, NC and hope to more than doule that quantity on the 2010 models.

Overall it was a very pleasent experience, the showroom is nice and the people are very friendly and knowledgeable without being pushy. He asked if I would like to take one for a test drive but we were on a mission with a lot of miles to go and I took a rain check and plan to go back down in about a month for the ride.

The wife spent $115.00 there in stuff which is really cool and the only complaint I had at all was the old time Indian Oil Cans that were $19.95 and yeah they were EMPTY. I was actually going to buy one for the shop to go with my other display items and could not believe when I picked it up that it was empty!

If you are in the area you'll be glad you stopped if you go by.

Happy riding

 

Which one did you look at? The Roadmaster?

BTW, go to their website and out the Les Paul leather jacket. Cool but way overpriced ($995!)

 

Smokin lookin bikes but really expensive

 

The first one I sat on was a Deluxe with a solo seat. It felt great.

Then I got on a Roadmaster and the wife climbed on the back and commented immediately at how comfortable the seat and back rest were and we both noticed the extra two to three inches between us.

She really likes the Vintage in the red and white with the tan seat and bags. I fell in love with a solid Black Chief with white walls, billet wheels and tan seat. It has so much CLASS and is a work of art.

Of course it was over $35K also!

 

The original Indian company went out of business in the mid 50's. There is no continuity between them and the present company except in name and general appearance. To say they've been around longer than Harley is totally wrong.

 

http://indianmotorcycle.com/store/pr...ul-ranger.aspx

Overpriced is an understatement.

I don't care for it at a fourth of the price.

 

All I can say is.................YOU BIOTCH! You drove to Indian's new factory and didn't even bother to post pictures. You're just trying to taunt us aren't you? Hang your head in shame!!

Seriously though...they are making a beautiful bike and I agree with you the quality is definitely there. The only thing I would add is that while there isn't very much in the way of parts and accessories, there really isn't much to do either. The bikes are dripping in chrome from the factory to start with and eventually there will be more available once the aftermarket begins to kick in.

I've been thinking about buying a Chief Vintage myself...unfortunately there still doesn't appear to be any dealers here yet. I've called the factory and they tell me they're working on getting dealers set up here in So Cal.

Be sure to post pics if buy one. They're much to beautiful not to share.

 

VERY SORRY!

That last thing on my mind this morning was the camera. The minute we walked into the dealership I looked at the wife and said i wish I had remembered the camera. I'll be sure and get some pictures the next trip down.

Yes they are dripping with chrome!

 

Agreed

Not trying to say they have been around longer. Just that they were founded first which I did not know and it actually surprised me.

 

In this economy, and for what they are asking for these bikes, will they still be around in a few years? They ARE beautiful bikes but I gotta wonder about the timing and expense.