The Cars

The Indian Scout motorcycle was the star of the Indian motorcycle line from 1920 until 1939. Indian Scout motorcycles were used by police, by motorcycle racers, and during World War II. During the war, Indian made aircraft engines, motors for boats, air conditioners, and bicycles. Possibly the most revered Indian Scout motorcycle was the 1928 101 Scout, with its lower slung outline and improved handling.

Indian Scout motorcycle had 37 cubic inch (596 cc) engine when it was first introduced in 1920. Later when popular American motorcycle Excelsior Super X was introduced with 45 cubic inches (745 cc) engine, Indian Scout also converted its engine to 45 cubic inch in 1927.

The 101 Scout was the second response which was being produced and some people felt that this was the highest in Indian Motorcycle technology. Another set of fans were pleased to see Indian motorcycle use the body of its other model Chief for the new Scout line which was introduced in 1931.

Perhaps to placate Scout enthusiasts, from 1932 until 1941, smaller Scouts were built. They were known as the Scout Pony, the Junior Scout, and the Thirty-Fifty, all of which had 30.50 cubic inch engines.

In the early decades of the 20th century, the Indian Motorcycle Company and Harley Davidson were the two alternatives for the traditional American heavyweight cruiser. The two companies were fierce rivals, and this rivalry is chronicled in the book called The Harley-Davidson and Indian Wars by Allan Girdler. While the Scout was a runaway bestseller, Harley-Davidson proved to be a very formidable opponent.

There is some interesting informatios regarding the road worthiness of 1920 model of Scout motorcycle. The motorcycle racer Burt Munro set out to make a world record in speed on land with a Scout between 1962 and 1967. He succeeded in making an unbeatable record with under-1000cc. The amazing factor was when Munro made the record he was 68 years old riding a 47 years old motorcycle. There were some more examples and everything taken together was made into a movie named World’s Fastest Indian in 2005.

Since 1935 when the ownership of the Indian Motorcycle was transferred it came under a lot of problems having to stop production of all model of this brand in 1946. The final crunch came in 1977 when company had to declare itself bankrupt after changing of hands. The company was fighting a dispute in the court over the ownership of brand name all through 1980s and90s.

The claim of ownership came through in 1988 when IMCOA Licensing America won the trademark by the Federal court in Denver. A nine company conglomerate was set up to form Indian Motorcycle Company of America. From 1999 the manufacturing of Scout Motorcycles were started and carried on till 2003 when the company again had to declare bankruptcy.

In 2006, the company re-formed and set up shop in Kings Mountain, North Carolina. Though the Chief model is being resurrected, the Indian Scout motorcycle is no longer made.

The Indian scout motorcycle was a pioneer of it’s times. If you are a true Indian fan you’ll be interested in reading this page on Indian motorbike accessories.