[nasirkaka]

Ok, This is my first ever thread on TBHP although i have been a member for a while now.

Yesterday I completed 50,000 kms on my BMW G 310 GS, hence the thought to share a small write-up followed by photos of our bonding over the last few years. This is not a typical review but capturing the essence of time spend together with the bike and memories created.

Mine is the first lot bike from the 2018. The purchase story goes like this. I had bought as versys 650 in 2016 with the intent of touring. In late 2016, i suffered a heart attack which turned the life upside down. Lucky to survive and post some months of rehabilitation and recovery, slowly tried getting back to biking. Versys felt too big a bike for my condition and long tours were out of bound. I was looking for a smaller, lighter & comfortable ADV bike and there was not much in-terms of choices available. I had tested Himalayan and did not like the engine. 390 Adv was under the longest of speculations. Xpulse felt too puny downgrading from the versys 650. I had the first gen Duke390 at that time which kept me going for a year or so. Thata when the 310GS was launched and it fitted my requirements well. I was sold on the looks of the bike and a small test ride convinced me to book one. I knew the price was on the higher side, but desperate i was for a small adv bike so went ahead anyways.

The bike was delivered sometime in August of 2018 with a big fan fare. Bangalore BMW dealer Tusker Motorrad was delivering some 40 odd bikes together with festive galore and celebrations including snacks, cake cutting, AV show,talks by BMW reps and the usual hype. As customers we did feel special at that moment only to realist the farce later. Post delivery we were all made to ride in a formation around the city. So that is how the bike came home.

Initial ride impressions are well covered in couple of BMW 310 thread which were very hot at that time. I remember i was very active on those threads sharing ride impressions, issues, niggles, service stories, accessories, modifications, pictures, etc etc. In general, i was very happy with the bike and loved its looks, stance, ergonomics, suspension and hated the service experience. First couple of years of ownership and i rode the bike everywere around Karnataka and Tamilnadu with a few trips to kerela and Goa. Most of those ride experiences and pics are well covered in the 310 thread. In essence, i was enjoying my time with the bike and except a few niggles here and there the ownership was mostly a pleasant experience.

Then COVID stuck and life changed for all. Post lock-down, slowly started small bike rides around Bangalore and realized there are so many interesting trails to be explored. That is the time we also got an Xpulse 200 home. I also had an Interceptor. So the riding time was divided where i started using the xpulse more for the weekend trail explorations and interceptor for the highway rides. 310GS started taking the back seat. Mind you, for a requirement of a multi-day mixed travel case comprising of highway, bad roads, no roads, off roads, trails etc, 310GS would be the 'go to' bike for overall reliability and peace of mind.

Last evening, i realized that i have owned 10 bikes since i started working in Bangalore and this is the first bike where i have crossed 50K kms. Rest were mostly sold in their 30s and 40s.

Not going into the usual details, let me share my thoughts in points on crossing this 50k milestone...

