2016 Victory Octane review

The morning after the extravaganza that was the opening of the spectacular new Victory & Indian Motorcycle Perth dealership, Bikesales contributor Boris Mihailovic and I returned to the store with company marketing man Adrian Givoye to grab a brace of bikes and sample life in the Victory/Indian brotherhood.

With a blazing sun overhead and the broad expanse of the WA horizon beckoning, I settled into the well-sculpted saddle of a new Victory Octane, the first liquid-cooled sibling to join the American brand's otherwise air/oil-cooled fraternity.

VICTORY OCTANE IN BIKE SHOWROOM

At first glance there's none of the potentially ugly plumbing you'd normally associate with a liquid-cooled bike – even the radiator is smoothly integrated into the bike's design, slipping neatly between the grey powder-coated chassis downtubes.

Aesthetics are a personal thing, but to my eye the Octane has a sporty but tough look about it; the matte gunmetal grey tinwork is complemented well by the many gloss-black components, like the broad handlebar, the triple clamps, and the cast alloy rims. The solo saddle lends its own appeal, showing off the raised 'spine' of the rear guard, a styling cue that then flows through to the tank – and many other Victory models, for that matter.

It's light and very manageable too, requiring very little effort to pull up off its sidestand, with a super-low seat height that will allow the vast majority of riders to easily get a foot down at the lights.

With starter buttons duly stabbed the air outside the Perth dealership crackled with V-twins, and while the sonorous bellows belching from the pipes of the Indian Roadmaster and Indian Chief Vintage may have packed a few more decibels, the Octane was no wallflower when it came time to make its presence known.

Negotiating Perth's Sunday traffic proved no hardship – 'traffic' seems too harsh a description for the modest volumes involved – but the slower speed work amply proved the Octane's easy-handling credentials.

As the local Victory and Indian faithful had outlined to me at the dealership opening the previous night, corners are in short supply around Perth and you can count yourself lucky if you come across high-speed sweepers. That’s a big part of why the cruiser market is as large as it is in the west, and so the three of us were well placed on this ride to soak up the best of the cruising lifestyle.

Not that we were rolling along at a snail's pace, mind you – each of these three bikes has more than enough cubes on tap to rocket along, and the Octane in particular has a strong sporting streak to its nature that begs to be set free.

With 104hp and 103Nm on tap and in a package weighing in at 212kg (wet), the Octane is a compact but potent little dragster that loves to be revved. The torque band is broad and meaty throughout much of its rev range, while the ground clearance is pretty healthy too – certainly I never scraped a footpeg on this ride, not that we encountered many (read any) switchbacks!

The vibrations that are present are minimal and unobtrusive – just enough to underline its V-twin heart – and while reasonably clear, those tiny teardrop mirrors are more about form, not function.

At 188cm I thought I was going to struggle to fit on the Octane, given its compact dimensions. While not exactly roomy, I found the ride position to be fine over our 300km day trip, although were it mine I'd definitely be investigating some highway footpegs for longer sojourns. The rear of the seat was putting a little pressure on base of my spine by the end of the day, and on those long WA straights I occasionally found myself resting my calves on the footpegs to stretch my legs.

These issues shouldn't be a problem for anyone of average height or below and, in any case, with a tiny 12.9-litre fuel tank it's hardly a touring machine.

We made our way north from Perth and headed up to the township of Toodyay, before looping around to Bindoon and then back to the WA capital. The route took in endless rolling countryside, with the undulating farmland occasionally broken up by the odd small town.

Traffic was non-existent, at least by east-coast standards, and with a dazzling sun overhead, a cobalt blue sky and an endless horizon, the hypnotic beat of the V-twin beneath me was soon working its magic.

At $18,995 ride away, the Octane is the most affordable motorcycle in Victory's range, but don't think for a minute that that means it's anything but quality. Every aspect of this bike simply works – the action of the gearshift is smooth, the brakes are responsive, the steering neutral. It's a cliché, but here it holds true – the Octane is more than the sum of its parts.

The suspension package – a non-adjustable 41mm fork and twin rear shocks, the latter adjustable for preload – is also on the money, doing a decent job of soaking up the bumps under my 100 kilogram mass.

But it's the Octane's acceleration that's the headline here. Crack the throttle and the bike surges forward, riding a wave of performance that's sure to get your pulse racing. It's not tucked away in a narrow window either – there's decent thump available throughout the majority of its rev range, and excellent roll-on response from highway speeds for quick, effective overtakes.

All this is set to an aural backdrop of that beating V-twin. Sure, it's a different note than that found in a big air-cooled V-twin, but there's a raucous edge to it that totally suits the Octane's 'blitzkreig'-esque battle plan. And that's all from a fully road legal system.

By the time the Perth skyline rolled back into view, I was sold – the Octane is ripper of a ride and, in my opinion, superb value at $18,995 ride away. In American cruiser land that's a brilliant entry-level price, but the Octane doesn't feel like an entry-level bike – it's every bit a full-biscuit cruiser, even if its capacity and its liquid-cooling place it outside of traditional big-bore cruiser fare.

My advice? Get down to your nearest Victory dealership – in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, and now Perth – and get your backside on an Octane for a test ride. Just warn your bank manager first…

SPECS: 2016 VICTORY OCTANE
ENGINE
Type: Liquid-cooled, four-stroke DOHC, eight-valve V-twin
Capacity: 1179cc
Bore x stroke: 101.0mm x 73.6mm
Compression ratio: 10.8:1
Engine management: Electronic fuel injection

PERFORMANCE
Claimed maximum power: 104hp (77.5kW) at 8000rpm
Claimed maximum torque: 103Nm at 6000rpm

TRANSMISSION
Type: Six-speed
Final drive: Belt
Clutch: Wet, multi-plate

CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR
Frame: Cast aluminium frame, steel backbone
Front suspension: 41mm fork, non-adjustable
Rear suspension: Twin shocks with adjustable preload
Front brakes: 298mm disc with twin-piston caliper
Rear brake: Single disc with single-piston caliper
Wheels: Front 3.5 x 18, rear 4.5 x 17
Tyres: Front 120/70-17, rear 180/55-17

DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES
Rake: 29 degrees
Trail: 130mm
Claimed kerb weight: 212kg
Seat height: 658mm
Wheelbase: 1578mm
Fuel capacity: 12.9 litres

OTHER STUFF
Price: $18,995 ride away
Colour: Matte Grey
Test bike supplied by: Victory Motorcycles Australia, www.victorymotorcycles.com/en-au
Warranty: 24 months, unlimited kilometres