UPDATE: Here’s the review!
As part of BMW Motorrad’s quest to take over the world, they’ve developed a small single-cylinder engine to try and crack the entry-level market with. They’ve gone with a 313cc thumper that produces 34 horsepower, and the first bike is a naked “R”. A G310GS has also been announced but you’ll have to wait a bit more for that. I’ll be at the launch of this bike this week – so if there’s anything specific you want to know, give me a heads up!
A few basics:
– MSRP starts at $4,750, including ABS. Compare that to Honda’s CBR300F, which starts at $4,649 if you add the optional ABS. Kawasaki doesn’t make a naked 300 but their Ninja 300 ABS starts at $5,299.
– This is the first street use of a reverse-cylinder on a production bike. Yamaha was the first manufacturer to have success with this on their YZ450 MX bike back in 2010, although Cannondale beat them to the punch a decade prior. The engine produces 34 horsepower at 9,500 rpm (10,500 rpm redline) and 21 lb-ft of torque at 7,500 rpm.
– Wet weight is claimed to be 349 pounds.
– Features ABS and a LCD instrument panel built by Continental.
– Available in Strato Blue Metallic, Cosmic Black, and the one everyone should buy: Pearl White Metallic, which features the BMW Motorsport red/white/blue. I think it’s a good looking bike, though there’s something about the shape of the wheel spokes that I’m hung up on.
I got to sit on one at the Long Beach International Motorcycle Show and was generally pleased with the initial fit and finish for the price point. But that won’t matter if it rides like garbage, so I look forward to seeing how it feels on the road. If there’s anything specific you’d like to know that might not usually be covered in a review, feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to address it!