Spec comparison: Can BMW G 310 R match up to its rivals like Duke 390 or Yamaha R3?

With BMW launching the G 310 R siblings in India recently, competition in the market for performance bikes has toughened. The highlight of the launch though was the G 310 GS. The BMW G 310 GS is an ADV, one which a lot of motor enthusiasts were waiting for.

We do have the Kawasaki Versys X 300, but at Rs 4.69 lakh, comparing it to the BMW seems unnecessary. KTM has announced the coming of the KTM 390 Adventure, and with KTM's pricing strategy so far, we are fairly certain it will be cheaper. However, we will have to wait for the bike to be able to compare the two.

Right now, let's focus on BMW's naked street bike, the G 310 R. It competes with the likes of KTM Duke 390, Yamaha YZF-R3, Kawasaki Ninja 300, TVS Apache RR310 and Benelli TNT 300.

At 313 cc, the engine is not the smallest of the lot, but it is probably the most underpowered. The Duke sports the biggest engine at 373cc while the Kawasaki Ninja has the smallest at 296cc. Even so, the G 310 R gets only 34 PS at 9,700 rpm compared to the Ninja's 39 PS at 11,000 rpm. Torque, however, is just slightly lower than the Ninja at 28 Nm compared to 27 Nm. The Duke, true to its style boasts of the most torque at 37 Nm.

The BMW is manufactured in TVS's Hosur plant and shares its engine with the Apache RR310. So it is not surprising most of the engine numbers are the same. The difference comes in the electronics. Apache's ECU is mapped by TVS while the G 310 R's is done by BMW. So while everything else remains the same, the different maps result in a different riding experience.

All bikes are mated to a 6-speed manual transmission. While the Duke and the Ninja get slipper clutch technology, the other bikes on our list don't. Stopping power comes from a 300 mm disc up front and a 240 mm disc in the back. It is not the biggest of the lot but not the smallest either and we think it should handle emergency braking well. ABS comes standard on all except the Benelli TNT 300.

In terms of seat height, the BMW G 310 R is not tall. At 785 mm, it is very short either, but will definitely appeal to the shorter rider. The Benelli and Kawasaki have similar seat heights. The Duke in this regard is an extremely tall bike at 830 mm while the Apache falls just shy of the Duke at 810 mm.

BMW does have all the others beat when it comes to weight. With a kerb weight of 158.5 kg, it is the lightest bike on our list with the Benelli being the heaviest.

Even now, the KTM is our top contender when it comes to value for money. Of course, the Apache RR310 is the cheapest of the lot, but the KTM promises much more power for just a little bit more. Kawasaki also just recently announced a price cut for the Ninja 300 which makes a tad bit cheaper than the BMW G 310 R which retails for Rs 2.99 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai).