After Indian went out of business in 1953, it lay dormant for quite a while. But in 1967, former West Coast distributor Floyd Clymer bought the rights to the Indian name and tried to bring the company back. He initially tried to partner with a couple of German companies to create the ‘new Indian’, but that never got past the prototype stage. It wasn’t until he partnered with Velocette that he was able to release the Indian Velo 500 to the market.
You got a 499cc four-stroke single that put out 34 horsepower, but competition from the recently released Honda CB750 and Clymer’s passing in 1970 abruptly ended production. Some sources say that Clymer had sourced 77 Velocette Venom engines and 45 Velocette Thruxton engines, so no more than 122 of these bikes could have been produced. For more information on the Indian Velo story, check out this profile from the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.
This specific Indian Velo 500…well, there’s not much to say because the seller can’t be bothered to give details. All I can tell you is that it’s claimed to be in excellent condition, and that the odometer reads 6,958. It’s also exceedingly rare, so any interested buyer is giong to be emailing the seller for a detailed discussion anyway – I just wish the seller had given more of the story to share with you.
Find this Indian Velo 500 for sale here on Craigslist in Long Valley, New Jersey for $21,000.
This bike-uriousity brought to you by David N!