Victory Motorcycles, owned by Polaris Industries, was an American Motorcycle brand. It had an assembly unit in Iowa, United States. Polaris had created Victory with the prime intention to compete with Harley-Davidson, which was rapidly capturing the market share with its motorcycle models. It had 19 years long streak before it went into liquidation at the beginning of the year 2017. Some of its best models include V92C, Vegas, High Ball, Hammer 8-Ball, Cross Country, and so forth. 

The Victory Magnum, also known as the Magnum X-1 is one of the best creations from the engineers of the House of Spirit Lake. Continue reading to know what made the Magnum X-1 so special and what led to its discontinuation.

The Heart Of The Victory Magnum

2015 Victory Magnum Red
via: motorcycles-for-sale.biz

The Victory Magnum was a cruiser motorcycle designed based on Harley-Davidson’s Street Glide. It featured a 1737.1 cc air-cooled V2 four-stroke engine which gave this beast a torque force of 106 lb/ft which was a bit less than what Harley, Indian, and Star offered. Still, the power made by the V-Twin engine was enough for it to be awarded a place in the power-cruiser category. It tamed the beast with the help of a 6-speed manual transmission. Instead of a chain, a belt-pulley mechanism was used to connect the rear wheel to the final drive. Further, the compensator was equipped to smooth the power pulses before hitting the wet clutch.

The Striking Features

2017 Victory Magnum X-1
via: ultimatemotorcycling.com

When one thinks about designing a muscular body for a machine as bold as the Magnum X-1, what could come to their mind? Probably a strong cladding to conceal the components assembled into the body-frame is the first thought that would pop up in one’s mind. If you thought the same, then congratulation you think akin to one of those engineers. They tried to cover every nook and corner of the motorcycle with body panels. The only thing we can get hold of visibly is the steering head, which gives us an angle of 29-degree. Even after all these panels, the bike weighed just a little over 800 pounds.

A wider 21-inch front wheel and a shorter 16-inch rear wheel give the wheeler that asymmetric look that it is widely known for. The front double disc and the rear single disc, braking system along with a front telescopic fork and rear mono-tube suspension allowed for a better gliding and handling experience. Further, the seat angle and height when combined rendered the rider the perfect and comfortable sitting position.

A perfect combination of a loud music system, LED headlights brighter than halogen bulbs, and a 21” Black Billet front wheel gave it the well-deserved passive aggressive look. All this was enough to make the owner of this beast stand out from the crowd.

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What Was It Priced At?

Victory Magnum X-1
via: thevog.net

One could own this hero for a starting price of under $25,000, whereas an X-1 Stealth Edition would cost around $23,499. The Magnum offers a range of colors to choose from which include: Suede Pearl White with black and silver, Habanero Inferno Orange, Black Crystal/Super Steel Gray or Black Crystal/Havasu Red, Gloss Black, or Indy Red Pearl. You can also own one of the premium colors like Pearl White or Electric Red Gloss Black for extra 1400 bucks.

All this being said, even though the victory Magnum was a complete package on its own, the world was about to witness the fall of this beast when Polaris decided to close the segment in 2017.

Continue reading to know all about the events that lead to its discontinuation.

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The Fall Of A Hero

Victory Magnum Exhaust
via: thevog.net

With the number of models the Victory launched for about 2 decades, it couldn’t profit from them. This happened because even though it tried, it had an absolute answer for each model of its competitors. Victory as a brand didn’t have any deep roots in the industry and had to start from a clean slate. All these factors point to one direction that even though it could make competing models, it could not penetrate the hearts of the Harley-Davidson owners. The profitability had been another key factor that contributed to the forever demise of this beloved brand. The Victory had made no profit for 3 years in the last five years of its existence.

Another thing which the management of the company lacked was a strong and young vision for the roadmap of the future. Who knows, Victory could have been with us today if the management had applied what they had learned for years. All these factors coupled up and in the aftermath, Polaris decided to dis-invest from Victory to welcome The Indian Motorcycle.

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Is The Magnum A Worthy Motorcycle?

Victory Magnum Rear View
via: wallpaperup.com

Well, if only there was a time machine to stop all this from happening, the Magnum would still be here. But the good news is if you can still have one of your own Magnum’s if there is one for sale in your nearby area. If you are willing to forgo around $7,000 to $10,000, you can easily get one that has traveled less than 5000 miles.

The Magnum X-1 still holds its value, because even thorough the company exists no longer it has promised to provide after-sales services and other spare parts for the next 10 years through its dealerships. Meaning even if you own or are thinking of owning one soon, the maintenance won’t be a bother. It is a motorcycle that every biker must add to their garage.

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