It is perhaps Indian Motorcycle’s most well-known model, so maybe that is why it has taken the American brand so long to turn its gaze to changing it with the Scout entering its second generation for the 2025 model year.
The Indian Scout has an inimitable link to New Zealand through the legendary Burt Munro, and now the modern Indian Scout is finally set for an update after a nearly 10-year production run.
The Scout in its current form has been around since late 2014 and at its core has remained largely the same as it was on debut. Motorcycling has changed a lot in the past decade and Indian’s owners Polaris are known for being a bit more forward-thinking than their other American counterparts, and this is reflected in the new Scout.
“Scout is the most iconic American cruiser of all time and is synonymous with the Indian Motorcycle brand,” said Mike Dougherty, President for Indian Motorcycle. “As our top-selling platform, Scout has long been a staple in our lineup. And while riders around the world love the current Scout offering, we’re excited to take it to the next level and continue its evolution with a robust offering of models to meet the diverse needs of our global riding community.”
That evolution will see a wide range of riders catered for by the Scout model family, with five models on offer starting at the Scout Classic which keeps to the model's roots as the logical starting point of the lineup, while the top-of-the-line Scout 101 pushes the bike towards power cruiser territory.
Filling out the middle of the range is the returning Scout Bobber alongside the new Sport Scout with its Scout Rogue-inspired fairing and the new Super Scout which sees the platform optimised for touring.
Set to arrive in New Zealand dealers in Q2 of 2025, the new Indian Scout will arrive in a five-model family from the off, a clever move on Indian’s part to get the maximum from the new platform by building on learnings from the Gen-1 bike’s owners.
At the top of the changes for the 2025 Scout is its chassis, which sees Indian dropping the innovative Aluminium frame of the Gen-1 bike in favour of a more traditional steel frame.
While the 1133cc engine of the 2015 Scout was no slouch, Indian thought that the market demanded more - so for 2025 the Scout rolls to the beat of a new 60-degree V-twin called the SpeedPlus 1250. Power from the new engine is rated at a cool 79kw at 7250rpm with 108Nm at 6300rpm of peak torque in all variants except the performance-oriented Scout 101, which sees performance boosted slightly to 83kw and 109Nm at the same revolutions.
Indian is perhaps the most forward-thinking of the American manufacturers when it comes to integrating tech into its bikes, with the new Scout all coming standard with ABS and Traction Control systems, with the Scout Classic, Bobber and Sport Scout set to be offered in two trim levels, with a Standard trim focused on keeping pricing attainable with a stylish analogue dash, and an optional Limited +Tech Trim throws in Indian’s Ride Command infotainment system and touchscreen dash into the mix.
For the Scout 101 and Super Scout, the higher specification Tech trim is the standard equipment.
“Scout is a beloved model and the most iconic and historic of our lineup, resonating with all types of riders, men and women, from all over the world,” said Ben Lindaman, Product Director for Indian Motorcycle.
“Since launching the current Scout 10 years ago, the midsized cruiser segment has evolved. After conducting tons of research, rider insights drove our developments that prioritised the Scout’s iconic styling, its class-leading performance, and new rider-centric technology.”
While the new Scout range adds many new features in both technology and performance riders now expect, it remains the key entry point to the Indian Motorcycle range. With that in mind accessibility is a key to the new Scout, and along with its new trim levels it will enter the market with the lowest seat height in the industry at just 649mm.
With a low seat height, brawny 1250cc engine and a range of models for different niches within the cruiser class, it looks like Indian is well on the way to another success story with the Gen-2 Scout.
Surprisingly, despite the wide variation in the tech specs of the new Scout range, pricing is quite tight with the bikes priced between $24,495 and $29,995. That’ll make deciding on which version of the all-new Scout to choose all the harder we expect.
The MY25 lineup starts at $24,495 with the base model Scout Bobber which is set to be offered in Black Metallic. To opt for a different colour and also add Indian’s new tech package which adds TFT instrumentation and infotainment increases the price of the Scout Bobber to $26,495.
The base model Scout Classic will also be available only in Black Metallic is priced from $24,995 with the Limited+Tech package also adding $2,000 to the price along with the Ghost White Metallic and Red Metallic paint options.
Sport Scout enters the lineup at $25,495 with the Limited+Tech package priced at $27,495 also offering Black Smoke and Metallic Blue colour choices
The Super Scout will be offered only in Limited+Tech trim, with both colour options - Black Smoke with graphics and Maroon Metallic with graphics - priced at $28,495.
The range-topping Scout 101 rounds out the range at $29,995 and will be available in Maroon Metallic or White Metallic with both also enhanced with graphics.