Riding the 2021 Harley-Davidson Pan American 1250 Special in California’s Mojave Desert. (Photos by Brian J. Nelson & Kevin Wing)

We just spent two days in the Sierra Nevada mountains and Mojave Desert of California testing the all-new 2021 Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special. Over the course of two days, we rode about 350 miles on highways, twisting mountain roads and off-road trails that included gravel, sand, rocks and tricky climbs and descents. In one shot, Harley-Davidson not only built its first adventure bike, it also built its first sportbike and sport-touring bike. We?ll have a full review soon, but for now we?re sharing our top 10 highlights.

1. Revolution Max 1250 V-twin

Cut-away view of the Revolution Max 1250 V-twin (Photo courtesy of Harley-Davidson)
Harley-Davidson?s base-model Pan America 1250 and up-spec Pan America 1250 Special (we only rode the latter) are powered by a brand-new engine called the Revolution Max 1250. It?s a liquid-cooled 1,252cc 60-degree V-twin with DOHC, four valves per cylinder, variable valve timing, a 13.0:1 compression ratio and hydraulic valve lash adjusters. Harley-Davidson claims that it makes 150 horsepower at 9,000 rpm and 94 lb-ft of torque at 6,750 rpm and redlines at 9,500 rpm. It packs serious performance and sounds fantastic, delivering generous, tractable power throughout the rev range. And multiple riding modes adjust power output and throttle delivery.

2. Semi-active Suspension with Adapt...