2022 Honda 350ADV Overview | Adventure Scooter!

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.
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.
Images and footage courtesy of Honda Motorcycles.
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