* A bike which i still enjoy riding after 5 years of ownership and it still surprises me with its capabilities every once in a while.
* One bike where i have not made any seat modification. (never felt the need)
* Still love the stance of the bike and its presence. Makes me turn back to have a second look while walking away after parking.
* Soft and supple suspension is one of the best features i like, as bike glides over bad broken patches. Must add here that after riding xpulse with a firmer suspension, for 12k kms, i have come to realize that soft suspension is far from ideal over technical terrain and large undulations, rocks, boulders, ruts, etc. That is one of the reasons i would pick the xpulse for such rides. Light weight being the other.
* Solid mechanical build with good quality parts. I have subjected the bike for fair amount of abuse and the bike is held itself pretty well. Countless amount of falls, jumps, creators and potholes later, all panels etc are holding together fine. No rattles, squeaks etc. not dents of deformations on alloys. Give it a good wash and its as good as new. Well almost. (I am not a TLC freak, just lube the chain and ride)
* Brings me to the point that even chain does not need frequent adjustment. Just lube it and forget it.
* Service interval of 10K mostly means we dont have to re-visit service station in between. Yes, the bike holds well for those many kms of mostly rough riding.
* There were electrical issues with initial lot BS4 bikes with battery and alternator issues, but touch-wood, my stock alternator is holding fine so far. The stock BMW battery died few years back and i replaced with Excide of similar size and specs and its been holding fine so far.
* One main mechanical issue i have had and not just once but twice, is broken spring for the return gear shaft. Could be my way of shifting.
* Halogen bulb is fused twice and i am on my third one, thanks to the shaky headlight assembly and all the off-roading.
* Stock chain and sprocket lasted around 37k kms and still had life, but i changed it to Rolon anyways.
* Am on 3rd set of tyres now.
* Switches, plastic panels etc are of very good quality and still feel like new.
* Gear box was very smooth initially but last year or so the gear shifts have become rough and hard, especially 2nd to 1st.
* Vibrations have always been a part of the bike, and keep shifting from handlebar to tank to seat to foot-pegs depending on if i install a center stand to an aftermarket exhaust of different weight to varied tightening of the engine and tank guard. Many factors affect the vibes and at different rpm, but i have learnt to live with them.
* Post warranty period, i stopped going to Tusker for service, TBHP is full of their infamous stories. Getting the bike serviced outside is fairly easy with TVS RR310 proving all the necessary cycle parts.
* During these last 5 years, i have tried many alterations to the bike such as an Akra full system exhaust, smaller sprocket, slipper clutch integration, etc and i guess some of these mods have not gone as desired, adding to some of the issues i have had.

Ok, enough of nitpicking. Overall, my experience had been a good and satisfying one. The bike is taken me to many places and thanks to it i have made many new friends and memories which i will always cherish.

JUST TO SUMMARIZE THE LONG TERM OWNERSHIP:

- Likes:
* Gorgeous looks
* Supple Suspension
* Sorted Ergonomics
* Superb build quality
* Easy to sand and ride

-Dislikes:
* Vibrations at various places
* Feels under-powered for a 33bhp bike
* Lack of center-stand
* shaky headlamp assembly in BS4 variants
* Service experiences



- Alternatives that were considered:
* Himalayan: Lack of engine refinement
* Xpulse: too tiny of an engine which again is not too refined
* Versys 300X: too expensive


- On-road price
* Bike costed close to 4.5L on road in Bangalore and some accessories were extra. The initial lot felt cheated as within less than a year the prices were slashed by a lakh.
In the name of freebie, we got a bmw branded backpack from Tusker. It was so so bad in quality, felt like a badly made local bag with bmw logo screen printed in kalasipalya.

- Extended warranties & service packages
* Bike came with 3 years warranty and i did not opt for extended package as if an engine can last for 3 years, it will mostly last for more.

- Safety, electronic riding aids & related equipment
* Bike came with dual channel ABS which has a dedicated switch to switch it on or off. That was enough for my requirement. The new lot comes with many added features like eide by wire, slipper clutch etc.

- Accessories installed
* handlebar riser from Rox - 2.5"
* USB outlet
* Aux lights from Rigid
* Engine and Tank guard from Adv tribe
* Tank side grip from Aliexpress
* Lower and wider footpeg from SWmotech
* Barkbusters
* Louder horn
* Tank bag ring
* Center stand from SW motech
* Top box from hepco

- Your usage pattern
* 50% city . daily commuting to work
* 50% leisure rides (25% from that would be trails)

- Styling & design
* Guess i have said enough. Its a nice looking and well proportioned bike. looks more like a middleweight then a 300cc single.

- Seat height and how it may or may not suit short / tall riders
* Seat height is slightly on the higher side for average Indian height. felt this more so on the trails where a missed footing means a fall is almost inevitable.

- Visibility & size of mirrors
RVMs are of good quality by themselves and offer a good rear view. Infact they look very similar to size and shape of mirror from GS1200. They do vibrate at certain RPM due to the vibey nature of the thumper.

- How are the headlamps?
* they do a decent job illuminating the road, but they bob up -n-down like dodo bird which we need to fix with some local 'jugaad' and learn to live with it. Not a big deal over time.

