Two big problems Indian needs to fix now!

Being active across many different facebook groups, forums, KZbin, etc., there are a couple glaring issues with the Indian Scout/Bobber/Rogue lineup that it seems Indian has ignored. I am officially calling them out.
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[@MattB13]

I must have got a good battery. Zero issues. And my clock has no moisture. Hopefully it stays that way.

[@Jimbobbington]

And may the odds be forever in your favor!

[@buddyweiser8508]

The speedometer issue I completely agree, I heard around 2016-2017, they improved it, but it still happens. I do know that it’s either the vintage, or the Springfield, they use the same, or very similar gauge cluster. There’s a video here on KZbin by srkcycles titled “why we don’t buy Indians anymore.” In the video he has a vintage or Springfield with the moisture problem leaving the speedometer inoperable. He has it changed, and when he finds out the mileage doesn’t get programmed into the new one, he takes it to a speedometer shop. I believe he said it took them a long time to figure out how to do it, but they got it programmed to the correct mileage. I’d imagine they could perform the service for a scout as well. The battery problem though has too many variables to say they suck. I know it pops up a lot, and it’s very repetitive to hear about it over and over, but the scout line is Indians most produced model, they sell thousands, and battery trouble is the most common problem on any motorcycle with a battery. It also doesn’t help the scout is a lot of people’s first motorcycle, and they don’t know anything about motorcycle mechanics, and why it won’t start, which is why they commonly go to forums, Reddit, and Facebook to ask why it won’t start. I thought my original battery was weak when I bought the bike Dec 2019, but here I am 2 months from it being 3 years old, and granted I can tell it’s definitely getting weak now, but it still works. Like you I don’t tender my bike, as I ride everyday, and I’d also bet you do the same as I do, which is when I turn the key, I let the pump prime, and I don’t mess around, I hit the start button immediately. I’ve seen a lot of people that don’t get that motorcycle batteries don’t have the capacity of a car/truck battery. They turn that key on, and proceed to have a 5-10 minute conversation with someone, or they waste time putting gear on or playing with their phone, before starting, which wears the battery down quickly. Your also correct a trickle charger every day is bad, but a more advanced battery maintainer like a optimate 3 everyday, could potentially extend battery life. In my experience though, even on other bikes, a battery is only good for 2-3 years, on a very rare occasion I’ll get 4. My dad with over 50 years worth of experience with motorcycling will even tell you, the one thing he has learned in all that time is all motorcycle batteries are junk, and you can expect it to fail anytime. At least my dads lucky though, all his bikes have kickstarters if the battery takes a dump. Either way great video as always, and the bobber sounded extra good in this one for some reason. Shiny side up.

[@Jimbobbington]

Awesome feedback sir!

[@MrXavierwalls]

New indian scout owner here, new to motorcycles in general. My biggest issue is the price lol. I thought buying a new bike for 13k it would be gtg. Come to find out I have to replace, the exhaust, the seat, the grips, the handlebars and thats just after my first week of riding it (500Miles).

[@Jimbobbington]

This is pretty standard for all motorcycles. None are built one size fits all and majority of riders always make modifications to make it exactly what they wanted.

[@MrXavierwalls]

@@Jimbobbington Good to know, other than a sore ass, it's been a great 1st week. Wish I bought a motorcycle years ago, would've saved me 1000's in car builds lol.

[@Jimbobbington]

@@MrXavierwalls haha it wouldn't have helped. You'd have just been doing both this whole time.

[@MrXavierwalls]

@@Jimbobbington Maybe lol, but I have literally not put any time into my Supra since I got a bike. I'm thinking about parting it out to buy more bike parts.

[@Jimbobbington]

@@MrXavierwalls haha don't do it!

[@Rhetorical346]

My 2018 factory battery just died this year. Most people trickle charge their bike over the winter, so this isn't an issue with other scout owners I know.

[@TRUMP4PRISON2024]

My 2017 just died last week.. I believe they use yuasa brand made in USA. I do use a battery tender

[@hootertexas9711]

If you keep it hooked up to a tender it will last a couple years. I knew the batteries were junk before I ever got a scout.

[@Jimbobbington]

At least it's a cheap and easy thing to replace

[@hootertexas9711]

@@Jimbobbington yessir! I have a feeling that all the warranty batteries they’ve given away is still a net savings vs using a better battery to begin with. Wouldn’t make sense after all these years if they could just switch and save. That would be an easy fix. I assume even with the warranties, a switch will cost them more.

