2025 Indian 101 Scout Review

Shakespeare references aren’t the first thing that typically come to mind when thinking about a motorcycle, but after a few weeks aboard the 2025 101 Scout, it’s hard not to consider Romeo and Juliet’s famous “What’s in a name?” question. If a rose, by any other name, smells just as sweet, then wouldn’t the 101 Scout, by any other name, be just as satisfying? Scout SP has a nice ring to it, after all.

The reality, of course, is that names do mean something. And by naming the newest addition to its cruiser lineup after the legendary 101 Scout that defined Indian’s formative years as a motorcycle manufacturer, the company is promising you something special: a fully modern performance cruiser that strikes a balance between the classic V-twin experience and today’s high-performance, tech-driven machinery.

Our first ride on the 2025 model drove that point home, solidifying the 101′s position as our favorite bike in the 2025 Scout lineup and as a legitimate front-runner in the middleweight cruiser space. But what would daily life look like on the 101? Did the bike have enough personality and performance to keep us grinning every time the garage door rolled up? Were there missing pieces in this performance cruiser puzzle?

Indian agreed these were worthy enough questions to toss us the keys to a 2025 101 Scout for an extended period and, spoiler alert, we’re just as big a fan of the name now as we were then.

First, a rehash of what makes the bike a 101.

The 101 Scout is part of Indian’s completely overhauled 2025 Scout lineup that now includes the Scout Classic, Scout Bobber, Super Scout, and Sport Scout. All bikes share a new-for-2025 frame, redesigned SpeedPlus 1250 engine, and an assortment of platform-wide hardware. The 101 takes things a step further with dedicated ECU tuning, fully adjustable suspension, and upgraded brakes, not to mention model-specific styling touches like machined triple clamps and special paint.

Indian claims the 101′s dedicated engine tune is good for an extra 6 hp compared to base-model Scouts, which wasn’t possible for us to verify without having the keys to both versions. What we can say is that our 2025 101 Scout made 100.4 rear-wheel horsepower and 74.9 lb.-ft. of torque when strapped to Cycle World’s in-house dyno. Compare that to a previous-generation Scout (2018 model) that made 84.6 hp and 63.9 lb.-ft. of torque on the same dyno and you can see the direction Indian is headed with its middleweight cruiser platform, and the 101 especially—up!

An added benefit is that the torque curve is flat as Florida, and that there are absolutely zero dips in the bike’s power curve.

Suspension on the 101 consists of an inverted, fully adjustable fork and fully adjustable piggyback shocks that have 3 inches of travel and are an upgrade over the nonadjustable units found elsewhere in the Scout lineup. Dual disc brakes are another upgrade, and because the 101 follows the West Coast–style cruiser trend, you get a quarter fairing and moto-style handlebar mounted on 6-inch bar risers, giving the bike a sporty look and feel.

Interestingly, the one thing you don’t get are mid-controls, which would make sense on a performance cruiser but are only available as accessories.

Other Scouts are available with different trim packages, but the 101 comes fully loaded with Indian’s Limited +Tech package, which includes a 4-inch touchscreen display and keyless push-button ignition on top of the features available in Indian’s Limited package, like ride modes, traction control, cruise control, and a USB charger. That’s to say that the 101 isn’t short on electronics and general niceties, even if it doesn’t make those features its entire identity. This is an important point, according to Indian, who is quick to mention that the goal was to pack as much performance and features into the Scout as possible without losing the rawness and simplicity that makes an American V-twin cruiser so appealing.

No pressure, folks.

We won’t describe the 101 as a simple motorcycle. There is an elemental feel to it with that big V-twin stuffed into a visually lighter-looking steel-tube front frame, but the bike has a high-quality, grown-up look to it that you don’t always get from middleweight cruisers. Parked in the garage, it doesn’t look like a bike that you’ll grow out of in a few years, but an aspirational machine with real presence.

It is, of course, a smaller motorcycle when compared to the Harley-Davidson Low Rider S and Indian Sport Chief we tested earlier this year, and while that gives it a touch less presence than those bikes, it doesn’t feel too small for riders at or just over the 6-foot mark. We knocked the forward controls earlier, but the reality is they open the door to a nicely relaxed riding position that’s just sporty enough, without feeling overly committed. This is a very easy motorcycle to get on, and stay on.

