Showdown: BMW R 1250 GS Vs Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special

The OG Adventure Tourer takes on the young upstart

C’mon, you knew it was going to happen. How could we not put the newcomer to the ADV scene head-to-head with the long standing heavyweight from the Fatherland? Our comparison of the Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special and BMW R 1250 GS kicks off a series of monthly two-bike tests for 2022. Look out for a new scorchin’ comparison from MO every month. Spanning the smorgasbord of genres, your favorite kooky MO characters will ride, review, and bicker about some of the spiciest meatballs on the market today. To kick things off though, America versus Germany!

With COVID still rearing its ugly peplomers, travel to far-off lands remains on hold for most of us. But that doesn’t mean your raging wanderlust must be shamefully tucked into your proverbial waistband. No. Let your passion loose! There are, no doubt, exciting opportunities to be had locally, too!

BMW R 1250 GS vs Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special

During the planning stage for our test, a quick search of options for adventure riding Stateside in January confirmed our heading. Toward the shadows of the Valley of Death we would go. Death Valley is a spectacular place to explore in the winter as it’s one of the few times of year the mercury isn’t bubbling up near 120º F. It also helps that your MO crew of miscreants happen to be about four hours from said valley. With 3,000 square-miles of terra stretching from nearly 300-feet below sea-level to more than 11,000-feet skyward, we were sure to find terrain to test the limits of our machine’s capabilities, if not, our own.

Pitting the Pan America and R 1250 GS head-to-head made the most sense to us. Using the longest running, most established modern adventure touring motorcycle as the standard, we wanted to see how the new Harley-Davidson truly stacked up. There’s no doubt in our mind that H-D delivered a home run straight out of the gate with the Pan America, but measuring it side-by-side and back-to-back with the BMW would truly show whether or not the $20,000 American-made ADV has truly earned its stripes.

2019 BMW R1250 GS/ R1250 GS Adventure First Ride Review

2021 Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 Special Review – First Ride

Spanning America On The Pan America

At this point, had either machine returned an unfavorable review from a few hours of freeway cruising, we might as well have stopped the test right there. It is, arguably, the most essential aspect these bikes should excel at. As expected, neither machine disappointed.

On the BMW, switching the ride mode to Road offers a more cush experience as the suspension settings are preset to the GS’s ride modes. Having the ability to alter the bike’s character between sport, off-road, and touring on both bikes broadens their usefulness in a variety of ways – another reason adventure motorcycles can be considered the Swiss army knife of two wheels.

As tested, our BMW was equipped with seven ride modes. The first four: Dynamic, Dynamic Pro, Enduro, and Enduro Pro are optional, while Road, Rain, and Eco come standard. Ride modes ending in “Pro” allow additional adjustment of throttle response, traction control, and ABS.

The Pan America Special also comes equipped with seven ride modes. From H-D we have Rain, Road, Sport, Off-road/Plus, and Custom A for base models with Custom Off-road/Plus and Custom B reserved for Special models. Harley’s customizable modes let the rider alter engine map, engine braking, throttle response, traction control, ABS, suspension damping, and adaptive ride height settings, giving it a fair amount more customization than the BMW in this regard.

If you’ve been around for a while, you might remember our guest tester John Nave. John first joined our merry band of misfits in 2018 for our Big-Bore Adventure Touring Shootout. The day that test published, we received a picture from John confirming that his mind had been made up during our test and that he’d gone home and purchased a 2018 BMW R 1200 GSA. A few years down the road, John is still rippin’ on that Beemer, which made him an excellent resource to invite back for this comparison. John’s perspective would provide unique insight between the two machines.

Since Mr. Nave has spent plenty of time on the GS platform, I thought he’d appreciate getting to start this test with a little taste of Freedom. While my first road impressions were lauding the GS on its comfort, John couldn’t help but be enamored with the MoCo’s new mill:

“With my initial seat time being 150 miles of highway on the Pan America, it was a great first opportunity to get a read on the new Revolution Max 1250 motor. It is a great engine – plenty of power down low with 70ish lb-ft of torque available at 3,000 rpm, with a real rush around 5,000. From there on, it is grin time.”

Funny, I had the same smile splattered across my face after I first twisted the tail of the Pan America, too.

After describing the Rev Max engine as sporty – particularly so compared to the BMW 1250 Shiftcam mill – I made some folks question their moto sensibilities. Those perplexed souls of course expected the HD mill to deliver the same low- to mid-range power that has come to be the norm from of big American V-Twins. The fact is, the Revolution Max spins up quicker and further than the BMW’s engine and makes 16 more hp at its peak, which is 8,800 rpm – that’s more than 1,000 rpm after the GS has already signed off. Of course, that’s not the whole story.

