Post Listing Update: This MS175 did not get any action at the opening bid of $3,400. It was relisted with an opening bid of $3,000 and then pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown.
In the midst of their affair with small-displacement runabouts, Indian had a triplet of 175cc bikes called the MI175, MT175, and MS175. The MI was a dual-sport, the MT was trail-only (no lighting/mirrors), and the MS that’s featured today was a street bike. No matter the version, these are rare finds nowadays.
Photo from indianmotorcycles.net
Because they’re rare, it’s hard to find information on them. A poster on indianmotorcycles.net claims that he spoke with Alan Newman (an attorney in LA who bought the company name from Floyd Clymer) in 2015, and Alan said that just 100 examples of the MS175 were ever built. The MS was the only bike of the trio to get passenger pegs, though it shared an oil-injection system with the MI – the MT trail bike required riders to premix. The MS also got a chrome pipe while the other bikes, which would likely see dirt, got black pipes.
This example (VIN: 15306H00443) and the odometer shows just 15 miles. The seller claims that the motor “starts right up” and “runs strong”. It’s obviously been stored for years, and flaws are limited to a broken oil tank cap as well as turn signals and brake lights that don’t work (though the seller says they do light up). The sale includes the service manual and multiple parts lists. This is very rare, but does that make it valuable?
Find this MS175 for sale with an unmet opening bid of $3,400 in Florence, Colorado