All Tests – Scout Sixty Test: an Indian in the city – The new Indian entry level

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Scout Sixty test: an Indian in the city

All Tests - Scout Sixty Test: an Indian in the city - The new Indian entry level

Revived with the Chief and Roadmaster motorcycles, the Indian brand is enjoying great success with its powerful Scout. The Springfield manufacturer intends to continue its development with a more “ light ” model but no less tasty: the Scout Sixty. Test !

The new entry level Indian

After having founded motorcycles in 1998, the Polaris group acquired in 2011 the oldest American brand of motorcycles:, created in 1901 … two years earlier than Harley-Davidson, the undisputed leader of the US market until ” in 2013, the year of the .

"We have great success with Indian"said Grant Bester, general manager of motorcycles and Slinghot activities for Polaris in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) sector."And we have a lot of ideas for Victory", he slips in passing, skillfully recalling the …

Scout Sixty: availability, colors and prices

  • Available: immediate in the

  • Colors: Red, White or Black

  • Price: € 11,990

In the introduction to his press conference, the South African big boss tells us that in just seven years, Polaris Industries has made 16 acquisitions. Its portfolio now includes 20 brands that market quads, snowmobiles, motorcycles, electric or hybrid road vehicles, as well as accessories..

To an air of "My big company does not know the crisis", he adds that the American group has increased its turnover from 1.9 billion dollars in 2008 to 4.7 billion this year, hired on the same period more than 4,000 people (7,200 in total), quadrupled the number of its factories (12) and more than doubled its number of models (271).

Unveiled at the EICMA show in Milan last November (read), the 271st model of the Minnesota giant is precisely the Scout Sixty, little sister of the "short" Scout. On the way to its European launch in southern Spain, in Marbella !

Three years after relaunching Indian via classic models designed primarily for the American market – the Chief series and the Roadmaster, powered by the 1811 cc air V-Twin – Polaris has brilliantly entered the mid-displacement segment thanks to its 1133 cc water V-Twin.

"The Scout was a big hit in the United States", continues our host, supporting figures:"we had scheduled the production of 4000 machines for the USA this year, but we finally delivered about 9000".

Let us recall in passing that French customers paid the price for the voracious appetite of bikers from across the Atlantic: "the good surprise of 2015, these are the sales results of our Scout despite the four months of late delivery (…) due to over-demand on the US market", confided Pierre Audoin, France Indian and Victory manager, during our).

The wolf is out

In order to maintain its "success story", Indian decided to take advantage of its prosperous Scout and give birth to a little sister: a "wolf" which is aimed at a younger clientele and therefore less experienced (homologation A2 is in progress), more urban, more European, – a little – less affluent and more feminine…

Like many manufacturers, Indian knows how to rationalize its production and adopts the platform policy on its Scout. The Sixty will not be the only variation: we must expect to see other models land in the coming years..

Parked next to each other, the Scout "tout court" and the Scout "Sixty" look like two drops of oil. But to legitimize this extreme resemblance, Mister Bester insists that "Indian evolved very quickly in a very short time".

Indian’s recipe is therefore simple: lower the displacement of the V-Twin, eliminate a gear ratio, blacken a good number of parts and keep all the other ingredients of the tasty original Scout … Savored in any case by "around 400 French customers last year", explains Pierre Audoin (322 registrations).

The suffix "Sixty" does not refer to the Sixties – Indian’s hatchet was then deeply buried – but to the displacement of its "new" engine which goes from 69 "cubic inches" to 61 ci (999 cc) , via a reduction of 6 mm in the diameter of the two pistons (read our).

"It is a small displacement in the United States, but it remains quite important in Europe", underlines the boss of Polaris motorcycle activities in Europe:"power is reduced, but it remains the most important in its segment".

With a power of 78 hp and a torque of 88.8 Nm (see the technical sheet on the last page), the Sixty effectively supplants the entry-level American () or Japanese () competition, smaller but also less expensive..

In order to lower the bill for its Sixty, Indian removed fifth gear from the Scout’s six-speed gearbox: "it actually costs a little less to produce", confirms Grant Bester. But above all it allows the Scout to be valued over the more basic Sixty..

The new Indian also simplifies its style: the tan leather saddle of the original Scout is replaced by a black vinyl saddle, the sticks and rim rings are no longer polished and the "Scout" badge disappears from the 12.5 liter tank. – which retains its magnificent cut to match the wraparound mudguards.

At the same time, the brand’s officials tell us that the headlight, handlebars, rear shock absorber springs and engine covers are no longer chrome-plated but simply painted black. Good news for some future owners who would have paid for !

Indian finally tells us about the black color of the frame and the disappearance of the wire cover overhanging the small front optic. It is by leaning over that Site regrets the gray tint of the front brake and clutch sheaths: elegant on the Scout, it is disappointing on the Sixty.

But this is one of the extremely rare criticisms that the Journal moto du Net can formulate with regard to the finish of the Sixty. For the shape, let’s add the presence of plastic-toque indicators, and that of a small black cap in the middle of the beautiful mudguard (remark especially valid on the white color, of course).

The engine and its finely machined and beautifully designed crankcases are of any beauty. As for the cycle part, scrupulously preserved, it will continue to captivate the followers of the brand. In return, the weight of the Sixty only decreases by a small kilogram: 246 kg empty according to the manufacturer’s scale..

In comparison, the price drops further: count € 11,990 for the Sixty, whose 999 cc V-twin develops 78 horsepower and 88.8 Nm, instead of the € 13,590 demanded for the "short" Scout but more chrome, its 1133 cc engine, 100 hp and 95 Nm for 247 kg.

As we have just seen, the Sixty recipe is simple. But is it good? Site will try to answer this question by traveling the 240 km loop proposed by the European managers of the Indian brand, through the sublime and sunny region of Marbella (Spain). On the way, Scout troop…

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