Zontes 350T

The Zontes 350T is a 348cc adventure bike from the Chinese manufacturer. It is one of the most feature-packed and futuristic ADVs currently available in India and here’s how it feels in the real world.

The Zontes 350T comes with an interesting design which is quite similar to the Benelli TRK, but in a smaller package. The 350T comes with comprehensive crash protection and has a massive cast aluminum grab rail and carrier combo along with metal+plastic knuckle guards which makes the bike look like a large-capacity adventure motorcycle.

The bike is offered in 2 colours: Orange and Champagne. The Orange features an orange and black dual-tone paint scheme, while the Champagne comes with a full black finish. We had a chance to ride the orange one during our review and we thought it looked quite eye-catching. The manufacturer also offers the bike in two variants: standard and ADV. There isn’t any difference in the two visually, except that the standard runs on 17-inch alloys at both ends while the ADV gets a 19-/17-tubeless spoke wheel setup. 

The Zontes 350T has a lot to offer. The bike comes with many segment-first features which you might not even find on bikes that are two or three times more expensive. The features include a proper keyless start, where riders can lock/unlock the handlebar and start the bike with just a push of a button, and with the key in their pocket. The fuel filler lid is also electrically operated via a button on the handlebar switchgear. The seat can also be unlocked this way.

Another interesting feature is that the windshield can be electrically operated and comes with two settings: high and low.

The instrument console is a 5-inch colour TFT with 4 different layouts to choose from. There’s also an inbuilt tyre pressure monitoring system, and the instrument console looks crisp and premium.

The 350T is able to provide a comfortable riding experience thanks to its large seat and upright ergonomics. The seat is spacious and can accommodate both small and large riders with ease. The cushioning is balanced and doesn’t come off as either too hard or too soft.

The engine that is used on the 350T is the same 348cc liquid-cooled single-cylinder motor that we have seen on all the other 350s offered by Zontes. It produces 38.8PS and 32.8Nm.

The engine is decently tractable at low speeds, but feels extremely rough and has a lot of vibrations. This can be a major letdown when riding long distances. Another issue with the motor is that it lacks any kind of punch and doesn't have the performance to back up the power and torque figures. What’s surprising is that even the 310cc motor from TVS-BMW which makes less power is more fun and engaging than this one. 

There’s also the lack of a slipper clutch which has made the bike’s performance less smooth. The clutch action is extremely heavy and it makes it hard to engage the clutch fully while shifting which makes the gearbox feel very heavy.

The Zontes 350T is able to provide decent ride quality on road as it stays stable even on very bumpy sections. The suspension is able to absorb most bumps and potholes without much trouble and is easy to handle as well. 

But the ride quality off-road is very poor, which comes down to the tyres used that are primarily meant to be ridden on tarmac with the occasional bit of gravel. In the dirt, they are almost useless and we experienced wheel spin at the slightest twist of the throttle.

Changing the tyres to something more suited to off-road conditions might fix the issue. But even then the bike’s kerb weight of 196kg and the top-heavy nature makes it difficult to handle in such conditions.

The 350T ADV is one of those bikes that sounds great on paper, has decent power and torque, and comes with a whole host of features. But in the real world, it fails to deliver the performance as promised, and doesn’t live up to the ADV image very well due to poor off-road handling. The main thing the bike has going for it are the many segment-first features it brings to the table. But if features are important to you, then the Zontes 350T will be a good choice.

Besides, if you want an adventure bike that can perform both on and off the road, then we would recommend checking out the Royal Enfield Himalayan, KTM 390 Adventure, and BMW G 310 GS.