Indian ups ante on FTR 1200 discounts

Indian Motorcycle Australia is extending its massive discounts to FTR 1200 as it looks to close down its company owned Australian stores.

Two weeks ago they announced they were closing down their Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth company-owned stores and moving to a system of privately owned dealerships.

Their discounts  to the end of January include:

• $3000 off accessories or apparel and free on-road costs on Roadmaster, Chief Vintage and Springfield Dark Horse;
• $2000 off accessories or apparel and free on-road costs on FTR 1200 and Scout Bobber.

Now they are offering up to $3000 off the rideaway price on any FTR 1200 model.

This new offer is separate, ends on 31 March 2020 and cannot be used in conjunction with the previous offer.

Closing down

Indian say there will be a gradual closing down of their stores throughout the year as alternative dealerships are found.

By the end of 2020, Indian Motorcycle in Australia and New Zealand will operate solely with an independent dealer network. Christchurch is already independently owned.

Clearing out floor stock with sales offers will help them move the process along faster.

That’s one customer benefit from closing their company-owned stores. Another benefit they claim is that it will increase the spread of dealerships throughout the country.

Company history

The model of a mix of company owned and independent dealers has been operating since they started in Australia in 2008 with Victory Motorcycles.

Indian Motorcycle was added in 2013 after being bought by Polaris. They sold 102 Indian Chief models in their first year.

The traditional brand has experienced substantial growth since, even during the past few parlous years of motorcycle sales, but last year recorded a 3.9% decrease to 803.

That’s still far better than the 11.9% slump in total road bike sales in Australia.

Sales should increase with the launch of the new Challenger range early this year.

In 2017, Polaris axed the Victory Motorcycle brand, but continued with the company owned stores just for Indian.

However, it was only a matter of time before they switched to the conventional system as used elsewhere in the world.

Polaris Australia boss Alan Collins said customers needed “more locations and more support”.

“Moving to an independent franchised network of dealers is more sustainable for us and our partners as we look to grow in order to meet demand, while also enabling a broader network of support and options for our customers.”

Former Indian Motorcycle executive and now a senior motorcycle industry consultant Robert Pandya said the factory-owned dealership model was needed to establish the new brand in a new market.

Alan says they will double their dealer network in the next two years.

They say warranties will not be affected.

Customers are invited to call their Indian Motorcycle Australia Customer Service Centre on 0460775949 “for a chat” or contact them via email.