Indian Motorcycle take aim at Harley’s Low Rider ST with new Sport Chief model

Indian Motorcycle have added a new model to their Chief cruiser range, promising better ground clearance, more aggression and more composed suspension.

The Sport Chief starts at £19,995 and will join the existing £17,495 Chief Dark Horse, the £19,495 Chief Bobber Dark Horse, and £22,095 Super Chief Limited – with its quarter fairing and sporting stance making it a natural competitor to Harley-Davidson’s £20,695 Low Rider ST.

Mike Dougherty, President of Indian Motorcycle, said: “With the introduction of Sport Chief, the 2023 Indian Chief line-up is more diverse than ever – offering a wide range of performance and styling options to meet each rider’s unique personality and riding preferences.”

Powering the new Sport is Indian’s 1890cc Thuderstroke 116 V-twin, which produces a claimed 119.6lbft of torque at just 3200rpm. This is housed in a blacked-out steel tube frame and fed via a 15.1-litre fuel tank, which should go further between refills thanks to rear cylinder deactivation at select speeds.

Hiding behind the new quarter fairing is the rounded single TFT clock display, plus a fresh set of upright bars with machined triple clamps and 152mm risers. Mid-mounted foot controls – rather than stretched out front – also indicate its sporting prowess.

The 101mm digitised dash also allows you to navigate between three riding modes, and connect to your phone – with an optional adaptive LED headlight, ABS, and keyless ignition completing the technical spec.

Away from the gadgets, the new Chief rolls on Pirelli Night Dragon tyres, with suspension provided by upside down KYB forks pinched from the larger Challenger models and Fox piggyback shocks available in the options catalogue.

With 24 clicks of adjustable compression and rebound damping, these are said to increase suspension travel by 100mm and allow lean angles to increase to up to 29.5 degrees.

Although the bikes you see in the images comes with just a rider’s seat, a pillion option with small back support is available too, as well as front seating changes to reduce or extend the reach to the handlebars.

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Indian Sport Chief further details

Shock treatment Owners of the rest of the Chief range can also upgrade to the Fox piggyback shocks to free up some extra ground clearance

Trick of the light The Chief pathfinder adaptive LED headlight is available in chrome or black and monitors the lean of the bike to provide better illumination in the corners

Colour options The Sport Chief will be available in your choice of ‘Black Smoke’, ‘Ruby Smoke’ and ‘Stealth Gray’

Screen height The screen on the quarter fairing is available in low and tall options, with the unit and bar risers also available for the rest of the Chief range

Harley rivals The stance of the Chief makes it a direct rival to the 1923cc Harley-Davidson Low Rider ST, which produces 124ftlb of torque at 3500rpm

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Watch our Indian Chief walkaround video below: