VOL. 55 ISSUE 41 OCTOBER 16, 2018 P81
BY RENNIE SCAYSBROOK
PHOTOGRAPHY BY BARRY HATHAWAY
POWER
to the People
The bad boy bagger in Indian's lineup is getting a few
touches for next year, all in the name of democracy
L
eaner, sleeker, meaner.
That—in a nutshell—is what
the 2019 Indian Chieftain
Dark Horse is all about.
Part of a four-strong lineup
including the standard Chief-
tain, Chieftain Limited and
Chieftain Classic, the Dark
Horse represents the gateway
to a younger audience, one that
Indian hopes to capture and
keep for a lifetime.
"Over the last five years we've
been engaging with both exist-
ing Chieftain customers as well
as potential customers, asking
them for feedback on what it is
they like and don't like about the
range," states Indian Motorcycle
Product Manager, Josh Katt.
"What we've heard repeatedly is
this platform is incredibly capa-
ble, it handles like a dream, etc.
But there was a decent-sized
market out there that just didn't
like the classic styling. They de-
scribed it as beautiful, retro, art
deco—but it just wasn't them.
"They wanted something
that was a little meaner, more
aggressive, with harder and
sharper lines. We gave that feed-
back to our design team, and
sent them a challenge of creat-
ing a Dark Horse that keeps the
Indian DNA but also something
that's mean and sleek."
In creating this new Dark
Horse, Indian hasn't strayed
too far from their winning
formula. It's primarily a design
update, as the 111 c.i (1811cc)
air-cooled V-twin and is largely
unchanged, as is the chassis
with a slightly stiffer Fox shock
in place for the '19 model.
Starting at the front, the
fender is still the same open unit
launched last year with the brake
calipers and discs exposed,
although the '19's headdress is
about 20 percent smaller. The
front fairing has been slightly
worked over, with more than a
