Indian Chief Vintage Service Manual (2003)

The 2003 Indian Chief Vintage belongs to the short-lived Gilroy era of Indian Motorcycle production. A revived Indian Motorcycle Company began building Chiefs in Gilroy, California, in 1999, returning the Indian name to American motorcycle production decades after the original Springfield company had ceased manufacturing. The Gilroy operation would ultimately run only through 2003.

A major mechanical change arrived for the Chief in 2002, when Indian introduced its proprietary 100-cubic-inch Powerplus engine. It replaced the S&S-based Evolution-style engines used on the earlier Gilroy Chiefs and gave the revived brand an engine of its own design. Period Cycle World coverage described the Powerplus as the long-awaited proprietary replacement for the S&S-based engines that had powered the revived Chief since 1999.

The 2003 Chief Vintage used this Powerplus 100 V-twin in a chassis designed around classic Indian styling. The Vintage combined deeply valanced fenders, 16-inch 60-spoke wheels, whitewall tires, a windshield and touring equipment with contemporary components including Paioli suspension and Brembo four-piston brakes. The factory service manual rates the engine at 67 bhp and 78 lb-ft of torque and pairs it with a five-speed transmission and belt final drive.

The 2003 model also incorporated changes that distinguish it from earlier Gilroy Chiefs. The factory manual specifically notes the Paioli front suspension arrangement and identifies the 2002-and-later Chief chassis as a single-downtube monoshock design, whereas the 1999-2001 Chief used the earlier stretched and raked smoothtail frame.

The 2003 model year became the final year of the Gilroy operation. Indian Motorcycle Corporation ceased manufacturing in Gilroy in September 2003, bringing this first modern revival of the Indian marque to an end. Later Indian Chiefs produced under the Kings Mountain and eventually Polaris organizations belong to different phases of the brand's history and should not be confused with the Gilroy-built Chief Vintage covered by this manual.