Honda ADV350 (2025) – Technical Review

New bikes normally follow a predictably trajectory in the sales charts – peaking soon after their launch and then trailing off as they get older and customers rush to the latest and greatest options instead – but Honda’s ADV350 has bucked that convention by becoming increasingly popular as the years have passed.

So even though the bike’s updates for the 2025 model year are subtle, they’re significant as the ADV350 has risen from a bit-part player in Honda’s lineup to a starring role since it debuted for the 2022 model year. In that first year, British customers bought 212 examples of the unusual adventure-maxi-scooter-mashup. That nearly trebled to 604 in 2023, and last year the numbers grew again – sales in the first quarter alone beat the whole of 2022, with 226 registered, and the success was sustained into the second quarter, putting it on a trajectory to be one of Honda’s strongest-selling bikes over 125cc, substantially outselling the Forza 350 it’s derived from and even beating the good-value CB750 Hornet’s sales.

Pros & Cons

2025 Honda ADV350 - Price & PCP

At first blush the ADV350’s £5899 price tag might seem like a lot of dough for a 330cc single-cylinder scooter but it’s a machine that operates at the luxury end of that market and actually substantially undercuts some rivals in the same arena.

Despite its upgrades, the 2025 model carries the same RRP as the last of the 2024 version, still listed on Honda’s UK website alongside it. Surprisingly, at the time of writing the 2022 model also remains available, carrying a price tag that’s £50 cheaper at £5849.

The 2025 version is offered in four colours, three of them being rather subdued – grey, pearl black, or matte black – while one is a vibrant ‘Hyper Red’ that better brings out the shapes in the angular bodywork.

When it comes to finance, Honda is currently offering PCP at 9.9% APR representative, with an illustrative cost (on the 2024 model, but the 2025 is unlikely to differ) of £89 per month with a deposit of £982.81 on a 37-month deal, with a £2848.67 final payment.

2025 Honda ADV350 - Engine & Performance

Search the spec sheets and you’ll struggle to spot a change between the original version of the ADV350 and the 2025 variant: the essence remains unchanged, with a 330cc SOHC single borrowed from the Forza 350, putting out 28.8hp at 7500rpm and 23.2 lb-ft at 5250rpm.

But like everything else on the market in 2025 the ADV350 needs to meet the latest Euro5+ emissions rules, including requirements for longevity of the catalytic converters and monitoring to make sure they’re working properly. To meet those needs, Honda has changed the internals of the silencer and revised the catalytic converter itself, adding an extra oxygen sensor in the exhaust to keep track of its performance and remapping the ECU to suit the new system.

That exhaust is one of the few visual clues to the new model, too, with a reshaped external design to the silencer – although without the previous version next to it as comparison, it’s a subtle change that’s easy to miss.

As before, the engine uses a relatively square bore/stroke ratio – 77mm x 70.8mm – and moderate 10.5:1 compression ratio. After all, it’s a scooter, not a superbike. But there are competition-inspired elements including oil jet cooling for the piston, while a balancer shaft helps smooth out the throb of its single cylinder.

As you’d expect, the transmission is a conventional belt-driven CVT rather than the exotic dual-clutch automated manual of the larger X-ADV, with a centrifugal clutch. There’s simple, switchable traction control based on a comparison of front and rear wheel speed, but no clever lean-sensitive rider assistance gizmos.

2025 Honda ADV350 - Handling & Suspension (inc. Weight)

The frame, made of tubular steel, is carried over from the previous model, along with the 37mm upside-down forks – now finished in black rather than bronze.

But the 2025 bike’s chassis is improved with the addition of new shocks at the back. It remains the same twin-shock setup as before, but those remote-reservoir units are now preload-adjustable. The new shocks get a gold finish on their reservoirs to help emphasise the update.

As before, there’s 130mm of rear travel and 125mm at the front, and the key dimensions are unaltered – the wheelbase is still 1520mm and the weight remains 186kg ready to ride.