- Storage & practicality (including under seat storage). Can it carry the papers? How secure is it?
* there is some storage space under seat for basic documents and then there is some space on the side of under seat cowl where we can tuck in small items. some space which is easily accessible, to tuck-in a cleaning cloth would be helpful, esp post rain, to wipe the seat, RVMs etc.

- Any other unique or noteworthy points
* good quality of mechanical cables. I am still running on stock clutch, accelerator and brake cables.

- Engine performance & drive-ability in the city
* this is a good 'jack of all" bike. Does city commuting very well with good posture, good visibility of street and in good comfort. its not to bad to weave around the traffic as well in the right hands. The engine heat is well controlled, but last one year, i feel the heat is a bit more in B2B traffic compared to when bike was new.

- Engine performance & drive-ability on the highway
* Highway performance is acceptable but some power power would have been ideal. Also at higher RPMs/ speed the buzzing on the pegs and around tank is a bit irritating. Braking is another area where it feels adequate but not he best in the business. Some improvement in braking would do no harm. Seat is comfortable enough to sit for 6-7 hours beyond which it starts to pinch a bit. The shape is such that there is not too much space to move back and forth esp for a rider with generous girth. There is a rising tank in front and a step-up seat at the rear.

- Exhaust note - satisfying? Not so?
* Its nothing to write home about. Not too bad but not as good like a mojo which is my yardstick for a good sounding single of around 300cc, and i am not including long stroke bikes like Enfield 350, highness, etc.
I had also got an Akrapovic full system exhaust which made the bike really loud. I would have kept it if it made any visible difference to the power, but it did not and was too loud to retain. Had a tough time selling that, and eventually someone from Nepal picked that up for some racing project. Thank God for Olx, recovered half the cost atleast.

- Gearshift & clutch (smoothness, effort required, light or hard clutch etc.)
This is one area where i was very happy initially to an extent that i kept praising the gear shifts in all my initial posts on the thread. But over time, the gear shifts have been hard and not as smooth esp between 1-n-2. I have tweaked around with some mods like retrofitting a slipper clutch, not sure if those have affected the smoothness negatively.

- Overall NVH levels (including engine vibrations & wind blast)
* NVH levels are acceptable under certain speeds and RMP but get a bit harsh towards the top end. I have dabbled with various windshields from Aliexpress to pro-spec to self made ones and they do help to various degrees. These days, i have gont stock to bikini fairing and happy with the light visual mass at the front.

- Fuel efficiency: City and Highway
Have never bothered to check in great detail, but tried full tank to full tank method many a times and bike averages around 30kmpl.

- Fuel tank capacity & range.
* A full tank does about 250 - 260 kms before the low fuel warning light starts glowing. The tank area looks really big but has a puny plastic actual tank inside. Wish the tank capacity was a bit bigger say around 15L.

- Suspension & ride quality (at low as well as high speeds)
* suspension is SOFT and not necessarily in a bad way. It absorbs all types of shocks from the road and makes us choose the rough path over the smooth, if both are available. Rebound on the front made some noise initially while going over bigger bumps, but a change of of suspension oil viscosity from 5 to 7.5 weight sorted that. Changing oil is a bit tricky with both suspensions not being identical, and one requires a special tool to completely dismantle it. The soft suspension has its limitations and it shows strongly while going over technical surfaces and also while braking there is an extra dive. Some of these could be experimented with oil viscosity and also quantity and overtime one figures what works reasonable. At higher speeds too, the suspension feels planted and bike stable.

- Handling, on-road behaviour, grip levels, stability & turning radius
* bike goes as intended. It may not be a razor like the duke, mainly due to the front 19 and rear 17 Tyre combined with a soft suspension, but fares well in straights as well as corners. However, i feel a bit more confident leaning my 21"front xpulse in corners, could it be the weight? or the CG?

- Weight of the bike / scooter (and if it's easy or difficult to manage)
* Weight is not an issue as long as one is on any type of road, but off the road, the bike feels heavy. Not to mention the bad habit we have of accessorizing out bikes like a decorated truck, or trying to make it look like the PAPA GS 1200. A simple engine guard is all the bike requires. SW motech center stand it self added close to 7-8 kgs to the bike.

