Indian FTR 1200 S

Compared to the bulky and old-school design of the cruisers from Indian, the FTR 1200 S has a very radical design, which makes it a proper naked roadster from the future. However, even after that, it doesn’t forget its roots of being a conventional bike maker, as there are some neo-retro influences in its design.

Take, for example, the rounded headlamp at the front, which looks like a round headlamp of a proper neo-retro motorcycle. However, here in the Indian FTR 1200 S, this headlamp gets an all-LED treatment. This headlamp has a tiny sloping cowl above it, which is flanked with two sleek-looking LED turn indicators. Along with this sloping cowl, the front forks and high-set handlebar are given a glossy black treatment.

Move towards the side, and the Indian FTR 1200 S continues to impress with its perfect blend of the classic design language of traditional Indian motorcycles and the aggression of a modern naked. The motorcycle has a tall stance, with a nicely carved fuel tank with a sloping upper design. The motorcycle lacks proper side body panels, which makes the presence of the large black-themed engine look ballistic. There are two beautifully emerging exhaust pipes, which join to form a double-barrel Akrapovic exhaust pipe.

While moving towards the rear, the Indian FTR 1200 S gets a minimalist appeal to its design, as it lacks proper rear side body panels as well. Here, the large and well-curved seat is mounted on the sub-frame of the motorcycle, which rises towards the petite LED tail lamp at the back. The Indian FTR 1200 S lacks a proper rear fender too, with a large tyre hugger with turn indicators placed above the rear wheel.

The Indian FTR 1200 S is every bit a modern-day motorcycle, for which the first impression is strongly created by its 4.3-inch full-TFT instrument console. This rectangular unit looks super cool with its configurable display modes and packs in a lot of information and technologies, including supports for Android Auto, Apple Carplay, Bluetooth, and navigation.

The Indian FTR 1200 S is easily the most dynamic motorcycle from Indian to ride, as the tall and lean stance of a typical naked roadster makes it an agile motorcycle to ride. For the FTR 1200 S, Indian has relied on a suspension combination of inverted hydraulic telescopic forks at the front and piggy-back mono-shock at the rear. Both these suspension units are sourced from ZF Sachs and are fully adjustable with suspension travels of 120mm. The Indian FTR 1200 S gets a powerful braking system with dual 320mm discs at the front and a single 260mm disc at the rear. The motorcycle rides on meatier Metzeler Sportec tyres at both the ends – 120/70 ZR176 tyre at the front and 180/55 ZR17 tyre at the rear.

The Indian FTR 1200 S is bestowed with a four-stroke, liquid-cooled, V-twin, 1203cc engine, which is exclusive to this motorcycle and is not there in any other motorcycle from Indian. While the maximum power output is rated at 123 bhp, the maximum torque output of this engine is 120 Nm. The engine is paired to a 6-speed gearbox and packs in abundant torque in the mid-range and higher RPMs, with the latter being contrary to what we have come across from motorcycles of Indian to date.

The Indian FTR 1200 S is easily the most tech-packed Indian motorcycle we have come across to date. The motorcycle is equipped with features like a dual-channel cornering ABS, three riding modes (Sport, Standard, and Rain), traction control, lean-angle stability control, wheelie control, and rear-lift mitigation system.

The Indian FTR 1200 S is indeed a unique proposition in the overall lineup of Indian Motorcycles, by being a tech-packed and powerful naked roadster accompanied by a range of other heavy traditional cruisers. The motorcycle is dynamic to ride and is massively impressive due to the number of technologies it gets.