ADVrider Project / Kate's BMW G310 GS Build: Repair and a Side Stand Shoe

Jul 17, 2023

Photo: Kate Murphy

ADVwriter Kate Murphy (aka inmate @moto_muffin) returns with the next installment of her BMW G310 GS build!

When we last left our hero, the 2022 BMW G310 GS, it had barely made it home after an abbreviated trip and a lot of stalling. The closest (still an hour away) dealer picked it up in a van. BMW techs read the code it spat out, and the winner is: a bad crankshaft position sensor!

Modern motorcycles have a lot of electronic sensors. Every once in a while, a bad one slips past QA and gets into a production motorcycle, and that motorcycle makes it onto a dealership floor. When your last name is Murphy, you just come to expect strange failures like this. That's why I carry a lot of tools. The dealer, of course, fixed it gratis because it's a brand new machine.

At any rate, the bike is running even better now, and I can tell you the cheap aftermarket windshield that I installed for the last story is holding up great. There's just a hint of a howl at speed, but it's better than no wind protection. And for a purchase price of $30, I have no complaints.

The next install is a kickstand shoe. I know you’ve parked your bike on its side stand and immediately felt that foot sink into soft ground. Then comes the scramble for a kick plate. A shoe that bolts to the foot, makes that literal footprint wider and the motorcycle more stable even in sand and soft grass.

Since I’ll be riding this bike on dirt, a shoe seemed like the way to go. I ordered one (again) from Amazon, brand named "BAIONE," for the princely sum of about fourteen (14) US dollars.

Photo: Kate Murphy

It's red, matches the bike (sort of) and was easy to install. Or, at least, it would have been, if the bike had a center stand or a metal bash plate (spoiler alert) as a decent jack point.

I had my lovely assistant hold the bike up off its side stand while I slipped the shoe on the bike's small foot. The two-piece shoe has one piece that fits under the foot and one over it, to hold it in place. A drop of blue Loctite on each of the three small bolts and the shoe was in place. Unsurprisingly, it did not fit flush, even after checking for sand or casting anomalies on the foot itself.

No matter, I tightened the bolts and had him let the bike down on the stand. The shoe did not sit flat on the floor.

Despite the not-so-great fitment, the shoe fits over the foot just fine, and the bolts have not backed out.

After several hundred miles of riding (and parking) the bike with its new shoe, I will give the entire endeavor three out of five stars. Maybe two and a half.

Hey, at least it came with its own allen wrench for installation. But you bet I’m keeping my eye on those bolts.

Next up, in no particular order: an incredibly questionable aftermarket center stand, so that I do not have to rely on the side stand (and to make it easier to work on the bike).

Also: Koso Apollo Heated Grips with photos of the installation. I installed these same heated grips on my Super Ténéré, and I love how the controller is integrated into the left grip instead of taking up space somewhere on the bars. They are a little more expensive as an aftermarket option than the Oxford grips everyone seems to love, but they heat up fast and are such a tidy install, I really like them. They cost me around $120, which is far better than the $500+ BMW wants for the factory option.

I’ve just pulled the bar end off the 310 and the stock grips are stiff and look like they’re going to put up a fight. This should be fun.