Since Polaris purchased Indian in 2011, the business has continued to hearken back towards the rich history of the brand, whilst creating the bikes bearing the name thoroughly modern in performance and attributes. The Indian Springfield is no exception with its effortlessly identifiable fender skirts and war bonnet combined having a fast release windshield, difficult side bags, and that huge 111-cubic inch (1,818 cc) engine. The folks at Indian gave us a Springfield to get a couple of weeks and we weren't disappointed.
An additional view of the fast release clamps that hold the windshield in location Inside the side bag you are able to see the two latches that hold it in location The rear from the Springfield with out the side bag This is the nipple for the air adjustable rear shock; it sits behind the left side ...
We picked up the Springfield in the Indian dealer in Orange County, California and had been immediately shocked by the fact that instead of loan us a stock bike, this particular model had been fitted with optional Stage two cams, Stage 1 exhaust and a large open air box.
All however the Indian Scouts feature the Thunderstroke 111-cubic inch torque monster, and these add-ons unleashed much more energy in the Springfield. The keyless ignition system permitted us to fire it up with a push of a button that brought these upgraded performance pieces immediately to life. The outcome was a difficult to ignore; big low rumbling exhaust that sounded even better as soon as we opened up and started grinding out the miles.
We later got comments that it sounded like a Harley, but we think that was only due to the sound volume, not simply because Indian has attempted to mimic that company's conventional po-ta-to, po-ta-to rhythm.
We tested it through a good deal of varied Californian terrain - lengthy, flat freeways coming up from the south and nice tight twisties on Highway 1 going all of the way up the coast from San Francisco to Eureka.
The stock Springfield tops out having a claimed 119 lb-ft (161 Nm) of torque, but Indian literature sys the cam, exhaust and airbox combo on the model we rode elevated that by 13 %, and horsepower by 7 percent across the majority of the powerband. You are able to hit these numbers for about an additional $2,000 in components.
All that grunt means the Springfield will not win any gas efficiency awards, but it doesn't claim any. We averaged about 37 mpg (7.six l/100km), with the bike feeling at its best between two,500 to 3,000 rpms.
Regardless of the type of riding, the one factor we noticed was how nimble this bike was given that it weighs in at a stout 800-plus lb (363 kg), which is about 24 lb (11 kg) lighter than its fared sibling the Indian Chieftan. You should not anticipate it to snap upright like a sport bike, but it doesn't need to be manhandled either. We hit heavy crosswinds on occasion and the bike stayed vertical and on track with little work, some thing a crotch rocket would have had some difficulty claiming.
The big windshield did an exceptional job of keeping wind buffeting to a minimum. It also did an exceptional job of maintaining the plethora of bugs firmly on the windshield exactly where they belonged.
We did take the windshield and bags off to determine how simple there had been to eliminate, but did not ride without them. The windshield actually requires seconds to detach. Pull forward on the metal tabs, lift the windshield up and away from exactly where it sits in location on the fork, and you are done. When attached, the windshield stayed exactly where it was supposed to with no noise or rattling, no matter how fast we were going.
Our Springfield also came using the optional crash bars installed in the front from the difficult bags, which meant that the bike looked odd once the bags had been removed, as those crash bars are truly noticeable by themselves. They are bolted on and easy enough to eliminate, but certainly not fast release.
The bags, nevertheless, are just as easy because the windshield to detach and stow away, however they do require an additional step or two. Both plastic side panels ahead from the bags need to be removed to undo the electric wires that connect to the locks in both bags and also the auxiliary energy outlet inside the proper one. As soon as these are unhooked, they tuck totally out of sight using the side panels back in place.
Pop the latches inside the difficult bags as much as release them from the mounting spools, then simply lift away and off of the exhaust. Hard rubber mounts on the bottom from the bags assist take up a few of the bounce and maintain them more firmly in place.
Our only minor complaint with this system is the fact that the pins that hold the latches in place inside the bag are just small metal dowels with absolutely nothing to hold them in location. So if you do not watch when you unhook the inside latches, the pins can slide out and, hopefully, in to the bag where they'll be simpler to locate, as opposed to rolling off into a black hole inside your garage or elsewhere.
An additional regular feature that proved to become helpful is the tire pressure monitoring system. The low stress light came on and indicated 36 psi and 37 psi for the front and rear tires respectively on a coastal morning exactly where the overnight temperatures had been about 55° F (13° C). The manual calls for a number of pounds much more, so the tolerances the monitoring system works with are pretty tight. A couple of pounds of air and a few miles to warm up the tires and also the method was quickly reading normal on both sets of rubber.
Bringing this a lot bike to a quit comes courtesy ABS and dual 4 piston 300 mm calipers on floating rotors up front, along with a single 300 mm caliper on a floating rotor within the rear. Offered that we had been riding in an assortment of circumstances on a vacation weekend, we had plenty of possibilities to put the brakes towards the test.
Fading was non-existent, and each front and back did a good job of biting down without any substantial front-end dive or back-end wobble or slide around corners. Nevertheless, we were told by these riding behind us that the back brake light could have been brighter, that is something that could easily be addressed by specifying a brighter bulb in future models.
Shifting via the Springfield's six-speed transmission was a breeze, particularly offered that Polaris continues to take flack for how noisy the six-speed is in its Victory lineup. There was also extremely little of the nose-dive impact that happens during rapid down-shifting that appears endemic towards the large Victory touring bikes.
Our greatest complaint was with the seat. Maybe it was just me, but just like the seat on the Scout Sixty, this one had my glutes feeling like they'd been hit by an upset nun with a two-by-four instead of a ruler. The regular highway crash bars let us stretch out our legs to take some of the stress off, but you cannot ride all day like that. A revised or custom seat may be a necessary add-on.
Despite that bit of discomfort, we had been sad to determine the Springfield rumble off. At a list cost of US$20,999, this bike isn't cheap. But considering its superior develop high quality, lengthy list of standard features, plus the overall performance and capability to rapidly shift from cruiser to full-on bagger, that's a price that could be effortlessly justified.
