Victory Octane
Victory Octane
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Make Model | Victory Octane |
Year | 2016 - 17 |
Engine | Four stroke, 60° V twin DOHC, 4 Valves per cylinder, hydraulic lifters & cam chain adjusters |
Capacity | 1179cc / 71.9 ci-in |
| Bore x Stroke | 101.0 X 73.6 mm |
| Cooling System | Liquid cooled |
| Compression Ratio | 10.8:1 |
| Exhaust | Dual slash-cut mufflers with common volume |
| Oil Capacity | 4.26 Litres |
Induction | Sequential fuel injection with single 60mm throttle body |
Starting | -Electric |
| Clutch | Wet, multi-plate |
| Exhaust | Dual staggered slash-cut with common volume |
Max Power | 104 hp / 77 kW @ 8000 rpm |
Max Torque | 76 ft-lb / 99 Nm @ 6000 rpm |
| Clutch | Wet, multi-plate |
Transmission | 6 Speed |
| Final Drive | Belt |
| Final Drive Ratio | 2.536 : 1 |
| Frame | Cast-aluminium semi-double-cradle with tubular-steel backbones |
Front Suspension | 41mm Damper tube forks with dual rate springs |
| Front Wheel Travel | 120 mm / 4.7 in |
Rear Suspension | Dual shocks with dual rate springs adjustable preload |
| Rear Wheel Travel | 75 mm / 3.0 in |
Front Brakes | Single 298mm with 2 piston caliperABS standard |
Rear Brakes | Single 298mm with 1 piston caliperABS standard |
| Front Wheel | 18 X 3.5-IN. CAST, Spoke |
| Rear Wheel | 17 X 4.5-IN. CAST 10-Spoke |
Front Tyre | 130/70-18 63H |
Rear Tyre | 160/70-17 76H |
| Rake | 29.0° |
| Trail | 130 mm / 5.1 in |
| Lean Angle | 32° |
| Dimensions | Length 2286 mm / 90.9 in |
| Wheelbase | 1578 mm / 62.1 in |
| Seat Height | 658 mm / 25.9 in |
Dry Weight | 243 kg / 535.7 lbs |
Fuel Capacity | 12.9 Litres / 3.4 US gal |
Every high-octane horsepower enthusiast is familiar with the muscle car formula: take a big motor, insert it into a lightweight chassis, then delete any creature comforts or other unnecessary accessories. What’s left is just what you need to go very fast, and nothing else.
The all-new 2017 Victory Octane is the two-wheeled expression of that concept, with a modern twist. This is raw adrenaline that rules the streets. A 1200cc, liquid-cooled V-twin—Victory’s first-ever liquid-cooled engine—utilizes dual overhead cams and four-valve heads to rev beyond 8000 rpm and put down an authoritative 104 horsepower. That’s more horsepower than any Victory motorcycle ever built. And weighing just 528 pounds, it’s the lightest Victory motorcycle ever built, too. No surprise, then, that Octane is also the quickest Victory down the quarter-mile, and the fastest from 0-60 mph, too. And with a price starting at just $10,499, Octane runs in a class of its own.
A stiff and light cast-aluminium frame transmits every last one of those horsepower directly to the pavement. Sharp steering geometry, a tight, 62.1-inch wheelbase and 32-degrees of available lean angle deliver agility previously unknown to American V-twin motorcycles. Muscular styling cuts an undeniably modern profile and a sportbike-inspired bullet cowl improves airflow over the rider at the triple-digit speeds Octane is built to achieve.
A RACE-BRED POWERTRAIN
Developed from the Project 156 prototype that was tested at the most demanding racing event in the world—the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb™—the 60-degree V-twin features short-stroke engine geometry just like the Project 156 racer to allow higher engine rpm and more horsepower, and a quick-revving engine response more like a sportbike than any traditional American V-Twin. An electronically metered 60mm throttle body feeds high-flow, 4-valve heads operated by dual overhead cams, and liquid cooling quenches the heat that is the byproduct of generating 104 horsepower and 76 foot-pounds of tire-shredding torque. Geared short for quicker acceleration, Octane can sprint down the quarter-mile in 12 seconds and rush from 0-60 mph in less than four seconds. With the heart of a racer, Octane has power to burn.