[@freezecycle7776]

Wait till you have the stator plug leak issue. They’ve changed the part number but have read the “new” plug eventually starts to leak as well. The worst part though is you have to buy a whole new stator $500+, you have to do a coolant flush to swap it out $400, then labor cost $100-$150 an hr and it’s a few hours worth of work. So if you one day see oil near your kickstand on the ground I can almost guarantee it’s the stator plug leaking. It usually happens after a fresh oil change when it finally starts to leak. You can Jerry rig it by loosening the tension on the wires and cramming in the rubber plug a little deeper but it will still weep oil till it swapped out. I did this 2-6 times but 30k miles later I’m finally just gonna get it swapped out, just sucks because I just had the coolant flushed for over heating issues. I love my scout but like me after it turned “30”k it’s starting to have issues lol. I honestly think the stators might play a role in the bad batteries, or maybe just me having wishful thinking because of my current issues with my bike.

[@Jimbobbington]

I've heard of this issue as well. I've also heard we have a parasitic ground or something to that effect, which if true definitely has something to do with it.

[@freezecycle7776]

@@Jimbobbington yeah my front o2 sensor went out after a few years, replaced it and was good for a few months then it went bad again and was the start of all my current issues. Supposedly something is drawing power from it but they haven’t figured it out as of yet. Swapped the o2 sensor 4-6 times, spiced in an aftermarket one, got a new ecm that polaris said must’ve carried over the issue so did a 2nd new one with new instructions so as to not transfer the code but it still transferred over and ultimately came to it’s not getting full voltage so I must have a parasitic draw somewhere. They tried to say it was either my underglow or my retrofitted usb port (made by Indian lol). Well I told them it was all installed yrs before the o2 issue but sure go ahead and disconnect it and see what happens and of course still have the code and low voltage. I go to another dealer for over heating issues and end up getting a new throttle body because the throttle position sensor was supposedly bad and it’s one unit. That shop said the voltage was normal for the o2 sensor and to put a new one on. I said I’ve already done that but just for shits and giggles did so and you already know it didn’t resolve it. So now idk what the voltage is supposed to be to the o2 sensor, who’s right or wrong, what the battery voltage should be at idle (which when it drops to below 13v is when the slight misfiring happens but then when I pull off it catches up which leads me to believe my stator is going bad, based on my limited online research). Sorry for the long winded rant, but I typed it so I’m posting it lol.

[@Jimbobbington]

@@freezecycle7776 damn! That sounds like an awful lot of unfortunate events and not enough riding!

[@freezecycle7776]

@@Jimbobbington it’s my daily 365 so not riding wasn’t a big deal. The cost of troubleshooting, parts and taxing was the real problem. Fingers crossed Thursday before I’m supposed to drop the bike off again that my assumption on the stator will be right and my problem will finally be resolved.

[@4244john]

I also think the stator is weak and killing the batteries. I went through two oem batteries and my current one (autozone agm battery) started acting funny after a couple months. I would leave my bike without a tender for weeks on end and the battery would start anyway on my current battery. I also noticed the voltage would not go past 13.7. One morning, I took it out without a problem, stopped at the gas station and when I turned it back on, it struggled to crank and threw out a code like my previous batteries did. I plugged my bike onto a charger/tender and it’s running fine now, it even goes to 14.1v like it used to.

[@warrensmith897]

Here's one for you, my bobber was made on 7/21 shipped to Australia and only hit here on the 2/22 and by the time it cleared customs etc went to the dealer in late April 22, the guy who ordered it was unable to get the finance for it by then so it became available to me who bought it in May this year so my battery is already over 12 months old and I am guessing was never charged during shipping etc. Anyway after our recent conversation on trickle charge I went to the manual and it states not to do so unless the bike has been sitting for 4 weeks unused so have taken mine off trickle period as despite the wettest, longest coldest winter in living memory I am firing it up well within the time frame they recommend. That said many Oz owners are finding early deaths of their batteries so your point is very valid, as for people not recording correct mileage when replacing speedo's I am shocked........NOT lol.

[@warrensmith897]

@Graeme Needham Depends very much what part of Oz your in, the south has very cold winters but not as cold of course as many parts of the US

[@warrensmith897]

@Graeme Needham Lol yeah its all about perspective , I'm in Melbourne and our winter was a shocker and spring is struggling to be spring, have lived in the US and UK and both of you beat us hands down!

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow that's a crazy long time to ship a bike overseas!

[@warrensmith897]

@@Jimbobbington Yeah Covid shipping delays state side was the biggest issue and then of course covid delays once the bike hit the country, there are lots of Oz Indian new owners still patiently awaiting bikes they ordered six months ago whereas Harley seem to have pretty good stocks here, go figure?

[@McNinjaMD]

@Graeme Needham It's not all the tropics. Riding season shortened this year due to 0°C temps in the mountains. Still waiting for spring to actually spring up here.

[@ironranger7575]

@jimbobbington I had one of these batteries and called Indian about it. My conversation was pleasant and they are very aware of the problem and were able to get me a new battery. They also said that they are in the process of switching battery manufacturers. I also received a a very generous coupon to replace my mismatched shields.

[@Jimbobbington]

That's great to hear they took care of you!

[@philippeallegro4360]

I didn t know about the speedo 😳 I just learned it from your video. Incredible this story of mileage ☹️ Here in France oldest Scout were guaranteed 5 years if I’m not wrong. Recent models like mine: 2 years. This is a potential problem on the second hand market if services have been done outside Indian network… For the battery, Indian dealer finally paid the bill for a battery I had to buy elsewhere because initially they did not take warranty after only 8 months!! I was even told I suffered toi many traffic jam ans the battery was not recharching 😂😂 well well well with such sucking reply I wrote mail to Polaris France who immediately took the necessary action. Question of image may be vs HD much better known here 😊 thanks for your nice video as usual. Take care ✌️

[@Jimbobbington]

Glad Polaris took care of it. Don't go back to that dealer haha

[@timbrwolf1121]

get a lithium restart battery from antigravity. I have one on my F650 and I will never own another bike without buying a lithium battery. Until they come out with better.

[@carpediem429]

Got a new Scout Bobber this year that's so new it hasn't even had a second tank of gas put in it yet, and the battery's already dead. I noticed the voltage was low as soon as I got it but figured a trickle charger would set it right. I wonder how long these things are sitting in the factory mostly constructed, letting the battery die waiting on one part.

[@Jimbobbington]

That's a good question. Also these batteries could have been sitting on a shelf for years.

[@Farinhir]

@@Jimbobbington Umm, unless there is pull on the batteries from electronics they don't tend to decay much. Similar to how duracell batteries can claim such a high shelf life. The batteries will hold mostly over a fair amount of time. Also similar to storing a car and having the battery disconnected. reconnect after a year of being disconnected and the battery is fine. So the time in the factory probably has little to do with it.

[@carpediem429]

Either way, Grand Prix was great about exchanging it for me on Saturday. No trouble at all.

[@Jimbobbington]

@@carpediem429 good to hear!

[@4244john]

@@Farinhir that makes sense. Especially because most scouts that are ordered are almost fully built but stay stagnant in the factory due to a missing part.

[@raybrensike42]

Have you ever noticed how the Indian Scout motor looks as if it's a long stroke motor? It isn't. It's a short stroke motor. So why does the motor look so tall? I was looking at a Scout and I noticed a joint in the cylinder which had a gasket. Surely, I thought, the piston can't be riding over a joint like that, right? If my suspicions are correct, Couldn't the Indian shed a few unnecessary pounds there, and what could be done with an extra two inches under the tank. Some of us would like a 200 mile plus range, I'll clue ya. And if it turns out that I was just seeing some kind of spacer, couldn't that be removed by the designers to help the bike get a bit lower center of gravity also? It's not a long stroke motor. It makes its power up high, unlike a traditional Sportster. So, I don't know, would I like a shovel head Yamaha Bolt, or would I prefer a plastic knuckle head? Decisions, decisions. Can't' things just be real? There's even a useless cover kind of thing on a Speed Master over a rear brake master cylinder or something.

[@Mayjay87]

The only thing I actually dislike about my Scout Bobber, the gear indicator. It does a countdown every time you pull in and release the clutch. Absolutely drives me nuts. I don't stare at it, but when I want to know what hear I'm in, I want to know what hear I'm in, BEFORE I release the clutch, and I definitely don't want it to countdown or up, to the gear I'm in.

[@hootertexas9711]

Yeah it will not tell you what gear you’re in unless your clutch has been released. My Harley does the same thing

[@Jimbobbington]

Sometimes I've noticed the indicator get stuck, especially when you forget to downshift while the bike is still moving and you have to downshift a few gears at a stop.

[@Mayjay87]

Yeah it's just weird to me, coming from a Suzuki Boulevard that told me what hear I was in at all times.

[@hootertexas9711]

@@Jimbobbington I’ve never noticed that. I’m gonna try to make it happen next time I ride my Indian.

[@MessyGarageBMW]

did you get flipped off at the 1:57 mark? I only trickle charge my battery in the winter when the bikes sit for a couple months. Spring, Summer, and Fall no chargers are attached.

[@Jimbobbington]

Haha no he was actually waving for me to pass him.

[@stone4858]

I know a guy who has an Indian Scout bobber, and his gearbox broke after 2 years of usage at 43,000km 🥺

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow! That's very uncommon, I've never heard of anyone had that happen on a scout!

[@stone4858]

@Jimbobbington it surprised me too. Unfortunately it did push me away from buying one 😔

[@Rhetorical346]

@@stone4858 an unheard of break on a high mileage bike pushed you away from a scout? What did you buy instead?

[@Moonshot.]

On the 2022 the mileage is stored in the ecm. I got a non abs Scout and for some reason they hooked it up to a abs model so it flashed the sensor, my abs light was on because. I didn’t have abs . I almost just keep it that way because. I thought. I was going to lose my true mileage, and they said no it’s been changed to hold all that info in the ecm just like the chefs. I’m thinking they heard you.😁

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow that's great to know!

[@donrudeboyt1895]

Starting in colder weather is my issue. I have a Chieftain and wonder if it’s an Indian issue or Thunderstroke issue. I also changed battery to the Wicked start due to the high CC amps it provides. What I learned, the battery isn’t the issue.

[@Jimbobbington]

Interesting...

[@SuperCodebox]

alway use the Premium - 91 - 93 octane gas help

[@guitarist595]

When I picked up my ftr, they pdi’d the bike test drive it, and then when they put it outside for me to leave, it wouldn’t start, battery was dead, they swapped it with another ftr they had on the floor. My scout kills batteries every 3 months

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow! Do you have any non factory accessories that could cause that?

[@guitarist595]

@@Jimbobbington nope, no electronics on the bike whatsoever, and charges at 14.6 volts when running.

[@thebigempty_5792]

Every brand out there has issues.....if you listen to all the YT crap no one will buy anything. BMW and are high maintenance.....Triumphs aren't made in the UK anymore, Kawasaki Z900RS has a hideous radiator, the Yamaha XVS900 has a terrible seat, Harley.....dear God the hate HD gets on YT....Hondas have no soul and they are just rideable sewing machines......just go buy what you want, work around the problem and enjoy the experience. Motorcycles are ALL money pits but they should bring a smile to your face when you open that garage door. If it doesn't either get one that does or just drive a Prius (those have problems too...how dare they mine that cobalt using child slave labor :D)

[@Jimbobbington]

Lol all very true!

[@redstingraycorvette]

There is no way that I’m gonna buy something that already has a problem with it and the company is not doing anything about it I’ve had a lot of things with batteries in it and the only time I put a trickle charger on them is in the winter in Michigan.

[@Jimbobbington]

It's not all that bad, everything has its issues, but overall this is a fantastic bike, and a good battery is like $90

[@louismoeller7118]

I got a 2022 indian scout bobber that at not even 3500 miles (actual 3432) I believe the starter has died. Thought it was the battery, tested then chased it to either starter or solenoid betting starter have an appointment at the shop on Fri. we will how this plays out...

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow, well that is absolutely not common. Warranty should have you taken care of as long as replacement parts are available.

[@louismoeller7118]

@@Jimbobbington warranty had better take care of it. not even 6 months or just turned 6 months old...

[@shoomapadoo1141]

The gas tank capacity is a deal breaker for me. It's ridiculous.

[@Jimbobbington]

It isn't great, the scout isn't meant for cross-country escapades, but it can be transformed into this type of machine with extra fuel bottles and that sort of thing

[@jimwortham8634]

I have a scout love the bike problem 3 gallon fuel tank 100 plus miles no one will ride with me that's an issue

[@Jimbobbington]

Hemisphere Performance has a couple cool options to mount spare fuel bottles

[@markkulyas2418]

Go find some friends with a scout.

[@raybrensike42]

Isn't it Indian that includes a battery tender right on the bike? Really, all you should need to do with a battery is disconnect the ground and leave it all winter long, and if it doesn't start right away in the spring, you likely need a new battery.

[@Jimbobbington]

It does come standard Auth the pigtail ready to connect to a tender

[@michaelmurphy1028]

Battery tender is not a trickle charger

[@hootertexas9711]

So there’s a difference between a trickle charge and a maintainer or tender. Some don’t know the difference.

[@neilrichardson9718]

Hi Neil from the uk, has anyone had issues with the Matt black coatings on both heat shields and silencers on stock Indian issue exhausts Thanks

[@Jimbobbington]

I've not seen any common issues at all. They seem to be coated well and don't fade or damage easily.

[@Yuri-bx2zx]

I think the worst issue about buying an Indian nowadays is that they know the problems that they're doing and it's like I never understood why manufacturers do this especially when it comes to like vehicles like they will literally say all we have the best parts in the game all we created a new bike for this year but they still give you the crappy of parts off the get-go they give you a crappy seat crappy suspension crappy this crappy. And it's like what's the point of even buying it like for the looks it's not even worth buying any more like if they're just going to give you crappy parts it's not even worth it I'd rather spend my money on a bike that actually has great parts out to GetGo

[@Jimbobbington]

It's like that for any enthusiast on any platform though. Nothing ever comes from the factory the way WE want it. There's plenty of people who are completely happy with a car/truck/motorcycle from the factory. Then there's the rest of us who are going to upgrade and throw money at it whether it's an Indian motorcycle, a Jeep, a Porsche, etc. Unfortunately, us enthusiasts are in the minority, and we are hard to please.

[@Yuri-bx2zx]

@@Jimbobbington yes could not agree with you more my good sir have a great rest of your week and weekend stay safe out there

[@Jimbobbington]

@@Yuri-bx2zx same to you!

[@mikeh4686]

Nobody is holding a gun to your head to purchase

[@maozero2143]

it takes 3 mins for him to get to the first issue.. i have a Ftr my Natural switch is bad n i had a new one come in under warranty and that one went bad within a day.. i hear also a coolant leak at the top of the rad for the ftr. i have some other issues like i get literly 80ish miles to the tank. and im right now worried about my oil disappearing. other then that i have a few other complaints but nofin major i would say

[@maozero2143]

im not sure about the oil yet im still in the testing phase i have had my oil filter come loose now 2x not sure why dealer ship changed the oil on it imma check now if i have any leaks where i park but its over a rug so i have to feel for it

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow, haven't heard about these issues with the FTR.

[@AceGreene360]

You picking up the exhaust through the same mic as your narrative?

[@Jimbobbington]

Yessir! All that exhaust noise is coming through my in-helmet mic setup.

[@waderobins07]

My battery is fine, but my 3 year old starter just died

[@Jimbobbington]

You got lucky!

[@alexandrumarinescu53]

Sorry man, your pipes are just too loud to focus on your voice. Maybe you can fix it in edit

[@Jimbobbington]

I get it. You should hear some older videos with my old mic setup lol.

[@VladimirRosko]

Same problem now on my sixty model

[@Jimbobbington]

Sorry to hear man

[@tristanlafferty2587]

Look at the polaris rzr’s they’re still junk. Literally my only problem with indian is they are owned by polaris. I still want one but absolutely despise polaris and their junk products

[@Jimbobbington]

Without Polaris, we'd probably have lost the Indian brand for good. I've had a great experience with the bobber overall and think they have done a pretty good job with the Indian brand.

[@tristanlafferty2587]

@@Jimbobbington yea i can agree with that, when i first found out about it i was like nah screw that ill just get a honda or a harley and then got to researching and the polaris/indian partnership polaris is basically just the bank account and has no say in engineering, design, production and manufacturing of indian at all. But then again you read 10 different things 6/10 places

[@edgarcorrado]

Indian batteries are junk mine died after two years

[@Jimbobbington]

Two years is better than a lot of them!

[@RaMt2oo]

You’re bike is so damn loud I can’t hear you 😂😂

[@Jimbobbington]

I just switched exhausts and I believe this new one will sound a bit quieter on camera!

[@RaMt2oo]

@@Jimbobbington dude it’s all good that shit sounds beautiful

[@Jimbobbington]

@xX JDM 4 LIFE Xx it really is. The Hacker has so much personality and it's unapologetically nasty and angry. I loved it, but it was time for a change!

[@naomis.9286]

Battery issue sucks. Mine got me when I was 3 hours from home out camping. 😫 trying to find a tow truck on the weekend out in the middle of nowhere was great. 🫠

[@Jimbobbington]

Wow that really sucks! Glad I was at home at least when mine crapped out.