- Offroad / trail performance (if adventure bike)
* Trail performance is good. Standing and riding posture is good. I have done many rides with other bikes like Himalayan, Xpulse, 390adv, and the bike did not really feel lacking majorly except for personal skills. Going downhill on steep slope with gravel / loose stones is an issue as we do not want to pull the clutch to roll the bike fast and use engine braking, but in doing so, the bike stalls at times throwing us off balance. Low-end torquey bikes like Himalayan fares better. Xpulse fares fine cos of confidence gained out of low weight of the bike. As mentioned earlier, soft suspension is also an issue over deep ruts and rocky surfaces.

- Ground clearance
*adequate ground clearance. Have scraped underbelly may times over rocky trails but the plastic underbelly suspended with tall rubber bushes do their job well.

- Stand (ease, practicality, how stable on stand)
* lack of center stand is an issue as center stand helps take good pics of the bike. Kidding, but it does help with chain maintenance, cleaning the bike, over shaky grounds, and ofcourse to fix punctures. I have installed a side stand extender from aliexpress, which has a large foot print. It helps keep the bike stable, but we have to tilt the bike a bit on the right side to fold the center stand, else it hits the ground. We get conditioned to this, so not a big bother.

- Quality of after-sales service & ease of warranty replacements
* service experiences by Tusker Bangalore had been pathetic to say the least. On more than one occasion, i have given them the bike in better shape in i have received post service. Not to mention the cost of spaces and even more shocking cost of labour. They also have the habit of cribbing foul for smallest of the mods when it comes to claiming warranty and find a way to charge customers. Post warranty, i have stopped going there and get the bike serviced outside. spares like airfilter, oil filter, cush rubbers, brake pads, rotors, calipers, etc are all shared from the RR310.


Sharing pics of the lovely time spent with the bike covering these kms.


The 50k landmark


Delivery Mela at Tusker


First ride, towards kolar road








Towards Mallapakonda, confluence of 3 states, KA + AP + TM


Somewhere around Bhadra reservoir


Climbing some Hill (betta) around Sakleshpura




Trails around kolar town


Ladakh of the south


Riding with fellow BHPian redliner and thats his versys, rather was






Around DD hills




South Goa


Sathodi falls parking


Around Gokarna


Near cabo-de-rama fort


Slush fest somewhere around Munnar


Some lake around yellapur


Crossing Kali bridge


Green fields around south Goa


On the way to Yercaud


Tea plantations around Munnar


Hairpin bends somewhere in Tamilnadu

[nasirkaka]

Pictures in continuation to the 1st post. Mods, please merge them if possible.

Foggy ride with a buddy 310GS


Green plains of Southern India, probably somewhere in TN


Getting down some gravel filled tricky trail


On top of Kailashagiri


Jungle trails around sakleshpura


lake view on the way to idekki


Rising with the sun


Funday at a freinds farm




windmill trails around Sira


cooling down


Elephant hill, around kanakpura




Trails to some walterfall


Dodballapura lake


Foggy serpentine hill roads


Fresh tarmac


Fog again


Birds eye view


A fall where even protection bars are protected


Re-charging




Panchpalli reservoir


sundown but spirits are high


Coffee break to admire the bike


Temple run


Country side and sights


windmills and winding roads


In its elements


A happy customer

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[sukiwa]

Originally Posted by nasirkaka

Yesterday I completed 50,000 kms on my BMW G 310 GS.

Congrats on crossing the milestone.

I also had an Interceptor. So the riding time was divided where i started using the xpulse more for the weekend trail explorations and interceptor for the highway rides. 310GS started taking the back seat. Mind you, for a requirement of a multi-day mixed travel case comprising of highway, bad roads, no roads, off roads, trails etc, 310GS would be the 'go to' bike for overall reliability and peace of mind.

Nice summary on usage of 3 bikes, hope you still have your Baker Express Interceptor. Envy the amount of trail riding that you have done.