We say “stay on” because most of our rides on the 101 ended up being longer than planned, simply because we were enjoying the ride too much to head home. “There’s daylight left? What’s a few more miles…”

Engine performance is best described as flexible. Changes to the SpeedPlus 1250 engine (including a lighter crank) mean there’s not as much immediacy as you might expect at low revs, but Indian hasn’t completely disregarded the traditional V-twin character and there’s still enough grunt to get off the line with relative ease. Factor in the added top-end performance and you have a bike that’s incredibly flexible, with a wide enough rev range for anything from casual city riding to faster-pace rides on your favorite sections of canyon road.

We weren’t in love with the Scout’s slip-assist clutch when testing it in the hills of San Francisco, but it felt intuitive and user-friendly once we spent more time with the bike. We also got to play around with the different ride modes, though we typically reverted to Sport; the power curve is just soft enough in the less-aggressive Standard that it almost requires more attention and makes the bike harder to ride in traffic.

Given that the 101 Scout’s other big features are its adjustable suspension and upgraded brakes, it’s easy to want to turn the conversation to more spirited riding. And the reality is that the bike is, indeed, plenty capable of a good time when the road starts winding itself around a mountain. It’s relatively nimble, stable, and offers plenty of feedback through the new chassis, allowing you to easily dip peg feelers into the tarmac.

Maybe more surprising though was how often we found ourselves appreciating the 101′s performance upgrades in the mundane; Los Angeles’ endless supply of potholes and rain grooves are less memorable with improved bump absorption, and again, you don’t always get that on middleweight cruisers.

Meanwhile, on our weekend trips into the canyons, the suspension offered just enough added performance to not feel like we were asking too much of the bike. You’ll still ride the bike within the limits of a performance cruiser, and with the acknowledgement that this is still very much a cruiser, but there’s a generous enough threshold that you don’t feel out of place on something other than the highway.

The same goes for the dual-disc Brembo brakes, which have a sense of immediacy and power that is missing on the other Scouts, and even on the larger Indian Sport Chief we’d just gotten off of. Sharpness is not here just in the name of aggression and riding faster, but also for added precision and comfort. This is not a Hooligan racebike and we won’t pretend for it to be, but the added exactness and capability is recognizable and appreciated.

As for specific suspension adjustments, we focused on adding rebound damping at the rear, which added a touch of composure. And while the shocks’ adjustment range isn’t exactly expansive, having the ability to tweak settings makes it easier to have the bike working how you need it to—not how Indian needs it to work for a wide range of riders.

There are still some shortcomings. We appreciate the TFT display, for instance, but despite seemingly constant complaints regarding slow operating speeds, Indian’s touchscreen display continues to come to life as if it were racing drying paint. An exaggeration? Yes, but it’s frustrating how inconsistent the user interface can be when trying to fire the bike and get going in a quick manner. A laggy response also caused mild setbacks when typing in destinations on the bike’s navigation system. Minor criticisms, but frustrating when it’s experienced everyday.

Even with the issues, we really appreciate the display’s versatility. Anyone who doesn’t like the look of an overwhelmingly complex digital gauge can use the basic screen with rpm and speed readout, while everyone else will appreciate the added ease of navigating settings through the touchscreen feature. Want to change ride modes, disable traction control, or reset your trip? All of that’s easily done by toggling through the screen with the handlebar controls, or with just a few taps to the screen.

Simple as that sounds, it highlights Indian’s ability to bring a sense of modernity to a cruiser, and again, do that without making those modern touches the defining feature of the bike. This is still very much a classic, American-made V-twin cruiser.

More than that, the 2025 101 Scout makes good on the promise that the name carries, delivering a blend of classic Indian styling and modern performance.

The reality, of course, is that it probably doesn’t matter what Indian called its new 101 Scout. Scout SP or Scout R would’ve worked just as well on showroom floors and changed nothing of the experience. A rose, by any other name, smells just as sweet, after all. And the 101 Scout, by any other name, is just as entertaining. Kudos to Indian for finding a way to connect past and future with a modern iteration. If there was ever a bike deserving of the name, it is this one.