Quote: I see what Ron is saying and agree for the most part. Indian will never feel like Indian to me again no matter what they do because the old company is long dead so now it is only a name no matter what you do. No real heritage. Triumph is and always was Triumph, HD is and always was HD, Honda is and always was Honda. The new Indian is going to be a cool bike I think ,but never a real Indian. I will be a Polaris knock off, probably well made and dependable and I love the look of the new engine but to me you could call it a Polaris and it would be just as cool.
Let's be honest, Triumph of Hinkley is not Triumph of Meriden, and that's a good thing. The "old" Triumph failed just like BSA, Norton, Indian and scores of other manufacturers due to a weak product and/or bad management in a competitive market.
A lot of guys can still claim "I rode a Triumph back in 19XX" but there are VERY few riders today that have any claim to a connection with Indian that went out in 1953.
VERY few.
Polaris owns the Indian name just as Bloor owns the Triumph name. Neither have the "DNA" of the original entity. Triumph succeeds based on a solid product and sound management, even if it means moving manufacturing to Thailand.
Anyways, I'll take 115 TQ and 100 HP over DNA any day of the week.
Right now all this talk is jibber-jabber on a machine that only has an engine built for it. Come back and see me in two or three years and we'll see how Indian - and Victory - are doing. I'll eat my hat on Macy's sidewalk if Indian has failed in that time. How many of you will be willing to admit they were wrong if Indian succeeds?
