300cc BMW?
BMW Motorrad have just announced their new Sub-500cc at the Milan Motorcycle Show. Hello G310R or should I say Namaste G310R?
The G310R is a joint venture between BMW Motorrad and TVS Motor Co in India. The announcement comes after the mean looking stunt model of the G310 was shown (surprisingly) being used to perform stunts in a promo video created by BMW Motorrad France in October, which can be viewed below.
New Blood
The G310R is powered by a newly developed 313cc liquid-cooled single cylinder power-plant. The Bike has been designed for the world market, which means that it can run on a diverse range of fuel qualities whilst still maintaining tight emission regulations. It provides a usable 34hp which is 12hp lower than the UK A2 licence regulation limit, however the bike only weighs 158.5KG so should still be fairly quick off the mark.
Size Doesn’t Matter
The bike is compact rather than small, which will allow fast turning and easy filtering. The Bike is classed as a Naked but has sporty cues; from the short tail piece to the sharp creases in the body. Making this something that both A2 Limited riders and Litre-bike veterans will be desperate to get on.
Competition
The BMW will be marketed as a rival to the KTM Duke 390 and Kawasaki’s Z250 so pricing will be expected to be around the same as these. The KTM design is aggressive like the BMW, whereas the Kawasaki is more subtle in its design. I’d choose the BMW every time, but I am a fan of the odd beemer.
Conclusions
Overall the G310R looks like an excellent option for the A2 rider who doesn’t want the usual Ninja 250/300 or CBR, but the bikes release date and price hasn’t been given yet so maybe a good used 250 Ninja could be the ticket until then.
