Panhead

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The panhead was Harley-Davidson motorcycle engine, so named because of the distinct shape of the rocker covers. The engine is a two cylinder, two valve per cylinder, pushrod V-twin. The engine replaced the Knucklehead engine in 1948 and was manufactured until 1965 when it was replaced by the Shovelhead engine.

As the design of Harley-Davidson engines has evolved through the years, the distinctive shape of the valve covers has allowed Harley enthusiasts to classify an engine simply by looking at the shape of the cover and panhead has covers resembling an upside down pan.

The Captain America chopper used by Peter Fonda in Easy Rider had a panhead engine.

Currently, a number of third-party engine manufacturers produce custom panhead-style engines, in a variety of bores, many much larger than the original design displacements. Each manufacturer includes significant subtle upgrades to the original design to drastically improve the performance and reliability while still providing the original styling and overall engine structure.

[edit] See also

Harley-Davidson engines
Engine 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s
One-cylinder engines
unnamed 1903–1910
unnamed 1926–?
Big twin engines
F-head (IOE) 1914–1929
Flathead 1929–1936
Knucklehead 1936–1947
Panhead 1948–1965
Shovelhead 1966–1985
Evolution 1984–1999
Twin Cam 1999–
Sport engines
Sport 1919–?
XA 1942
WR 1946-?
K 1952–1956
Ironhead 1957–1985
Evolution 1985–
Water-cooled engines
Revolution 2002–


[edit] External links