America’s Coolest Street Motorcycle Just Got Scrapped, and That’s a Damn Shame

When Indian launched the street-legal FTR 1200 in 2019, I immediately started tracking this rare beauty. How could I not? 

After all, we’re talking about a bike whose flat-track progenitor, the FTR750, and its various riders ultimately won eight consecutive AFT Grand National and Manufacturer championships.

The 750 is also what Travis Pastrana rode to honor/one-up some of Evel Knievel’s most famous feats, including jumping the fountains at Caesar’s Palace, six years ago.

With this week’s news that the 2024 editions of the street bike (now called simply the FTR) are the last hurrah, I’m both super bummed and hugely grateful that I finally got saddle time on one a couple years back. For better or worse, it was a helluva ride.

Photo by Steve Mazzucchi for Gear Patrol

So, what happened?

Most brands don’t send out a press release when they stop making a product, and this situation is no different. Instead, I came to this news via coverage of the Q4 2024 financial report from Polaris, Indian’s parent company.

A single sentence appears to sign the bike’s death warrant: “The Company realized certain costs associated with the wind down of the FTR product line beginning in the fourth quarter of 2024.”

As is often the case with such things, it clearly came down to business. While sales data for the FTR — or any other Indian bike — is not available, I’m guessing the numbers just didn’t justify continued production. 

Polaris did not exactly have the best year, and as motorcycle.com reports, discontinuing this bike and other corporate restructuring moves added $11.2 million in non-GAAP gross profit adjustment to the company’s On Road segment.

That “adjustment” contributes to an adjusted gross profit of $29.2 million for Q4, which is still $2.5 million less than what the company reported for Q4 2023.

Numbers aside, it’s a surprising development, especially considering the the outlook less than two years ago, when I spent a blissful couple of weeks with the 1203cc, 120hp Indian FTR R Carbon.

At the time, that bike sat at the top end of a five-motorcycle FTR family, with a range of prices and features starting at just $13,499.

Photo by Steve Mazzucchi for Gear Patrol

What I’ll miss

What really makes me sad here is what a refreshing antidote the FTR was to so many American bikes, all those big ol’ cruisers and baggers and touring models.

These motorcycles have their place, sure, but the FTR is one of those stripped-down, hyper-powered naked beauties that, from the moment you hit the road, makes certain you know you are riding a damn motorcycle.

Here’s just a quick sampling of five quotes from my review that should give you an idea how deeply this bike affected me on both a physical and emotional level. 

1. “After giving it a minute to warm up, my first twist of the throttle can only be likened to a rookie witch trying a broomstick for the first time. Whooshhh — and we were off!”
2. “It was just such a thrill to toggle over to Sport mode, lean over the tank and feel the wind in my face as I opened it up.
3. “Even at lower speeds, just ripping a two-lane road at 50 mph, the joyous, visceral experience of truly riding a motorcycle came back with a vengeance. I really was screaming into my helmet about 10 minutes into the ride.”
4. “It’s the kind of bike where when the light turns green, you sometimes wait a couple seconds, just to ensure the next one is green by the time you get there — and then you can really fly.”
5. “You can get as technical as you want, but the bottom line for me is always the emotional response. This bike just feels like it was built by people who really gave a damn. Yes, it can get you where you need to go. But nine times out of 10, getting there will be the most fun part.”

If there’s a silver lining here, it’s that the four 2024 editions still appear on Indian’s website, and it’s not like the bikes themselves just disappeared from dealerships overnight.

In other words, you can still get one — or at the very least go for a test ride — while the smoke clears.

Wrapping up this little eulogy, I recall a moment during my review experience, when I took the bike camping in upstate New York.

As I pulled up to check in at my campsite, the park ranger, who I learned rode a Harley Sportster, just couldn’t get over my ride. “My next bike,” she confessed, “might have to be an FTR.”

I hope you are reading this story, Cool Park Ranger Lady. But more importantly, I hope you get the chance to ride this beguiling beast before it is forever gone.

Photo by Steve Mazzucchi for Gear Patrol

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