The other PAN
The Americans seemed fairly happy with the Honda Gold Wing, which had attained cult status since its introduction in 1973, but the Europeans had a slightly different view, and Honda was well aware of it. The Big H was also well aware of the market dominated by BMW – let’s call it sports touring – and the need to produce a motorcycle that Europeans could embrace. Enter the Pan European, or ST1100.
That story began in December 1989 with the announcement of the all-new V4 that shared practically nothing – not even the engine – with other Hondas. Well, perhaps the engine had its origins in the unit that had appeared as the V45 Sabre in 1983 and had evolved in the variants such as the VF750F and various racing models, but there was a major difference. The crankshaft in the ST1100’s 1085cc engine ran fore and aft, rather than across the frame. One month after the announcement, the first examples were rolling off the production line and into dealers’ showrooms.
Looking more closely at that engine, it was said at the