A STIFF AND SOLID CHASSIS
Raw power is only half the musclebike equation. You also need a solid chassis that can transmit all that power to the pavement and also hold a tight line when bent into a corner. Octane’s solid-mounted powertrain is a stressed member that connects cast-aluminum front and rear frame sections, with twin tubular-steel backbones for added reinforcement. This rigid assembly is suspended up front by a 41mm fork equipped with dual-rate springs for solid front-end feedback over any type of pavement, and out back with stylish laydown shocks mounted 53 degrees off-horizontal, also equipped with preload-adjustable dual-rate springs. Oversized, 298mm disc brakes with stainless-steel lines at both ends wait at-the-ready for those rare occasions when you want to shed speed, instead. Cast aluminum, 10-spoke wheels are sized and shod for sure-footed handling. The 18-inch front wheel wears 130/70-18 rubber, while the 17-inch rear wheel is wrapped with a 160/70-17 tire. A low-slung solo saddle that rides just 25.9-inches above the pavement, an equally low pullback handlebar and semi-forward-set foot controls create a riding position that looks properly badass but still provides adequate support when the rider grabs a big handful of throttle and the bike wants to rocket off the line.
SHARP-EDGED STYLING
There are no smooth, flowing lines here. Octane is the most aggressive Victory motorcycle ever built, and the styling has been revised to suit with harder lines, sharper creases, a more-pronounced center spine and other details that make Octane look leaner and meaner than any American motorcycle ever before. The bullet cowl is standard equipment and screams to oncoming traffic that this bike is built for speed—the only thing other riders are going to see is the LED taillight disappearing into the distance. Chrome won’t get you home, so there’s hardly any shiny stuff on Octane. The bulk of the chassis, running gear and powertrain are blacked-out, and Matte Super Steel Gray bodywork looks all business. Even the tank badge has been cast in gray instead of the traditional Victory red to create a modern, monochrome look.
THE MODERN AMERICAN MUSCLEBIKE
Based off a proven Polaris® platform, Octane uses a significant number of unique parts specifically designed and engineered to deliver the high-performance, raw-adrenaline riding experience Victory riders demand. With a high-revving engine character and surprising high-rpm power hit, it behaves more like a sportbike than any American V-twin that has come before. With unexpectedly low weight and lots of available lean angle, a well-ridden Octane will embarrass many replica-racers down a twisty stretch of pavement. And with pricing starting at just $10,499, it’s less expensive than most supersports—and tougher looking, too. Fast, capable, stylish and affordable, Victory’s Octane is the formula for the Modern American Musclebike.
Last week Victory Motorcycles delivered the unexpected when it pulled the cover off its long-teased Octane model. Though, it seems that for many the surprise wasn't necessarily a good one.
Reading through some 130 comments on different motorcycle websites this weekend, I was able to find only three positive responses to the Octane. Obviously the internet peanut gallery isn't the best place for reliable market research, but I doubt this is the reception Victory was hoping for.
The criticism seems to center on two issues: Firstly, the Octane bares a striking resemblance to the Indian Scout (Indian and Victory share the same corporate parent in Polaris) and secondly, the Octane's 104 hp and single front brake disc seem to belie some of the marketing hype about the motorcycle being intimidating to stand next to, etc.
I'll admit that my own initial reaction was something akin to disappointment. But I'll admit, too, that I am a Polaris fanboy, with Victory being the marque I lean toward most.
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So, after exorcising my own ridiculous complaints of 'This Isn't The Sport Tourer I Wanted!' (get over it, Chris, no one but you wants a Sport Tourer), I decided to look at this bike for what it is rather than what it isn't. And you know what? What it is, is a damned good-looking motorcycle.
Yes, I feel Victory's PR team may have gone just a little bit overboard, but it's hardly the case that no other manufacturer has done the same. I mean, you know that everything Harley-Davidson says about Harley-Davidsons isn't 100 percent irrefutably true, right? Or what BMW says about BMWs; what Honda says about Hondas...and so on. It's part of the marketing game.
In hindsight, the talk of sportbike heritage may have led many people to hear things that weren't actually being said, but that doesn't mean the Octane isn't a good bike.
