VOL. 54 ISSUE 40 OCTOBER 10, 2017 P85
ing. It'll make the GS feel skittish, and leave the
otherwise excellent front Metzeler—which warms
up quicker and has better feedback than the Mi-
chelins fitted to both G 310 Rs I've ridden—scrab-
bling for grip over bumps. That happens in any
hard-braking scenario, but doing so coming down
into France on the cold side of the mountains
where roads were still slippery after overnight
chill, revealed the efficacy of the two-channel
Continental ABS fitted as standard on the G 310
platform, which is switchable for off-road use.
travel which briefly ushered up the homologated
top speed of 89 mph, as displayed on the BMW's
digital Continental dash, with the tach reading just
nudging the five-digit segment as the small shifter
light started flashing. Yet at that engine speed and
all others the 313cc single motor felt completely
unstressed and, more to the point, vibration-free—
the single counter-balancer does its job to perfec-
tion. Cruising at a speed of 75 mph brought up
just 7500 rpm on the digital tach running across
the bottom of the dash.
This has a single gear-driven counter-balancer,
which does its job to perfection.
It did its job when I all but locked the front
wheel a couple of times, which on a dry sur-
face shouldn't ever happen—the single 300mm
front disc is just about sufficient to stop the little
BMW from high speed, at least with just the rider
aboard. Add luggage and/or a passenger and it
would be marginal, so you'd need to make good
use of the 240mm rear disc with a floating twin-
piston caliper.
That single front disc is gripped by a four-piston
Bybre (Brembo's Indian subsidiary) radial caliper
via steel hoses, and the combo is just about up
to the job of stopping the BMW and its solo rider
at speed. But you must also use the rear brake
hard for panic stops, and you don't get the feeling
there's much in reserve, plus the non-adjustable
lever is positioned rather far away from the grip,
so people with smaller hands, especially women,
may find this off-putting. BMW needs to spend the
extra dollars and make it adjustable.
EURO THRASHING
The BMW has light, neutral steering but feels
planted in a straight line—it gives no impression of
being a nervous, lightweight package, even if it
changes direction very easily, aided by the good
leverage from the wide handlebar. Our return ride
from Andorra included a brief spell of freeway
