The adventure-scooter segment is growing, and a lot of new players have entered the market in recent years. Interestingly, it was Honda who arguably started this sub-segment with the launch of the X-ADV back in 2016, and later on, smaller iterations such as the ADV350 and ADV160. With that said, other Japanese manufacturers seem to have shied away from the segment, as a lot of the new ADV-style scooters come from European, Chinese, and Taiwanese manufacturers.
Peugeot, for example, recently unveiled the XP400 adventure scooter in the global market. I got the chance to ride this rugged scooter awhile ago, and despite it seeming to lack some pep in its step, I sort of get the appeal a go-anywhere scooter has to offer. Chinese brands have also dabbled in the segment recently, with Zontes showcasing its 501 series of maxi-scooters at EICMA 2023. Even electric scooter brands like Gogoro have shown interest in these rugged scooters, with the unveiling of the CrossOver.
This time around, it’s Taiwanese motorcycle brand SYM who wants to dabble into the mid-size ADV scooter segment with the launch of the ADXTG 400. The new scooter does little to hide its design inspirations from other adventure scooters, and gets rugged bodywork, dual-purpose tires, long-travel suspension (for a scooter) and even a rugged skid plate and upswept exhaust. To add a bit of pizzazz into the mix, the ADXTG 400 even gets a rather fancy aluminum swingarm, a feature not so commonly found on scooters.
On the performance side of things, the SYM ADXTG 400 is equipped with a 399cc, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected, single-cylinder engine with a claimed 35 horsepower and 27 pound-feet of torque. These large single-cylinder-equipped scooters tend to run surprisingly smooth, so chances are the same is true of the ADXTG 400 thanks to a large counterbalancer. The scooter’s tech package is also fairly premium, as it gets Bosch ABS and traction control, with the option to switch rear ABS off for off-road riding. There’s also full-LED lighting, and an emergency braking alert that flashes the lights under heavy deceleration.
As of this writing, SYM has yet to announce pricing and availability of the new ADXTG 400. However, we can expect the model to be released exclusively in the European market sometime in 2024, as is the case with many maxi-scooters and ADV scooters of this type.