The cross-spoke alloy wheels, unique to the ADV350, are the same as on the previous model, too, and measure 15 inches at the front and 14 at the rear, with 120/70 and 140/70 rubber respectively. Nissin provides the brakes, with a simple 2-pot caliper at each end gripping a 256mm front disc and a 240mm rear one. There’s ABS, as the law requires, but not cornering ABS.

2025 Honda ADV350- Comfort & Economy

With no changes to the dimensions, anyone who’s ridden the previous ADV350 isn’t likely to notice a big difference on the new one – although the upgraded rear shocks should make for a better ride/handling compromise than before.

As on the earlier version there’s a four-position, manually-adjustable screen, giving 133mm of travel, and despite the ‘adventure’ style and relatively long-travel suspension, the seat remains at a reasonable 795mm high.

The changes to the exhaust and engine mapping to suit the new Euro5+ rules have had a slight hit on the bike’s economy, but with a claimed figure of 80.8mpg, down from 83mpg, you’re not going to be spending much on fuel. The 11.7-litre tank should make for a theoretical range of 208 miles on the new bike (the old one would achieve 213 miles based on its claimed economy).

2025 Honda ADV350 - Equipment

Here’s where there are some more substantial improvements for the new ADV350. The most immediately noticeable difference is the addition of a five-inch TFT colour screen, controlled by a new, backlit four-way toggle switch on the left bar. Allied to the sort of phone connectivity that’s par for the course today, that means you have access to turn-by-turn navigation on the dash, as well as music and call information and control if you use it in conjunction with a Bluetooth helmet. You do need to use Honda’s RoadSync app to make it all work, though.

Other updates include the addition of self-cancelling indicators, plus a light for the 48-litre under-seat storage compartment, and for 2025 the ADV350 comes pre-wired for the optional accessory fog lights, as well as gaining attachment stays for the protective side pipes that they mount on, all part of the £395 ‘adventure pack’ in the options list. There’s also a £475 ‘comfort pack’ with a taller screen, leg deflectors and heated grips, a £400 ‘style pack’ headlined by a comfort seat, and a £730 ‘urban pack’ including a 50-litre top box.

2025 Honda ADV350 - Rivals

When Honda unveiled its ‘ADV’ concept scooter back in 2015 it was greeted with a combination of amusement and bemusement – an adventure scooter? Why? – but that became the X-ADV and a sales success that led to smaller spin-offs including the ADV350 and a spate of rivals. Realistically, though the real competition comes from conventional scooters like Yamaha’s XMAX 300 and Honda’s own, closely related Forza 350 as well as those adventure oddballs.

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Power/Torque

36.7bhp / 28.1lb-ft

Weight

231kg

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2025 Honda ADV350 - Verdict

Stylish, rugged, punchy and more aggressive aren’t normally how you’d describe a twist-and-go scooter, but use on the UK’s city streets can be twinned with the coastal hot spots of the French riviera when it comes to one make and model. We’ll be sure to offer our detailed thoughts once we’ve had a ride.

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2025 Honda ADV350 - Technical Specification

What is MCIA Secured?

MCIA Secured gives bike buyers the chance to see just how much work a manufacturer has put into making their new investment as resistant to theft as possible.

As we all know, the more security you use, the less chance there is of your bike being stolen. In fact, based on research by Bennetts, using a disc lock makes your machine three times less likely to be stolen, while heavy duty kit can make it less likely to be stolen than a car. For reviews of the best security products, click here.

MCIA Secured gives motorcycles a rating out of five stars (three stars for bikes of 125cc or less), based on the following being fitted to a new bike as standard:

• A steering lock that meets the UNECE 62 standard

• An ignition immobiliser system

• A vehicle marking system

• An alarm system

• A vehicle tracking system with subscription

The higher the star rating, the better the security, so always ask your dealer what rating your bike has and compare it to other machines on your shortlist.