Indian Chieftain and Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 (2025) – Technical Review

Terms like ‘race-developed’, ‘liquid-cooled’ and ‘aluminium-framed’ would normally be found attached to head-down sports bikes rather than American cruisers but Indian can legitimately use all of them on its new PowerPlus 112 model range which includes two completely new additions in the form of the Chieftain PowerPlus and Roadmaster PowerPlus.

PowerPlus, for the uninitiated, is Indian’s term for its large, water-cooled V-twin engine, which has so far been offered in 108 cubic-inch (1768cc) form in the Challenger bagger and the Pursuit tourer. For 2012 both those machines get an uprated 112 cubic-inch (1843cc) version of the engine, and they’re joined by the new Chieftain and Roadmaster models which carry over their names from the older air-cooled lineup but little else.

Pros & Cons

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Price & PCP Deals

The Chieftain PowerPlus 112 becomes the entry point to the PowerPlus model line in the UK with a starting price of £26,895 for the ‘Limited’ version, rising to £27,895 for the blacked-out ‘Dark Horse’ model. The other new addition to the range, the Roadmaster PowerPlus 112, comes in at £29,495in Limited form with the Dark Horse version at £30,495

Both the Pursuit and Challenger remain in the range, in ‘Limited’ and ‘Dark Horse’ forms, but with the new 112ci engine and other tech upgrades, with the Challenger Limited coming in at £28,595 – up just £400 on last year’s 108ci version – or £28,495 for the Dark Horse version. The Pursuit tops the line, again £400 more than its predecessor, at £29,695 for the Limited and £30,695 for the Dark Horse.

The difference between the two baggers and two tourers? The new Chieftain and Roadmaster, like their air-cooled forebears, have more traditional styling with bar-mounted fairings, while the Challenger and Pursuit have fixed, chassis-mounted fairings and a more overtly modern look.

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Engine & Performance

Indian’s PowerPlus V-twin first appeared back in 2019, marking a significant departure for the brand’s big-bike range by adding liquid-cooling and overhead camshafts instead of the classic cooling fins and pushrods of the company’s ThunderStroke V-twin.

Launching in the Pursuit tourer and Challenger bagger, that gave buyers a choice: they could opt for a classic air-cooled bagger or tourer in the form of the Chieftain or Roadmaster, or a more powerful, modern, liquid-cooled equivalent with the Challenger or Pursuit.

For 2025 the Chieftain PowerPlus and Roadmaster PowerPlus split the difference, combining the more trad style of the air-cooled bikes with the chassis, engine and tech of the liquid-cooled ones. For the immediate future, the air-cooled Chieftain and Roadmaster models are expected to remain in the lineup alongside them, but there’s little doubting the Indian’s direction of travel.

The latest 2025 version of the PowerPlus engine, featuring in all the big liquid-cooled models, is the ‘112’. It replaces the previous ‘108’ version, with a 75cc capacity hike bringing it from 1768cc to 1843cc. That’s still a little smaller than the ‘116’ (1890cc) ThunderStroke V-twin used in the air-cooled models, but the modern engine is much more powerful.

How much? The new PowerPlus 112 puts out 126hp where the previous ‘108’ version made 121hp at 5500rpm, and peak torque rises from 131lbft to 133.8lbft at 3800rpm. The Thunderstroke 116, by contrast, has 92hp at 4300rpm and 126lbft at 3000rpm.

The extra capacity comes from a 2mm increase in the engine’s bore, up from 108mm to 110mm, paired to the same 96.5mm stroke as before. Other than that, and the new pistons to match, the engine’s changes are electronic, with an ECU that’s tuned to suit the additional performance.

As before, there’s a single overhead camshaft for each cylinder, operating four valves, and the aim is to retain the sort of low-end grunt associated with air-cooled V-twins but to add the ability to rev much higher, increasing the peak power substantially and giving a much larger performance envelope.

While it’s new in the production range, the motor can genuinely claim to be race-developed. Indian began competing with the PowerPlus 112 in the King of the Baggers championship as long ago as part way through the 2021 season, and it powered the company’s bikes to the title in 2022 and 2024.

In the UK market, there 112 version becomes the standard engine for the PowerPlus models, although in the States it’s being sold as a higher-spec machine alongside the existing 108 motor.

As before there’s a six-speed transmission with a belt final drive, and the engine features tech including three riding modes, cruise control and cylinder deactivation to cut the rear cylinder at idle in traffic, improving fuel consumption and reducing heat soak.

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Handling & Suspension (inc. Weight)

Whether you opt for the Chieftain PowerPlus or Roadmaster PowerPlus, or the Pursuit or Challenger for that matter, you get the same chassis and suspension with identical geometry and components – so the decision between the bikes depends more on your preferences in terms of style or requirements in terms of luggage space than anything else.

The chassis itself, like many Indians since the company was relaunched more than a decade ago, is a cast aluminium design – itself unusual in a such classically-style V-twin cruisers – allied to upside-down forks and a rear monoshock. The rake is a surprisingly steep 25 degrees, albeit allied to a lengthy 1668mm wheelbase that inevitably means they won’t handle like a sports bike.  

