Living Off the Slab: Riding the 2017 Victory Octane
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- Опубликовано: 21 окт 2024
- A couple of weeks ago I was up at MOM's in Foxboro, MA, and got to test ride the all new 2017 Victory Octane. You can check out MOM's at www.momsouth.com.
Checkout my website at, www.livingofftheslab.com.
I have owned 41 motorcycle. I have owned at least of every Victory post 2006, except the Vision, Octane, Highball or the Judge. Well I finally got around to buying an Octane about 3 weeks ago. I have to say this might be my favorite Victory. Yeah its no touring ride, but damn if it doesnt make me smile every time I ride it. My main ride I have Indian Challenger, sold the Cross Country. I really like how light and fast this Octane is. A real hooligan ride to say the least. With the aggressive cams and tune I call this the angry step brother to the Indian Scout. Only things I dont like, no fuel gauge and the rear shocks. Bike has a Mustang seat so I never rode the stock. First thing I am replacing is the rear shocks for my backs sake. Good review.
I sat on one at the dealership. Light! At 6'5" it felt like a fun local ride sport machine as you point out. A kid I know at the school where I teach works there and has ridden it, told me it's a big kick in the pants.
Great video as always. Keep up the good work.
Thanks so much!
Thank you for your responses, they are very helpful.
I got a chance to demo the octane. crazy fast. fun fun fun. I'll stick to my Ultra for long distance, but this would be a great fun to ride secondary bike.
+Chad Mock I agree, I need something bigger and more comfortable for travel, but for an around town bike, the Octane would be great fun!
I rode the Octane as well recently. I did a back to back with the Octane and Scout. Octane was noticeably faster, but the Scout seemed more maneuverable and the seat was much more comfortable in my opinion . Octane would be a great city bike.
+Andy Andreson I agree completely. If you are looking for fast, buy the Octane. If you are looking for the more well mannered and comfortable bike, buy the Scout.
If victory put 18" wheels on front and rear and a cafe race frame, I would buy one tomorrow. My 6'4" frame at 185 lbs and 62 years of age craves this machine on such a platform. And as far as comfort goes, I have toured on a 1968 Triumph bonniville, a 1968 sportster xlch, a 1975 ducati and many other machines of a similar nature, so I do not think comfort would be much of a problem. Good video by the way.
+60 Fit and Vegan I am with you. I hope that this is the first in a series of different bikes from Victory. And you are right, people tour on all kinds of different bikes. However, there are so many choices out there today, that personally I would choose a different option if touring was my main goal. Does not mean someone else would make a different choice. Thanks!
I got to test ride the Octane and it was exactly like you said. I couldn't keep the smile off of my face while riding that bike. I may wait until next year so I can put a mustang seat and pillion on it with bags and some type of windshield. It would make the perfect commuter/daily rider for me!
+Anthony Walden Thanks for the input. I hope Victory does well with the Octane because I really want to see what they do with the platform.
I agree!
I rode the Octane at Bike Week in Daytona Beach. Very quick! a lot of fun and wow factor off the charts . Suspension wasn't an issue on my short demo. Ride was pretty good and stopped adequately but there are many comments like yours where people want an extra disc. I'm only 155 lbs so obviously heavier riders will feel differently about the suspension. I'm not a very aggressive ride by nature but I could see where this bike would get me in trouble. Can't speak for the comfort due to short demo ride also. I would like to have one for a day to get a real feel for it. Great bang for the buck at $10,499. Of course , mine would cost more, I would opt for the back seat, rear pegs, sissy bar, luggage rack , pipes and saddlebags on the Victory website configuration program. Anything I ride has to be outfitted and able to tour :) Thanks for this review.
+Jim Tom Stimpson As you said, for most situations the brakes will be just fine. However, Victory is advertising this bike as being super fast and aggressive with a lot of lean angle (for a cruiser). I think that myself and the other folks mentioning a dual disk, just want to make sure inexperienced riders do not think the Octane is setup to be this bad ass canyon carver. Even though it is capable of quick acceleration and fast speeds, it is still a cruiser with the limitations that come with that design. The Octane is priced, and equipped, to be attractive to younger, inexperienced riders, while at the same time having an engine with enough power to get that same rider in trouble pretty quickly.
I am with you in that my bikes have to be capable of touring. Personally I would not give up long distance comfort for style or even performance. But people tour on all kinds of bikes. Everyone is different, with divergent preferences and tolerances. Thanks and ride safe!
WHAT GREAT BIKE LOVE THE COLOR THE RIDE ALSO HANDLING CORNERING IS TIGHT SPEED GETS UP THERE QUICKLY TOO. A NICE ALL AROUND BIKE DONT THINK ITS MEANT TO RIDE SLOW EITHER . REALLY LOVE MY OCTANE. GREAT RIDE VICTORY NICE JOB.!! REALLY
CHEAP ON THE PRICE 4 WHAT YOU GET ALOT OF BANG 4 UR BUCK. WALLY F.
The Indian Scout was great during test ride, I guess the V will be fun too
It was. Too bad they are no more.
There is a tac on the stock model btw. Its digital, but its there.
You are correct. I did not realize this when I did the test ride. The displayed must have been set to the trip meter. I asked the sales person about the tach, but the bike was brand new so they were not aware either. Thanks.
thank you for your video. Im trying to decide between octane and new HD 1200 roadster. Can you give me advice ?
I have not ridden the Roadster, it has gotten pretty good reviews from what I have seen. I think it will depend on what you are looking for. The Octane will be faster, higher revving, more of a sport bike like character to the engine. The HD, will have that old school character and sound. You are basically looking at old school vs. new school. I would try to ride them both and then get the one you like best. Thanks for watching.
