All You Need To Know About The 2018 BMW G310GS In One Commute

Success can be both good and bad, in life and in the world of motorcycles. BMW’s famous GS, for example, has gone from a wacky idea in the early 1980s to defining a category in the modern era—if you haven’t seen the On Two Wheels episode, check it out here. The flagship R1200GS boxer has sold well for decades now, and it’s a moniker known around the world.

It sounds like nothing but good news for BMW, except when the time comes to build a smaller sibling. The Bavarians have had success with F650 and F800 variants (single and parallel twin, respectively), but now the time has come for a genuinely small GS. The G310GS uses an Indian-made TVS Apache engine—in fact, most of the parts are sourced from India—to create a burly little 30-hp adventure bike. BMW is hoping the mighty GS name will carry this little bike into success as well. But as handsome as the G310GS is, I learned as soon as you turn the key and start riding there are some hurdles to clear.