On the Roadmaster and Pursuit tourers – the two with armchair-style pillion seats and top cases – there’s electronic adjustment of the rear preload to quickly compensate for the weight of a pillion or luggage. The bagger models, aimed more towards solo riders, make do with manual, hydraulic rear preload adjustment.

All the bikes use a 19in front and 16in rear wheel, wrapped in Metzeler Cruisetec rubber, 130/60 at the front and 180/60 at the back. They also share the same Brembo four-pot radial front brakes on 320mm discs, with a single 298mm rear rotor, which operate together via a combined braking system with cornering ABS.

The main differences between the bikes are their weights, but all are hefty beasts. The new Chieftain PowerPlus is the lightest of the line, coming in at 366kg dry or 382kg in running order. The Challenger, with a fixed front fairing, is a few kilos heavier at 372kg dry/388kg wet. The two tourers are substantially more, 407kg dry or 423kg wet for the Roadmaster PowerPlus, or 409kg/425kg for the Pursuit.

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Comfort & Economy

Here’s where these bikes should all excel, with the sort of thick, low seat that you’d expect from a luxury cruiser, allied to a front fairing to provide protection from the wind blast and a home for toys like the touchscreen-controlled electronics and stereo system.

Despite their bulk the bikes all have a very low seat, just 672mm off the ground, so short legs shouldn’t be any barrier to ownership, and both the new Chieftain bagger and Roadmaster tourer feature an adjustable screen with 100mm of travel in their bar-mounted fairing.

The two touring bikes in the range – the Roadmaster and Pursuit – get seats that are both heated and cooled (good luck finding use for the latter function in UK weather!), and the same ‘ClimaCommand’ setup can be had on the Chieftain and Challenger baggers as an optional extra, along with heated grips.

Speaking of options, there are plenty of those aimed at increasing comfort even further. Optional ‘Mid Ride’ bars, for example, or rider backrests, as well as a taller, 300mm ‘Flare’ windscreen, can all be added.

Fuel economy figures for the bikes aren’t available yet, but with a substantial 22.7-litre fuel tank there should be plenty of time between fill-ups to enjoy the luxuries.

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Equipment

While Indian’s 178mm touchscreen dash, complete with Bluetooth connectivity and Apple CarPlay, is a carry-over from the existing Pursuit and Challenger models, all the new PowerPlus 112 models including the Chieftain and Roadmaster get a suite of extra rider-assist tech for 2025.

These start with the braking system, which gains a combined braking function and a switchable hill-hold control that keeps the brakes on for up to three minutes while stationary on an incline.

Other new functions are based around rear-facing sensors that add a blind spot monitoring system, which flashes warning lights in the appropriate mirror and on the dashboard display when there’s a vehicle hiding in your blind spot. The same system also has a ‘tailgate warning’ that alerts you if there’s a vehicle directly behind, and a ‘rear collision warning’ that flashes the brake lights if it senses vehicles approaching too fast from behind.

Other standard kit includes keyless ignition, remote locking for the saddlebags and USB charging sockets.

Optionally, you can add a higher-spec ‘PowerBand’ audio system, adaptive ‘Pathfinder’ LED headlights, and a 45-litre top case for the bagger models.

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Rivals

If the existing Challenger competes with Harley’s fixed-fairing Road Glide and the touring-oriented Pursuit is a rival to the Road Glide Limited, the new Chieftain PowerPlus 112 is up against the Street Glide and the Roadmaster goes up against the Ultra Limited. Both the Road Glide Limited and the Ultra Limited are expected to be updated imminently for the 2025 range, but we’ve included details of the 2024 versions here.

Harley-Davidson Street Glide | Price: £26,795

Read more

Power/Torque

107bhp / 129lb-ft

Weight

368kg

Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited | Price: £30,395

Read more

Power/Torque

87bhp / 118lb-ft

Weight

416kg

Harley-Davidson Road Glide | Price: £27,295

Read more

Power/Torque

107bhp / 129lb-ft

Weight

380kg

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Verdict

We’ll give you the full BikeSocial road test verdict when we’ve had a chance to ride the 2025 Indian Chieftain and Roadmaster bikes.

If you’d like to chat about this article or anything else biking related, join us and thousands of other riders at the Bennetts BikeSocial Facebook page.

Do you own a previous Indian model bike? Tell us what it’s like, or ask us questions about it at bikeclub.bennetts.co.uk.

2025 Indian Chieftain & Roadmaster PowerPlus 112 - Technical Specification

What is MCIA Secured?

MCIA Secured gives bike buyers the chance to see just how much work a manufacturer has put into making their new investment as resistant to theft as possible.

As we all know, the more security you use, the less chance there is of your bike being stolen. In fact, based on research by Bennetts, using a disc lock makes your machine three times less likely to be stolen, while heavy duty kit can make it less likely to be stolen than a car. For reviews of the best security products, click here.

MCIA Secured gives motorcycles a rating out of five stars (three stars for bikes of 125cc or less), based on the following being fitted to a new bike as standard:

• A steering lock that meets the UNECE 62 standard

• An ignition immobiliser system

• A vehicle marking system

• An alarm system

• A vehicle tracking system with subscription

The higher the star rating, the better the security, so always ask your dealer what rating your bike has and compare it to other machines on your shortlist.