INDIAN FTR1200 LAUNCH
UTS&BOLTS
ENGINE
TYPE DOHC, 4-valves per cylinder
TRANSMISSION 6-speed
BORE X STROKE 102mm x 73.6mm
CLUTCH Assist slip, multi-plate
COMPRESSION RATIO 12.5:1
COOLING SYSTEM Liquid
DISPLACEMENT 1203cc
EXHAUST 2-1-2
FINAL DRIVE Chain
FUEL Closed loop fuel injection
HORSEPOWER 123hp at 8250 rpm
PEAK TORQUE 120 Nm/88 ft-lb
SUSPENSION
FRONT Fully adjustable cartridge fork
DIAMETER 43mm
REAR Fully adjustable Piggyback
TRAVEL 150mm
CHASSIS
DRY WEIGHT 222kg
GROUND CLEARANCE 183mm
LENGTH 2287mm
RAKE 26.3°
TRAIL 130mm
SEAT HEIGHT (UNLADEN) 840mm
WHEELBASE 1524mm
LEAN ANGLE 43°
WHEELS & BRAKES
F RIM Cast 19 x 3in
R RIM Cast 18 x 4.25in
TYRES Dunlop DT3-R Radial
F BRAKE Dual 320mm rotor
F CALIPERS 4-piston
R BRAKE Single 265mm rotor
R CALIPERS 2-piston
power delivered to the back wheel when you’re still
tipped over. I thought it was the rear tyre giving up
and the traction control stepping in before I realised
that lifting the bike up mid-turn while getting on
the gas tricked the system into giving full mumbo
in Road mode. Flick it up to Sport mode and the
system allows you to get more aggressive before
calling in the fun police again.Canyon Run
Cruising out of downtown Santa Monica on Saturday
morning, we joined the hordes trying to vacate the
LA skyline, presumably all looking for somewhere
quieter with less smog but instead they were stuck
in an endless traffic jam. Dealing with traffic, fools
on electric scooters and middle-aged men and
women squeezed into lycra peddling over-priced
bikes without motors was madness whilst riding
on the wrong side of the road after a 12 hour flight.
Thankfully the FTR has instant delivery of sumptu-
ous torque, light controls, flat bars and an upright
riding position, giving me all the ammunition Ineeded to go into battle.
Lane splitting at speed through a heavily congested
freeway showed the Indian was narrow enough to
squeeze between endless lines of super-sized pick-
ups guzzling cheap gas whilst going nowhere. And
when a space opened up, a twist of the wrist had the
FTR leaping forward no matter what gear I was in.
We hadn’t even made it out of the traffic before
I had decided the Indian’s 1203cc powerplant has
taken American V-twin motors to the next level
with a smoothness that’s impossible to comprehend,
especially when the revs drop. Yet, open the throt-
tle as low as 2,000rpm on the TFT screen, and the
FTR surges forward before getting into its stride a
couple of thousand rpm later. I was almost fooled
into thinking the FTR is a short-shifting delight
and that’s all but hang on as the revs hit 6000rpm!
You almost forget just how big the pistons whiz-
zing up and down below are. And it doesn’t stop
revving until you hit the hard limiter at 9000rpm
which ends the fun momentarily until you grab
another cog in the sweet, short-throw gearbox and