VOLUME 58 ISSUE 17 APRIL 27, 2021 P85
abuse as often as I power-shifted
across three cogs—which was a lot.
And the cable-actuated clutch never
felt weaker or faded under my imma-
ture abuse of it at will.
At right around 6000 rpm you will
approach maximum torque, here the
bike comes alive like a banshee and
if you can save a couple shifts to go
from there, I highly recommend it.
The machine will push serious air,
and you get to go along for the ride.
I don't believe it revs as high or as
hard as Ducati Multistrada or KTM
1290 Adventure, but nudging up
there pretty well for a first attempt.
I think the Revolution Max 1250
engine is fantastic. It gets down the
road like a touring machine should
and it is adaptable to an aggressive
romp through the desert just fine.
Frame
Seriously, where is it?
In the Pan America, the
engine is the key stress
member of the frame system.
Every other component is
bolted to the engine or bolted
to framework that's bolted to
the engine. The entire front fairing,
triple clamp setup, steering and front
suspension is one part. The seat,
another. And the cast aluminum rear
swingarm/suspension setup a third.
One engine, three bolt-on segments
of motorcycle necessities, no real
traditional frame whatsoever.
Here, Harley-Davidson has
done a couple things. One, they've
controlled weight by eliminating a
cradle-style frame to hold the engine
and ancillary parts. It's simpler with
fewer connection points and, as an
engineering task, there are fewer
areas to manage flex because the
frame doesn't exist. Another benefit,
is the airbox (under the fuel tank) and
fuel tank can be lower in the chassis,
dropping the weight of the fuel.
Speaking of the fuel tank, the
Pan America utilizes a molded and
welded aluminum tank to haul 5.3
gallons of go-juice. This was enough
to squeeze nearly 200 miles out of
tank during irresponsible riding for
photos.
The result is a stiff, responsive ride
with enough compliance buffering off
rigidity to make the ride comfortable.
Controlled on the street with off-road
chops for getting rowdy, the bike felt
on the stiff side, if anything. Certainly
not a wallowing, lethargic, heavy-
feeling ride.
Buttons
From the saddle, Harley-Davidson
is providing a lot of controls for the
rider as well as a tiltable 6.8-inch TFT
touchscreen display. The touchscreen
dash is nice and works with gloves and
in the rain if you're not into handlebar
buttons during snack stops.