Victory Octane 1200
In fact, before most moto journalists have had a chance to even see it in the flesh, we already know that it's a good bike because it shares a platform with the Indian Scout. The gray lady of motorcycling, Cycle World, had exclusive access to the Octane before everyone else, and it says parent company Polaris is open about the fact the new Victory is 'a platform play,' sharing up to 35 percent of its parts with the Indian Scout.
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And that's OK. When Yamaha uses exactly the same platform for the FZ-09, FJ-09, and XSR900 we think that's a clever use of resources. When Triumph contorts its Tiger Explorer into eight almost identical applications we say they're giving the customer what it wants. So, frankly, it is a little strange that so many people decided to fire up the hater machine when Polaris did something similar.
Two years ago, this wouldn't have happened. In a world that had yet to see the new Indian Scout, the Octane would have been met with whoops of glee. Here's an American motorcycle that costs less than a Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200, but delivers almost twice the power as well as five percent more lean angle. In a pre-Scout world we would have been falling over ourselves with praise.
In internet forums, people would have dutifully claimed that Harley was being made to look like fools by Victory. Dozens of moto publications worldwide would have listed the Octane as their motorcycle of the year. Every accolade that has been given to the Scout would have belonged instead to the Octane.
Victory Octane Accessories
And arguably, that's how it was supposed to have been. In March 2014, five months before the Indian Scout was revealed at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, Motorcyclist revealed several sketches of what it said was a forthcoming liquid-cooled Victory model. Prophetically, the magazine chose to color in the most complete of the sketches using red. And, of course, a few months later we discovered this presumed Victory was, in fact, an Indian.
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Indian Scout
Victory Octane
But is it so hard to believe that wasn't the original plan? Is it hard to believe that developing an all-new liquid-cooled 1200cc V-twin engine would take more than just three years? That's roughly the amount of time Indian had between being acquired by Polaris in April 2011 and the Scout's unveiling in August 2014. So it seems plausible to me that the Octane is not an expansion of the Scout platform, but the other way around: this bike was always supposed to be part of the Victory livery.
That's my own speculation there; I don't have any evidence that such a thing is true. I'm simply saying it strikes me as plausible.
Looking at the Octane and the Scout side-by-side, the Victory's aesthetics seem more 'correct' to me. The Scout's awkward headlight, balloonish tires and front fender have always struck me as just a little off. The Octane's look seems to have better flow. Additionally, take a look at the rest of the Victory lineup—the Octane fits right in. It looks like a Victory, whereas the Scout stands out amid the rest of the Indian lineup; it's the one blonde in a family of brunettes.
Consider, too, the quote by then Vice President of Motorcycles (now president) for Polaris, Steve Menneto, that led Motorcyclist to think those sketches were of Victory bikes. In 2013, he had told the magazine: 'It's about time the Victory had a new powertrain.'
Again, he said that in 2013. Another three years would pass before it happened.
I'm well off into the Land of Unfounded Speculation now, but I don't find it difficult to imagine a scenario in which a platform that Victory had been working on for a number of years was 'borrowed' by Indian to help buoy its early success. That's the kind of stuff that happens in corporations all the time.
And if that's what happened, it's worked out really well for Indian. You'll notice that in that same time, though, Victory didn't do much more than repaint popular models, dropping a few along the way.
So, for me, the Octane isn't a case of Victory slapping its badge on a Scout and hoping the riding public is too stupid to notice. This is Victory finally being allowed to move in the direction it was headed several years ago. In that sense, the Octane's marketing hype was right: this is very exciting. This is totally new. The Octane is Victory's future.
The question is: What happens now?
2017 Victory Octane For Sale
It seems certain Victory will expand upon this platform. There are strong rumors that something more dramatic is not too far off. But don't expect a true sportbike. Considering worldwide interest in that genre is on the wane, and they've never been terribly popular in the United States, it was always unlikely Victory was going to build one. But there are some interesting directions in which the Octane platform could more realistically go.
Touring, for example. The Victory Vision has been around, unchanged, for roughly eight years and remains an incredibly good motorcycle. With a little less weight and the Octane engine it could be a great motorcycle. And I'll be surprised if this platform doesn't find its way into the bagger format.
Victory Octane Exhaust
Victory will take baby steps—it always has—but it's clear that the Octane really is a step forward. Perhaps those who are piling on criticism are simply failing to see the big picture.
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