Ride along as we take Indian’s bagger for a three state, 1600-mile road trip in our 2016 Chieftain First Ride video, then be sure to read the full report in our 2016 Indian Chieftain First Ride Review article:
What better way to test the 2016 chieftain than a 1600 mile road trip through three states and over the arkansas ozarks we hopped on in austin texas and set our sights on fayetteville for the 2015 bikes blues and barbeque rally festival this particular 2016 indian chieftain had useful aftermarket additions including a clockworks flair windshield a wide solo seat
And a luggage rack last – from indians pa catalog from the headrest logo on the tank or bonnet emblem on the front fender to the engine’s fins and parallel pushrod tubes styled after the chiefs of the early 1940s the chieftain pays tribute to its heritage but make no mistake this is a modern machine the chieftains front fairing is clean and modern the motorcycles
1811 cc engine is packed tightly within a cast aluminum chassis a first for the company the motorcycle has a bevy of electronic conveniences – a windscreen that raises at the push of a button cruise control saddle bags that lock remotely keyless ignition and abs it’s thunderstroke 111 is a key feature delivering an immediate bounty of torque the throttle by wire
System responds quickly in our 2015 dyno test the powerplant put out 102 point 1 5 pound-feet at 3,000 rpm in seventy four point four horsepower at 4600 rpm it reaches the 100 pound foot plateau by 2,300 rpm and can run low in the rpm range with no problems picking back up first gear will launch you to about 43 miles per hour before redlining at 5,600 rpm second
Gear will get you up to freeway speed the indian chieftain will cruise comfortably at 80 all day long and an efficient 38.4 2 mpg little effort is required to initiate a turn because the front fairing doesn’t inhibit steering despite being fork mounted and cornering clearance is fairly ample the fork rebounds quickly and can be bit bouncy on rough roads so the
Chieftain needs a little bit of work at the bars to keep it on line and tighter turns with little pressure on the rear brake and friction on the clutch the big bike is manageable at low speeds its center of gravity sits low thanks in part to a layton 26 inch seat height add in the fact that the seat is fairly slim where it meets the tank and planting two feet firmly
On the ground is a fuss-free affair banging through the gears the transmissions a little rough around the edges first and second engaging hard and deliberate but smooths out in the middle gears in the braking department you’ve got to really squeeze the right lever to get into the 300 millimeter dual floating rotors of the front as they’re a tad soft the rear has
A stronger initial bite in the bike benefits from standard abs that isn’t overly touchy after sixteen hundred twenty four miles the 2016 indian chieftain proved it’s worth is a road warrior powerful comfortable with rear suspension that’s dialed in properly and plenty of creature rider comforts we could easily go iron but on this motorcycle it could benefit from
A few tweaks on the front end and we’re still not fans of its fob which had sink issues but we wouldn’t hesitate to package bags and chart a cross-country course to sturgis on the chieftain any day you
Transcribed from video
2016 Indian Chieftain First Ride Review – MotoUSA By Motorcycle USA