A wave of memories is rolling up on older people at the sight of the newest "Kawasaki Drifter". In their memory instantly pops up popular at us half a century ago "Indian Scout" of the sample of 1925 which was especially appreciated for smoothness of a course and good traction at low revolutions. Your humble servant was still a kid running at them to look at the "barrel". That was the name of the mobile attraction, which has survived to our days and had a heroic name on the poster "Death Race on the vertical wall". There, in the "barrel", for the first time I saw "Indian". Bright red bikes with a heart-rending roar were running in a shaky wooden structure, driven by a fearless motorcyclist in a sparkling circus dress and his assistant with almost no clothes on...
And what does "Indian Four" cost is a four-cylinder and a half-liter motorcycle of the 36th year, capable of reaching 150 km/h. For those times, believe me, the speed is considerable. Four" was worth a lot of money as a good "Buick", so they treated it with special respect. Because of this, these bikes have survived safely to our days in almost the same amount as were released. Even Harley-Davidson gave these bikes priority. Today, when a fan of American motorcycles sees the Indian, the other choppers just cease to exist for him. Now some collectible copies are sold at the price of "Porsche".
I mean, the Indian brand has a long and noble tradition. What is not an object to follow? The Japanese have taken the well-known Kawasaki Vulcan chopper as a basis. Like it, the novelty is equipped with two variants of V2 engines.
Here they stand before us. A duo of "Drifter 1500" (64 hp) and its twin with an 800cc engine (55 hp). They can be distinguished only by their color and leather coffers, which are decorated with the 800th "Drifter". The motorcycle looked pathos. Especially nice leather bags with long fringe, as in the case of an Indian on a jacket and moccasins. We chose "800th" for the test.
Well, if it weren't for modern materials and top-level paintwork, we wouldn't let you take the Indian of the 30s. Deep as if the wings were hanging from the wheels, as if they had come from faded photographs of a pre-war time. Drifter" has a lot of painted details and very little chrome. Only the exhaust pipes and the flattened silencer at the end, reminiscent of a fish tail, are shining - another tribute to the elapsed time.
Slowly leaving the sidewalk. Rows of cars spread the flow of light from a modern halogen lamp. But it shines through a flat transparent glass, as if cut out of a normal window. So you don't forget that you're riding a retro-motorcycle.
On the move, "Drifter" reminds a lot of its prototype "Vulcan", which I drove a lot. It's incredibly slow. Moreover, the engine does not rumble, but as if whispers - the exhaust system in the pre-war style muted his voice very well.
The engine moved from "Vulcan" to "Drifter" without technical changes. The engine was only made up for retrofitting. Its side covers, covering the clutch and generator, are cast deliberately roughly. Cylinders, against modern traditions, are painted in the color of a motorcycle. Here, perhaps, and all the changes that have undergone the engine.
"Drifter" fully justifies its name (in free translation from English it means "drifting"). So we slowly and drifted along Moscow boulevards. Compared to "Vulcan", the new model is much smoother and softer. Especially "fluffy" rear suspension. The "Drifter" swallows with calmness of the old "Caddylac". The motorcycle is equipped with spitz-wheeled wheels - another sacrifice to pre-war style. However, on our lousy roads they are doomed to remain intact, unlike modern cast wheels. Spokes guarantee the necessary elasticity. Therefore, they are less afraid of blows and shocks. Not without reason off-road and cross-country motorcycles have exclusively spitzovannye wheels.
Choppers are not high-speed motorcycles. They do not need any superbrakes. Therefore, many models of this class are equipped with drum brakes at the back. Like the same "Vulcan". However, "Drifter" has a disk brake at the back. But even it is very old-fashioned: unventilated solid iron that looks like a reduced locomotive wheel. The "Drifter" is equipped with one large brake at the front. Their duo is quite enough to stop 230 kg of live weight of the motorcycle. Although it looks like "Drifter 800" on all 320 kilograms...
"Drifter 800 is a mood bike. It envelops the driver with a special aura. It leads to the past. You even begin to feel uncomfortable without canned glasses and elbow toe. And it seemed to me quite organic "Studebaker", parked near the motor show ... Ugh, this is ZIL-157. I stop, turn off the engine and leave, looking back at the goodbye. Near the sidewalk, leaning on the footrest, stood a real, 100% "Indian" ... Oh, sorry, "Kawasaki Drifter".