[SoumenD]

Congratulations on the 50k milestone Sir. That's a very well written review of a potent bike. Looks like you have used the bike for considerable amount of trail riding as well

Looking at your review reminded me how much I wanted to pick up the BS6 version, but for the BMW badge which makes its a bit expensive to maintain and then I ended up checking a few classifieds for used examples in Bangalore. Didn't expect 2 year old bikes asking for 3L+, considering the OTRs were close to 3.6L back then IIRC.

[nasirkaka]

Nice summary on usage of 3 bikes, hope you still have your Baker Express Interceptor. Envy the amount of trail riding that you have done.

Thanks!! and yes, the interceptor is very much there. After certain mods to the bike to make it trails friendly, i am enjoying it very much.
Sharing a pic below.

Looking at your review reminded me how much I wanted to pick up the BS6 version, but for the BMW badge which makes its a bit expensive to maintain and then I ended up checking a few classifieds for used examples in Bangalore. Didn't expect 2 year old bikes asking for 3L+, considering the OTRs were close to 3.6L back then IIRC.

Thank you sir. Yes, The BS6 version is a much better package with slightly more refined engine, better exhaust note, RBW, slipper clutch, all LED lights, USB socket, etc. But then, there are many more viable options now in 390 adv, 250 adv, Sx250, improved modern Himalayan, Yezdi adv, etc. In 2018, not many options were there. I am looking forward to the upcoming Himalayan 450.

[dkaile]

Brilliant nasirkaka,

Keep riding to retain mental and physical health.

Cheers...

[Oppanna]

Lovely ownership there. Keep riding and hope to catch up with you on the next trail and yeah before the slots are filled!

[Aditya]

Exceptional, unbiased & detailed ownership reviews of bikes have started going to our homepage reviews box. It's the ultimate stamp of trust from Team-BHP (as a platform) because lakhs of visitors every month check out reviews from there & make purchase decisions.

Your review has also been included here. Thank you so much for sharing .

[VijayAnand1]

Nakaka, a neat pictorial. Very much echo the pros and cons you've very rightly postulated. I've known people sell this bike for as low as 1.7 lakhs purely owing to subpar service and the impulse brand buy. This isn't a bike for everyone, purely cost wise. But the mind-heart battle apart, once a decision is made, this is one neat bike that can do just about everything in a suave manner.

God speed and more miles to you.

Good luck.

Cheers!
VJ

[nasirkaka]

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

Very much echo the pros and cons you've very rightly postulated. I've known people sell this bike for as low as 1.7 lakhs purely owing to subpar service and the impulse brand buy. This isn't a bike for everyone, purely cost wise. But the mind-heart battle apart, once a decision is made, this is one neat bike that can do just about everything in a suave manner.

God speed and more miles to you.

Good luck.

Cheers!
VJ

As you aptly described, this 310GS is a "jack of all" in true sense when it comes to capabilities. There are some other good Entry level ADV bikes too, but they may have an area or two which can be termed as their weak spot. For eg, the weight on a himalayan, low end torque on the 390 adv, highway cruising on Xpulse, etc but this 310GS comes asross as well balanced. It may not have the fast acceleration of a 390Adv, but its moderately rev happy engine makes decent power and speed and its not exactly a slouch. It may not have a simplicity or ease of service ,spares, maintenance of as Himalayan but with all parts sharing with TVS RR310, its not too difficult to live with.

There are a few who buy this bike because of the BMW badge and dont put it to its actual use. And they end up in used bike market. There is also a BMW stigma that comes attached to the bike. Mental perception is its a premium brand hence will be expensive to service and maintain. In real, its not a big deal as service interval is 10k and post warranty one need not visit BMW service at all. Can easily get it serviced using all spares from RR310. Most people post warranty have gone that way. And its just the Bangalore BMW dealer (tusker) which has some bad service experience stories. Now we have another dealer in town, the JSP motarrad which is getting positive reviews for service. So all in all, there is not a very large cost difference for service and maintenance in reality, but more so in mind.
Inspite of cost reductions and bike being decently capable "jack of all" we still dont see many new 310GS on road. One could be limited sales network and other could be perceived expensive brand image to own and maintain the bike. Lastly the fast acceleration/quick pick-up is a big point when it comes to making a bike purchase decision and it does not tilt the scale much in 310GS favour.

