2017 BMW G310GS Unveiled at EICMA
A GS for those littler of leg or cash
Last year at EICMA we got our first glimpse of BMW’s smallest bike, the G310R. This year in Italy we see the roadster G310R get GS-ified, replete with mandatory beak nose, angular side panels and two-tone colorways that make it unmistakable as anything but a BMW adventure bike.
Other mods made to change from R to GS include the adoption of a 19-inch front wheel and Tourance rubber from Metzeler to better suit off-road conditions, although even BMW executives admit that it’s not intended for hardcore dirt riding. “It’s not a real off-road bike, of course,” BMW’s CEO, Stephen Schaller, casually mentioned to me during a reveal in SoCal a few weeks ago.
As a G310, this GS version will be powered by a fuel-injected 313cc Single with the unusual arrangement of the intake coming from in front of the cylinder rather than the rear. The exhaust exits from behind the cylinder before dropping under the swingarm pivot location and to a muffler on the right side. The G310GS is claimed to produce 33.5 hp at 9500 rpm and 20.7 lb-ft of torque at 7500, just like the G310R and we might imagine a slightly softer but broader powerband in the GS. BMW claims an unladen weight of 374 pounds.
The front wheel is suspended by an inverted fork offering 7 inches of travel, or about two inches more than on the G310R. A single shock is connected to the long aluminum swingarm, also offering 7 inches of travel.
Braking is supplied by a radially-mounted four-piston caliper with a 300mm disc up front and a two-piston floating caliper with 240mm rear rotor.
All G310s will be built in India by TVS Motor Company, but BMW is keen to note all aspects of the bike were engineered in Munich, Germany.
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I sure hope this bike sees some sweet jumps during the review despite the CEO's comment.
“It’s not a real off-road bike, of course,” BMW’s CEO, Stephen Schaller.
So like Scrambler Cafe Racer, some people believe that words ( scrambler ) and models ( GS ) should have no meaning and they can make them mean whatever they want. Odd, given the money, time, and building-of-trust effort that goes into the all-important "branding".