BMW G310 GS: 2021 BikeWale Off-Road Day Review

The concept of the BikeWale Off-Road Day is elementary. We take a few motorcycles with adventure written all over them and perform a few tests. Although, as vanilla as that might sound, the various flavours these adventure motorcycles offer, catering to several riding styles is fascinating. At the BikeWale Off-Road Day, we tap into just that, having some fun and learning along the way.  

And since we couldn’t have the 2020 iteration courtesy of the pandemic, we planned this year’s event to be different in a way that would be challenging. For that, we headed to Pro Dirt Adventure, near Pune with five motorcycles.   

While Pratheek and Anuj were focusing on the other bikes, I had my eyes set on the BMW G310 GS. The GS was a part of the 2019 Off-Road Day, and coincidentally, I had ridden it then too. However, it wasn’t the best of experiences.  

But now, with BMW claiming to have addressed some of the issues from the previous model, I was intrigued. Not only has BMW priced the G310 GS at Rs 3 lakh, which is a whopping Rs 50,000 lesser than before, but it has now also equipped the motorcycle with a slipper clutch, adjustable levers, and a revised suspension. BMW also claims to have minutely tinkered with how the 313cc engine delivers its performance. Yes, it also gets full-LED lighting and ‘Rallye’ livery but right now, the aesthetics interested me less.  

What I was interested to know was whether the improvements the G310 GS received have truly made it better than before. And to do that, I’d take the G310 GS out on the Gymkhana course that was set up with a few tweaks to make it even more challenging for the Off-Road Day. 

Usually associated with Ken Block’s viral videos, a Gymkhana in automotive terms is a course with various obstacles and challenges to test out the bike’s abilities and clearly, the rider’s skills. While I have been watching Pol Tarres jump his T7 off boulders, and Dakar Rally riders sail on the sand, off-road riding, somehow, hasn’t gotten to me…yet. So, considering myself a novice with the G310 GS at hand, would I be at ease and come to like the paths unpaved this time?

Well, the basics to being at ease with a motorcycle is to have suited ergonomics. So, I stood up on the pegs, with my knees hugging the GS’s well-shaped fuel tank with almost no effort. However, holding on to the handlebar was a stretch, despite being of average height. This would surely be a task for taller riders.  Now, the first obstacle was jumping-off of tyres. And the G310 GS handled that with ease. The near-34bhp producing 313cc engine offers incredible punch in the lower-end, and the ride-by-wire throttle means even a light hand at the throttle in first gear would propel the 310 GS skyward. Then, after completing a full turn, which felt easy on the first try, it was time to cross the rock garden. 

Aptly named, this section is the trickiest of the lot, filled with large, loose rocks. Again, using the GS’s low-end punch, traversing over the rocks was like slicing through cheesecake. And while the KTM 390 Adventure and Royal Enfield Himalayan left no stone unturned hitting and shuffling the rocks with their sump guards, the G310 GS proved to have much better ground clearance.  

However, as I took a full-lock turn to enter the third lane of the gymkhana, the 310 GS stalled. And the daunting memories of me falling off the bike multiple times due to the same issue at the 2019 Off-Road Day crept in….Well, we powered through it this time, around the cone and onto the roller humps and into the rut section of the course, where the G310 GS pleasantly surprised with its suspension. BMW has made revisions to the setup to offer a plush on-road ride. Although, even over the deep ruts, the bike felt composed and settled. 

 After riding over the balance beam, it was time for my favourite bit of the Gymkhana- jumping the bike off the log. Given that the GS weighs a mere 175kg and has a strong grunt in the low end, jumping it off the log and catching some air time was easy, and equally exhilarating. Again, I was impressed by the revised suspension setup that has been stiffened up a bit.

 Unlike the earlier version where the front bottomed out each time it hit the log, the new G 310 GS absorbed the impact well. It also felt settled on landing instead of completely bottoming out at both ends. To end the course, on the last lane of the gymkhana lay the braking section. The goal was to accelerate as hard as possible and come to a complete stop between the cones. 

Here, the GS’ newly renewed, stiffer suspension and sharp brake bite came into play. While it was confidence-instilling at first, the overly intrusive ABS and the lack of grip from the Metzeler Tourance tyres turned the entire experience on its head with a feeling of the front-end washing out. 

While it may sound like it, the Gymkhana wasn’t the end of affairs. To put the G 310 GS to the ultimate test, ‘The Garage’ was set up. Simple to look at, with just a box and a few lines drawn in, the course determines the balance, ease of riding, and control of a motorcycle. And just like the other tests, a reality check to the rider’s abilities.  Here, the idea is to manoeuvre the bike around the lines without touching them or keeping your foot down. Easy, until it wasn’t. 

Standing up and riding the GS required effort to reach the low handlebar. And since the steering does not offer much leverage during lock-to-lock turns, the most efficient way to steer the bike was to lean it in. And me, with medium-level off-road abilities, depended on the throttle and clutch control to manoeuvre the bike instead. Now, the new G 310 GS gets ride-by-wire and BMW has also somewhat ironed out the issue with the clunky clutch. However, they seemed to have missed out on one thing that has haunted the GS since its inception. And that is the fueling.  

The bike threatened to stall as soon as the revs dropped below 1500rpm. So juggling between focusing on where I wanted to go, the throttle, the clutch and keeping the revs high, I kept my foot down. On the second attempt, the bike stalled. And on the third, I gave up. Although on the brighter side, the GS did feel light to steer around, the choppiness from the throttle has reduced substantially and the clutch now feels super light. 

To answer the question I posed at the start, was I at ease riding the G310 GS through the course? Well, that’s a yes and a no. On the downside, thanks to the fuelling issue, the improvements BMW has made especially to the throttle and clutch are easily overlooked. And if you are new to riding and practicing off-road in a course like the garage, the GS could get difficult to learn with a low handlebar and the constant threat of stalling and dropping the motorcycle. 

Although on the flip side, I was impressed with the ground clearance and the way the suspension managed to dampen out the ruts almost seamlessly. As I parked the GS and pondered on whether the off-road bug bit me this time, maybe it did. And the G310 GS deserves some credit for that - being light, playful, and engaging to ride whenever there is the option to gas it open and kick up some dirt. Having said that, the BMW G310 GS continues to remain a soft-roader, but it is a good one at that. 

Photos by Kapil Angane and Kaustubh Gandhi