The FTR 1200 Rally Scrambles To Its Motherland

I will be honest, when the Indian FTR 1200 was first unveiled in 2018, I wasn’t much impressed. Sure, it looked striking and I understood that the American brand wants to showcase its flat track racing (hence the FTR moniker) heritage. The only bit about the bike that really impressed was its fancy TFT touch screen, that worked even with gloves -- how cool is that! Also the motor was sourced from the Indian Scout, which is a fast bike but cruiser standard, but nothing that will make you question physics like the Ducati Diavel did. But all my apprehensions were blown to pieces when I got to test the bike in 2019 and the FTR 1200 was definitely among the best bikes I rode last year. You can check out the video above to understand what I am talking about.

Indian upped the ante by unveiling the FTR 1200 Rally last year and now the bike will be made available in its motherland for $13,499 (Rs 10.20 lakh). The new bike is a scrambler-style motorcycle and features a taller handlebar so that you can stand and ride more comfortably. Other additions include Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR tyres wrapped around spoke wheels to better suit its intent. On the cosmetic front, the Indian FTR 1200 Rally gets a rally windscreen, tan saddle and a gorgeous Titanium Smoke paint with the Indian chief mascot on the fuel tank. The only trick we think Indian missed is a bash plate as the exhaust pipes are a bit too close to the ground and can get easily damaged.

Mechanically, the FTR Rally is powered by the same engine as seen on other FTR variants. The 1,203cc liquid-cooled V-twin motor produces 125PS and 118Nm of peak torque. It even retains the same underpinnings as well: upside-down fork, monoshock as well as dual 320mm front and 265mm rear Brembo brakes with radial callipers.

The Indian FTR 1200 is currently not on sale in India as the bike doesn’t meet BS6 emission norms. We are hopeful that the BS6-compliant FTR 1200 lands on Indian shores by late 2020 or early 2021 and we get the Rally variant as well.