Planned as a little tootle through the local backblocks while checking out the just-released BMW 310 Baby-GS, it all turned into a bit of a frazzled affair with bumper-to-bumper traffic into Ringwood to check out some ADV-jackets, some photo-shoot out the back of Warrandyte, a superb lunch at Dixons Creek...and an "ALL-HEART" Willo already audible on the carpark outside
First things first....a BIG thanks to Doncaster BMW for letting us have their hotly-contested demo 310 for an hour and a half!!
As for the little Beemer, I'll call things as I stumbled across them:
Not exactly a powerhouse, the little 310 purrs along just fine. Clutch adjustment was out by a mile, no free-play at all, fixed at the red lights along the way.
Weight sits low....and if the ergonomics wouldn't be as superb as what they are for a 6-footer, it still would be a "big" bike frame+feel wise.
She's got a solid footprint, stable cornering with the 19" front.... and rather feels like a well-sized 500, happy to hit the twisties. Not generous, but well-sized.
With a COMFY seat!! Which is at a bit of a lofty height, though....for a 300, that is.
180mm boingers at each end are plush+firm at the same time...NICE! The 290mm ground clearance under the gut are also neat, considering the comfy ergonomics.
The bars are waaaayyy too low to be anywhere near dirt-usable, as are the narrow pegs.
Bars way too low, instrument cluster shows all from speed to gear-indicator, clock, tripmeter and the rest of the play-stuff.
Fuel is 11 liters incl. 1 liter reserve, which should be good for a 300+km range with an additional 40km or so to creep to safety.
"Bashplate" is an icecream-bucket bolted to the sump....anything more substantial will also need some bracing/ subframe, which also goes for crashbars of any sort.
Crashbars would add quite a bit of weight as they have to be big/ wide enough to cover the width of the full-sized (650-1000cc) tank-area...hmmmmm
The little 313cc jug is reversed, so the header pipe faces backwards and is shorter as a result....neat!
They should've gone the extra mile and feed the header between the subframe and pillion-peg mounts, halving the header-length and bringing the can up to "Scrambler"-height!!
Nobody will ever seriously use the tiny pillion perch.
OEM-screen is just cosmetic...easy to replace with something more suitable once the bars/ risers are sorted out (note: there's plenty of extra length available in wiring+cables to accommodate bar-risers!)
Monstrous rear rack screws up the rear-end
Comfy!!
Feels like a 500+
1. gear is loooong.....I'd start playing with sprocket-gearing right away, if taking this thing into half-serious dirt/ gravel.
A vibe-free 300cc mill makes life easy....and there's enough poke to keep things moving.
Happy-speed is around 80-90kmh....in 4th/5th/6th, your pick.
I can certainly see an easy life on this little jigger...add some Mitas E07s and she'll go anywhere soft-roadish.
Again, a big thanks to Doncaster BMW for the opportunity to check out the baby- GS....and I'm looking forward to
spending 3 weeks on the midget in the Balkans next year !!
As always, the Dixons Creek Cafe pulled out all stops to serve up an exceptional lunch, friendly service and a big fan to keep the boiling midday-sun under control.
Nev+Jo joined in as well as Helen and Willo in his new " ALL Heart!" colours
New City of Whittlesea work-clobber, mate??
First things first....a BIG thanks to Doncaster BMW for letting us have their hotly-contested demo 310 for an hour and a half!!
As for the little Beemer, I'll call things as I stumbled across them:
Not exactly a powerhouse, the little 310 purrs along just fine. Clutch adjustment was out by a mile, no free-play at all, fixed at the red lights along the way.
Weight sits low....and if the ergonomics wouldn't be as superb as what they are for a 6-footer, it still would be a "big" bike frame+feel wise.
She's got a solid footprint, stable cornering with the 19" front.... and rather feels like a well-sized 500, happy to hit the twisties. Not generous, but well-sized.
With a COMFY seat!! Which is at a bit of a lofty height, though....for a 300, that is.
180mm boingers at each end are plush+firm at the same time...NICE! The 290mm ground clearance under the gut are also neat, considering the comfy ergonomics.
The bars are waaaayyy too low to be anywhere near dirt-usable, as are the narrow pegs.
Bars way too low, instrument cluster shows all from speed to gear-indicator, clock, tripmeter and the rest of the play-stuff.
Fuel is 11 liters incl. 1 liter reserve, which should be good for a 300+km range with an additional 40km or so to creep to safety.
"Bashplate" is an icecream-bucket bolted to the sump....anything more substantial will also need some bracing/ subframe, which also goes for crashbars of any sort.
Crashbars would add quite a bit of weight as they have to be big/ wide enough to cover the width of the full-sized (650-1000cc) tank-area...hmmmmm
The little 313cc jug is reversed, so the header pipe faces backwards and is shorter as a result....neat!
They should've gone the extra mile and feed the header between the subframe and pillion-peg mounts, halving the header-length and bringing the can up to "Scrambler"-height!!
Nobody will ever seriously use the tiny pillion perch.
OEM-screen is just cosmetic...easy to replace with something more suitable once the bars/ risers are sorted out (note: there's plenty of extra length available in wiring+cables to accommodate bar-risers!)
Monstrous rear rack screws up the rear-end
Comfy!!
Feels like a 500+
1. gear is loooong.....I'd start playing with sprocket-gearing right away, if taking this thing into half-serious dirt/ gravel.
A vibe-free 300cc mill makes life easy....and there's enough poke to keep things moving.
Happy-speed is around 80-90kmh....in 4th/5th/6th, your pick.
I can certainly see an easy life on this little jigger...add some Mitas E07s and she'll go anywhere soft-roadish.
Again, a big thanks to Doncaster BMW for the opportunity to check out the baby- GS....and I'm looking forward to
spending 3 weeks on the midget in the Balkans next year !!
As always, the Dixons Creek Cafe pulled out all stops to serve up an exceptional lunch, friendly service and a big fan to keep the boiling midday-sun under control.
Nev+Jo joined in as well as Helen and Willo in his new " ALL Heart!" colours
New City of Whittlesea work-clobber, mate??