+Craig Ripley (Living Off The Slab) thank you Graig
I am thinking of buying a new 2017 Octane for $7299 plus taxes and bogus fees of course. Do you think it's a good deal even thou that Victory is gone? Wondering about support and accessories. I am kinda tall and the stock seat is way too close in relation to the foot controls. I am sure the extended reach seat is still available. Just wondering if I should stay away from Victory since it probably won't have much of a resale value.
That is a good price. Will you have good support, that depends on the dealer you are buying it from. Accessories for all Victories are getting hard to find. You will most likely have to look at the few 3rd party folks, like witch doctor's. I am not sure what was made for the Octane as it was only out for a short time. As far as resale value, you are probably right. You are already getting out for almost $3000 off. If you are looking for a good fun bike, buy it. But of accessories and resale value is a big deal for you, then you probably should not get it. Hope this helps.
Thanks for your advice. I haven't ridden it yet since we are having one snow storm after another up here. I swear we are having more snow in the Spring then in the Winter. 12 inches forecasted for Saturday morning. I think mother nature is confused. It's suppose to be 60 by now and not 19 in the morning and 30's during the day. :-( As soon as the weather gets better I will test ride it and see if I like it. Thanks for your help!
We are having the same thing here. Seems like winter dies not want to end.
The bike I really wanted ( Street Glide ), I thought that was too much to spend on a first bike.
I returned to motorcycling at 45 and purchased a Kawasaki Vulcan 900. Something that was big enough to be comfortable but was also within my skill level after not riding for more than 20 years. After a couple of years I felt I was ready to move up and bought the Vision. I always suggest that new riders take this path. Get something that is not so heavy or has so much power that you cannot concentrate on learning the necessary skills. Again, just my two sense.
I noticed the external antenna on your Vision, I am looking for an alternative to the hidden oem antenna because the reception on my Vision is very poor, Can you tell me a bit about it? The brand the install and did it help?
Sorry Pedro, I am not sure what you saw, but I do not have an external antenna. The radio reception is also poor on my Vision. I rarely listed to the radio, only the iPod.
you have a shorty antenna on the front left just above the left mirror maybe for a CB? I will try an amplified one thanks..
Oh, unfortunately that is a camera mount for my go pro. Sorry, I did not put two and two together.
Would this be a good starter bike?
+Fred Howard My short answer would be no. This is a 1200cc bike with more than 100 HP. That is far more power than a new rider needs. The long answer is that it depends on the rider. If the buyer is a mature individual (and I don't mean by age) who is willing to take it slow and learn how to be safe, then it could be a good first bike and would allow a lot of room for growth. But if they are looking to buy it because it does wheelies and burnouts, they are just asking for trouble. Just my two cents...
the only thing close to american sport bikes are the electric bikes from HD and Victory.
maybe if Indian brought back the Indian Four, at a clamshell position with mid controls, to make it a sporty agressive stance?
I agree, the Octane is not a sport bike, it is a cruiser with the limitations and advantages that go along with that. However, the engine is tuned more like you would find in a sport bike than a standard cruiser, with a quicker throttle response and higher red-line.
Craig Ripley
And i love the idea of lower gearing so that you can use all that torque better on demand at an RPM
Buy I would seriously love to see an Indian four come back.
I mean, that thing would be wicked.
+Eli Butterfield I agree, it would be cool.
Craig Ripley
Do you think it'd be air cooled or watercooled? That's the only thing I can't predict.
If they do built it, I image in would be air-cooled to appeal to the classic cruiser buyer. With that said, it is getting harder for the manufacturers to meet EPA regulations with out water cooling. But this is all just speculation. The Indian 4 would be cool, but I would be surprised if was every produced. I would think we will see derivations of the current platforms for a while.They seem to have a good thing going with Indian and they will not want to upset the apple cart. I would think Victory would be the place they would take more risks...but we will see.
Perhaps they can build an ADV bike based on the Octane power plant.
I hope they do, as well as other types of bikes. Well will just have to wait and see. However, I am not holding my breath. Thanks!
Now FTR1200 is available and Indian is working on an ADV. Funny thing is that Harley is working on pretty much the same thing at the moment.
I was about to say 1200 air cooled is slow lol, then I find out it's liquid cooled
While I like the Victory's, off the showroom floor without upgraded pipes they all sound like sewing machines. Too bad to get that mean rumble the buyer has to pony up additional $$ for after market pipes.
almost everybike is in the same boat. they need to meet emissions. heard a vrod with standard pipes sounds the same
+StreetTruckinTitan Unfortunatly Baris is correct. Emissions and sound regulations and getting more restrictive. Starting next year there and new EPA regulations that may make it illegal to modify your stock exhaust. These changes were even going to effect race bikes, the way they were written, but it looks like they are going to change the wording to exclude bikes for track use only. Well see how things shake out...
+Craig Ripley (Living Off The Slab) Just more ways to restrict people and make money. Damn near every enjoyable thing is becoming illegal. they wont be stopping me from putting on a set of pipes. Also Harley rely a great deal on their aftermarket sales so I think they would make alot of noise. nearly every bike purchased rolls out with a stage 1...
+Baris Akkulah Yeah, I agree, but it appears to be coming. Write your legislators and let them know how you feel, support the AMA and your local motorcycle rights groups.
+Craig Ripley (Living Off The Slab) Exactly why I'am not a liberal lol. The epa is needed, but when they intrude on people's life's and say what they can and can not do to a tiny motorcycle, that's unacceptable. Same thing with guns