[DudeWithaFiat]

Foggy ride with a buddy 310GS
Attachment 2463944

How tall is your buddy here? Have you seen anyone using the low-seat accessory that brings down the seat height to 820mm? I am asking because I am contemplating buying the GS310, but I am only 5'5" - 5'6" tall. I haven't measured my in-seam length but I did take a test ride couple of weeks ago and I found the bike very comfortable (even though was tiptoeing when I put both my legs down). I rode it through the traffic, stopped at two red signals, took couple of U-turns at the busy street and it was all okay (I was putting only one leg down at all these stops and U-turns). When a pillion sat on the bike, the seat got lowered and I was able to be on the balls of my feet when I put both the legs down.

P.S: - I won't be doing any off-roading but buying the bike purely for its looks. This is the most beautiful motorcycle I have ever seen. I intend to keep the motorcycle for a long time. My current ride is a 2012 Avenger (and a 2006 Bajaj Pulsar which is gathering dust at my hometown).

[nasirkaka]

I won't be doing any off-roading but buying the bike purely for its looks. This is the most beautiful motorcycle I have ever seen. I intend to keep the motorcycle for a long time. My current ride is a 2012 Avenger

This buddy was tall at around 6 feet but there is another buddy who is around 5'6" and rides a 310GS with the low seat. He does good amount of trails and drops the bike every now and then on the trails due to uneven terrain and reaching the ground issues. You should be fine if you dont intend to ride off the road.
That brings to the next questions as to why do you really need that bike if you dont intend to go off the road. Its a good looking bike for most, but its not purely designed for road usage. 17" tyres would handle road and ghats much better than 19" on the GS. Tall suspension adds to the handling issues. soft suspension setting means lots of nosedive and compromised braking. tall height as well. 310gs does city and road rides fairly well but there are better and dedicated products to do JUST that and at better price as well. The new Triumbh street / scrambler at much better price point and with better power and torque figures makes much more sense . Just my thoughts.

[Cyber_Samurai]

@nasirkaka, thanks for this beautiful write-up!

For a long time now, I wanted to buy the 310GS. But I keep waiting for the next generation 310 GS (Because it has already been 5 years since it's inception in India and 6-6.5 in Away market). But BMW simply doesn't seem to be in a hurry at all.

There is no news (or spy-shots or leaks) saying they are doing something about it. And I lose hope.. And every time that happens, I come to Team-BHP and read @nitinkbhaskar's beautifully written stories about Reyah and now started to drop on your thread. And these keep me hooked with the 310 GS. And I don't intend to come out of this vicious cycle

[nasirkaka]

There is no news (or spy-shots or leaks) saying they are doing something about it. And I lose hope.. And every time that happens, I come to Team-BHP and read @nitinkbhaskar's beautifully written stories about Reyah and now started to drop on your thread. And these keep me hooked with the 310 GS. And I don't intend to come out of this vicious cycle

Hey thanks!

I have come to realize that waiting is futile when it comes to motorcycles. There will always be something better on the horizon. Best bet is to get whatever appeals to heart and is easily available and affordable and make the days count. It does not really make a big difference on which bike it is as long as there are 2 wheels and a motor.
I personally have most fun on the the Xpulse although i have owned some relatively bigger bikes in the past. When it comes to BMW, they have not been very proactive, esp in India with their product pricing, positioning, iterations, scaling up, or marketing. 310Gs is a good enough product but its almost obsolete now to the extent that media does not even count it in competition when reviewing other bikes. With recent introduction of so many capable and lucrative bikes in 300-400cc at mouthwatering price point, and with upcoming Himalayan 450, it will only get difficult for the overpriced 310s.

S0 dont wait much, hop on to whatever you can lay your hands on, and enjoy!