Has a bike ever polarised opinions as much as the Harley-Davidson Pan America? There are haters and lovers of the big Adventure beast and many of them haven’t even swung a leg over one! Everyone has had a say, and some of the dubious Vlog, Blog and Flog crew have muddied the waters (and themselves) trying to come up with ‘entertainment’. And not much decent information.
Here, Spencer sorts the facts from the frivolous in INFO MOTO‘s expected thorough and stringent style to test the bike in its intended habitat; highway and lighter off-road going.
Yep everyone’s got an opinion, but here’s a real-world look at one of H-D’s bravest moves ever. Does it cut the Spencer mustard? Is it all talk and no action or a real world GS and Multistrada competitor? Do one-legged ducks swim in a circle?
These questions and more will be fully answered. Just click below!
What we like:
- Dialled suspension
- Strong power
- Unique character
Room for improvement:
- Fiddly controls
- Hefty weight
- No quickshifter
Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 pricing and specs
Harley-Davidson has launched its first-ever adventure bike, the Pan America 1250, which has hit showrooms in high-spec ‘Special’ guise, priced from $31,995 rideaway.
At this price, the off-road-ready Harley-Davidson is priced higher than BMW’s R 1250 GSA ($28,365), but undercuts high-end adventure models like the Ducati Multistrada V4 S ($35,990).
The Pan America 1250 Special draws power from Harley’s new Revolution Max 1250cc V-twin engine, which in this case is tuned to produce 112kW and 127Nm.
For reference, the aforementioned BMW offering generates a comparable 100kW/143Nm from its 1254cc boxer engine, while the new Multistrada manages 125kW/125Nm from its 1158cc V4 engine.
From standard the Pan America comes well equipped, with 19-inch front/17-inch rear wire-spoked wheels wrapped in Michelin Anakee Wild tyres, large Brembo brakes, fully adjustable Showa suspension, a four-position windscreen and a long-range 21-litre fuel tank.
Tech features extend to a 6.8-inch TFT touchscreen with smartphone integration, full LED lighting, hill-hold, cruise control and five rider modes dubbed Road, Rain, Off-Road, Off-Road Plus, and a configurable mode.
These modes adjust power delivery, engine braking, as well as the bike’s advanced cornering ABS and traction control system.
The Pan America 1250 Special tips the scales at 258 kilograms (wet), which is three kilograms heavier than the base variant that is not coming to Australia, due to a number of added features.
Features above the standard bike include semi-active suspension, tyre pressure monitoring, a centre stand, adjustable rear brake peg, brush guard and skid plate, adaptive lights, heated grips and hand guards, a steering damper and tubeless laced wheels.
As a first for the industry, Harley-Davidson is offering an optional adaptive ride height system, which lowers the bike’s seat height when at rest, without compromising ground clearance when in motion.
