Hey there riders, Moto Journo Kris here and I wanted to talk about the latest announcement
from Honda regarding their 350ADV, which is… a scooter. We’ve seen Honda take a strong
direction in this auto adventure segment, both with the DCT on their Africa Twin, but
also in offering these adventure orientated scooters.
On the surface it’s a little strange to think of people adventuring on a scooter,
but then it really depends what we’re talking about. These wouldn’t be doing single-trail
by any means, scooter clearance is a real constricting factor there, but what about
dirt or gravel roads, and going the road untraveled? That’s certainly something riders seem to
appreciate more and more, with little really being traded off.
Add many regions pretty bad road surfaces and something designed for slightly rougher
conditions will no doubt be a winner, even if you’re just dodging potholes and cursing
gravel left on every corner. That’s probably why they call it the Urban Adventure scooter
too. Every ride’s an adventure when roadwork crews like throwing gravel over any new section
of road afterall.
What’s that, I sound salty about the general level of incompetence of the people who do
roadwork and are in charge of general maintenance – here in NSW at least – however did you
pick up on that subtle vibe.
In fact in some ways the cynic in me says that these are just a Forza 350 with a set
of dual-purpose tyres. It’s not actually as simple as that, as there’s different
bodywork and other differences, however that’s essentially the basis of what’s going on
here.
The 350ADV certainly looks more rugged and more adventurous though, compared to the more
refined Forza.
So what are you getting with the 2022 Honda 350ADV?
The core I s the Smart Power Plus, or eSP+ 330 cc four-valve single, producing 21.5 kw
and 31.5 newton metres of torque, and you’ll be pleased to note it uses an oil jet as seen
on the CRF450R for piston cooling.
A 36 mm throttle-body provides fuel, while there’s a 5 mm offset cylinder, hydraulic
cam chain adjuster and scavenge pump operating – for efficiency. A balancer shaft reduces
vibes and the centrifugal clutch offers V-Matic transmission, with a belt final drive.
HSTC or Torque Control controls rear wheel slip, and can be turned off, which is nice
to see on an adventure machine, where powering through corners without full traction could
be a bit of fun.
The engine is also Euro5 compliant and offers 30 km per litre efficiency, with an 11.5 litre
tank giving a possible range of over 300 km, which isn’t bad at all!
Honda describe a lightweight tubular steel frame and aluminium one-piece swingarm, helping
the 350ADV achieve a wet weight of 186 kg, which really isn’t that bad, with a wheelbase
of 1520 mm, rake of 26.5 degrees and 89 mm of trail. That’s a 10 mm longer wheelbase
than the Forza, but otherwise the same, and adds two kilograms in weight.
The 350ADV does run beefier 37 mm motorcycle style forks with 125 mm of travel, which is
a decent upgrade from the Forza units, while twin shock absorbers run remote reservoirs
and use progressive dual rate springs, with 130 mm of travel. Those also look like an
upgrade over the Forza units.
Wheels are apparently new for the Honda scooter range, cast aluminium in black with a 15 inch
front and 15 inch rear, using a six cross spoked design. They are meant to offer better
road feel and agility, while hopefully strength was also a concern there, for those rougher
roads.
Block pattern tubeless tyres are fitted and that’s a 120 by 70 front, 15 inch as mentioned,
and 140 by 7 rear, 14 inch. On the bright side being tubeless means simply puncture
repair kits will be easy to use too. What would taking a scooter tyre wheel off to patch
a tube be like, anyone know? Guess you won’t have to find out with the 350ADV and I can
say the puncture repair kits you just screw in do the trick nicely.
Brakes meanwhile are a 256 mm front rotor with a 240 mm rear unit, with a two-piston
Nissin caliper on the front and single piston unit from the same company on the rear, both
backed by ABS and running an ESS system which apparently automatically operates the rear
indicators during hard stopping situations. That’d be flashing them vigorously to gain
extra attention for context and is a cool little safety feature that may help stop someone
rear ending you.
Looking at more specific features, lighting is LED all round, with dual headlights, and
the bodywork is designed to show off those USD forks, which are obviously a selling point
over the more basic Forza setup. The screen is two position adjustable between 133 mm,
and underseat storage is 48 litres, or space for two full face helmets. There’s even
a USB type-C in the glove box for phone charging and the seat height is 795 mm, which is 15
mm taller than the Forza, despite them both sharing the same ground clearance.
An LCD dash includes Honda Smartphone Voice Control, which links the rider to the smartphone
and allows voice management of calls and music, apparently. BUT, you need the Honda RoadSync
app, and a helmet mounted headset for that to work, with Bluetooth connected and synced,
etc.
If you’ve got a comms system on your helmet that feels redundant, but then I still haven’t
fitted my comms system, so maybe that’s a selling point for some riders.
There’s also a Smart Key, which automatically locks the scooter when you walk away, and
allows the ignition switch knob and seat locking to be used when close enough. If you grab
a 50L Smart top box it also locks and unlocks on proximity which is kinda cool.
For that embarrassing moment when you get back to the bike and there’s five other
identical 350ADVs parked around you and you can’t remember your licence plate – we’ve
all been there – there’s an answer back switch.
The 2022 Honda ADV350 will also be available in three colours, Spangle Silver Metallic,
Mat Carbonium Gray Metallic, and Mat Carnelian Red Metallic, and as red goes faster that’s
the obvious choice.
Overall a cool machine that differentiates itself from the Forza with some meaningful
changes – namely the suspension and rugged look and tyres, and looks to give riders a
bit more freedom to explore wherever they want. That’s a win if you ask me.
And for reference this is basically a step down from the X-ADV model, which is an even
more badass ADV scooter, but runs a larger two-cylinder 745 cc engine and spoked wheels.
Shame they couldn’t carry the spoked wheels across to the 350ADV, but to be fair they
are totally different sizes.
Anyway let me know what you think of the 350ADV, or of adventure scooters in general. Is that
something you’d consider if you’re into scooters? We had a scooter for a number of
years and I’ve got to say, the idea of paying a little more for a scooter that’s a bit
more capable over rough terrain sounds good to me, while it would also be more ideal if
my wife wanted to come on a ride when I’m on my WR250R – at least for basic unsealed
roads or easy fire trails.
Anyway as always stay safe out there and thanks for