The BMW not only bests the Harley with 10 more lb-ft of peak torque, it also carries that lead from just under 4,000 rpm to 7,500. After the GS has kicked sand in the HD’s mid-range, it goes one further by stealing its girl, carrying approximately 10 more horsepower through the same rpm span. Oof.

The Pan America’s dyno chart isn’t unimpressive, except for the midday lull in torque. On the HD you’ve nearly reached peak pushing power already at 4,000 rpm and the horses continue a nice trajectory skyward, too. With the BMW, its mid-range is just stonkin’, and the thrust at which the Shiftcam motor accelerates the 572-pound Bavarian is a hoot while planted in its saddle.

Even the BMW owner was impressed by this latest GS mill:

“I have 25k miles on a 1200 GSA. To me, the 1250 has more oomph everywhere. This bike’s motor is strong. The telling tale was the several roll-on ‘drag races’ we had in fourth and sixth gear where the BMW beat the Pan. It wasn’t until more of a real drag race (still rolling) in 1st gear from 10 mph that the Pan Am won handily, which may have been due to operator input.

“The new Shift-Cam motor is a definite improvement over the recent-gen liquid-cooled 1200 motor in my bike. With the bottom end power of the new motor, it feels like the bike can carry a higher gear through really tight stuff on the road or dirt. It’s smoother to lug the motor. Mid- and top-end power is also really satisfying. During one good rip it surprised me when I looked down to see 130 mph.”

Properly fueled up, we set off down the smaller, lesser traveled strips of tarmac reaching deep into the heart of the Valley. Over our Cardos, John and I discussed how pleasant touring on each machine was. We are basically the same size, so our thoughts on the ergonomics of each bike were pretty consistent. We both heavily praised the BMW for its near perfectly neutral rider triangle. It managed to be great on road and, somehow, nearly perfect while standing off-road. It’s almost as if they’ve been working at it for 40 or so years.

Having many miles on his own GS, John already had an idea of changes he would make:

“Maybe it’s my dimensions, but the GSs have always fit me well, whether with the factory low option from BMW or this standard bike with the seat set in the lower position. The handlebar provides excellent comfort for hours on road while being close to ideal for off-road use, too. Being able to quickly adjust the bars slightly higher for off-road riding with something like Wunderlich’s Handlebar Quick-Adjust would be an ideal setup for me (and will likely be my next upgrade).”

The Harley comes close in the ergonomic round of this fight, but falls short to the Beemer by unanimous decision. Really, it’s the handlebar that becomes the chink in the H-D’s armor, and it only becomes more apparent when jumping between the two bikes throughout the day. For 5’8” John and I, the Pan Am’s handlebar is just a hair too far forward. It puts riders our size in a slightly canted forward position, after hours of riding, that can get old. Or if you’re like us and do a bazillion u-turns per day, the fact that your outside arm is so outstretched you can barely reach the grip at full lock, well, that can get old too. Larger riders may find the Pan Am’s cockpit more accommodating.

Conversely, the Pan America’s rider triangle while standing is almost spot-on. John expressed some concern over the angle and asked if I had tried rotating the bars back, which I did as much as possible during my trip across the country, but it still didn’t alleviate the issues entirely. If I owned the bike, I would be looking at some combination of aftermarket risers and handlebars to get it right for me. Thankfully, with cruise control, you’re able to move around and stretch out a bit during long days in the saddle.

Peeling off the dark desert highway, we stayed in a small oasis town. In the morning, we were greeted to a cool breeze in our hair and temps that had plummeted overnight. Thankfully for us, the Crowbar saloon was serving up hot coffee and breakfast just across the street. Pretty soon, the warm smell of cotija was rising up through the air.

Next up was a bit more highway, a visit to a long forgotten ghost town, and then, finally, a chance to put our knobs to good use. Both the HD and BMW came with Michelin Anakee Wilds mounted to their 19/17-inch tubeless wheels as factory options. I’m a big fan of these tires for their traction both on road and off. After 900 miles or so on these big bikes, they still looked pretty good, but I have yet to run a set all the way out to be able to speak to their longevity.

“I’ve run TKC80s in the past and I was pleased with how great of a 50/50 tire the Michelin Anakee Wilds were,” proclaimed John N. “What a great tire for this test. Good on-road manners and handling with low noise. Off-road, they offered great traction on hard-pack as well as sand and gravel.”

And it’s a good thing because that was exactly the terrain that lay ahead. Titus Canyon isn’t a particularly challenging route – we were reminded of that by the minivans, campers, and other vehicles encountered along the way – but it does offer some spectacular scenery and is flanked by two stretches of highway. So, while you are kind of out in the middle of nowhere, chances are you won’t end up totally stranded. Not that you shouldn’t be well prepared anyway!