OFF-ROAD TEST RIDE: 2025 GASGAS EX350F

FLAGSHIP OFF-ROAD RACE BIKE FROM AUSTRIA’S RED BRAND: MAY 2025 ISSUE

Among amateur off-road riders in the U.S., the verdict is overwhelming. The 350 four-stroke is the right format for racing.

The Secret 2024 National Enduro Championship-winning Bike

Manufacturers are not shy about their national championships. Ad campaigns, special editions and general hype can boast a National Enduro Championship for months and years. And yet when Josh Toth won the 2024 National Enduro Championship, there was surprising corporate silence. For the record, he rode a GasGas EX350F. There were no GasGas logos on the bike, no GasGas ads in the media and no GasGas factory mechanics in the pits. 

The backstory was that Josh rode a bunch of different venues in 2024 and did it on a bunch of different bikes, including GasGas, Honda and even Stark Future. The GasGas that he used to win the National Enduro Championship was supplied by Enduro Engineering and was not even a current model. It was a true private effort.

The GasGas EX350F is very similar to the motocross version, but has softer suspension with a coil-spring fork, a six-speed gearbox, an 18-inch rear wheel and a kickstand. The GasGas off-road line is equipped with Braktec brakes. Earlier in the year, these were subject to a recall. Dunlop tires come on the GasGas off-road bikes, whereas the MX versions have Maxxis.
THE BIKE OF CHOICE

For 2025, the EX350F is the flagship off-road race bike for GasGas. The model line has been trimmed down somewhat, and the EX450F is no longer offered. That’s probably okay with most GasGas fans; the 350 was already the bike of choice for the GasGas factory riders, including Jordan Ashburn, who finished third in the GNCC XC1 class. Ashburn, Toth and virtually all off-road riders on the right side of the U.S. prefer the 350 because it’s so much easier to ride than a 450 in the woods. The twist to the story is that Josh actually liked the 2023 version best. The 2024 EX350F was a one-year model. It had a notoriously stiff frame, whereas the motocross bikes of that year were updated with a more compliant frame. Ashburn’s factory bike had the new MX frame installed by the Coastal GasGas team. But Toth, without factory support, simply used his old bike.

With the arrival of the 2025 model, all that is ancient history. Toth has moved on to a factory Kawasaki, and Ashburn rides a standard EX350F with the Flat Rock GasGas Factory Off-Road Team. The newest version of the production EX350F has all the most current parts, including the updated frame with more compliant flex characteristics. It doesn’t look that different. The geometry is unchanged, and all the bodywork is the same. If you look carefully, you can see that the new chassis has less material around the top shock mount. There are also changes around the steering head, and that’s enough to give the bike a different feel. 

All of the other updates that the bike got last year are still in play. The front suspension is now the coil-spring WP Xact fork. The rear is the WP Xact shock with linkage. A common theme throughout the GasGas line is to go bare bones with accessories. It doesn’t have hand guards, a map switch or a volume chamber in the head pipe—all items that come as standard equipment on the KTM 350XC-F and Husqvarna FX350. Those bikes are in the family of brands owned by Pierer Mobility and are otherwise very similar to the GasGas, just more expensive. Other differences are the bodywork, the brakes (Braktec on the GasGas, Brembo on the others) and the triple clamp (forged on the GasGas, machined from billet on the others). The motor itself is the same on all three. It has the motocross top end on a six-speed gearbox. The tires are Dunlop with an 18-incher in the rear.

THE RIGHT COMBO

GasGas got it right for 2025. Like always, the motor is ideal for off-road racing on any side of the country. It has enough power for faster racecourses out west, and it’s still manageable and easy to handle in the tight stuff back east. It’s an even more versatile motor than it was just two years ago. Last year’s model, despite its much maligned frame rigidity, had a number of motor updates that gave it more bottom end. If you ride the new model back to back with the 2023 version, it’s throatier down low. Some riders think it lost revs on top, but that turns out not to be true; it has the same peak around 50 horsepower, but it carries that peak longer. With more bottom, you simply don’t spend as much time at high rpm because you don’t have to. Whether you like screaming or not, the amazing thing about this motor is how wide the powerband is. It has an incredible usable range, far wider than a 250 or 450. You can ride it at low revs because it has less of a tendency to stall than a 450, and it’s still capable of spinning all the way past 13,000 rpm. No other bikes have a range like that.

It’s worth pointing out that it’s not the same bike at 13,000 rpm as it is at 6000 rpm. At high revs it’s an animal. It makes more sheer power than a first-generation 450 MX bike, so it hits things hard and can hunt for traction. It also has more engine braking. At low rpm it takes on the character of a trail bike. The power delivery is smooth, and traction is easy to find and manage. Stalling is still a clear and present danger, but nothing like a 450. It’s a powerful four-stroke, so you learn to do most of your hard braking with the clutch in. The clutch, by the way, is hydraulic with a Brembo master cylinder. It has a light pull and an excellent feel.

The MSRP of the 2025 GasGas EX350F is $11,199.
FRAME FOLLIES

How about that frame? There’s no doubt that the 2025 frame has a more compliant feel than the one-year 2024 version. In truth, however, the entire industry learned to deal with that generation of KTM, Husky and GasGas frames through careful suspension setup and by simply giving the bike time to break in. For those riders who are thinking of trading in their 2024 EX350F for that reason and that reason alone, it’s not worth it. Spend the money on a good suspension job. You will still be able to feel the difference when you’re seated, but it boils down to nothing more than a comfort issue.

If you are thinking of finding a 2023 model like the one Toth rode, that’s not a great idea, either. Among other things, the new bike has far better suspension. The fork on the current GasGas off-road bikes might be the best product that WP has ever offered on a production bike. It’s a coil-spring fork, so it might not have the versatility of the earlier air fork, but it also has none of the drawbacks in stability and consistency. Like any off-road bike, the initial setup is a guess on the part of the factory. For off-road racing, it’s a very good guess. It can still absorb rocks and roots at trail-riding speed, and it doesn’t dive or collapse in high-speed scenarios. It’s also excellent on sharp edges where WP forks have always been harsh. Same goes for the rear. The bike is well balanced and can even deal with sportsman-level motocross.

Between the 2023 version and now, the EX350F gained some weight. On our scale, the current test bike is 233 pounds without fuel. That’s not much lighter than a current 450 motocross bike. As usual, the smaller motor of the 350 makes it feel lighter because of various physical laws. Conversely, most 300 two-strokes feel lighter than the EX350F despite being the same weight.

THE RIGHT SIZE

Among amateur off-road riders in the U.S., the verdict is overwhelming. The 350 four-stroke is the right format for racing. Even out west, where speed and power are most valuable, it’s often wall-to-wall 350s in every class up to the Pro ranks. For some reason, the Japanese have opted out of that engine configuration, so it’s a KTM versus Husqvarna versus GasGas contest. The GasGas is a little cheaper and has a few different components, but otherwise offers the same engine, frame and overall performance. It’s one of the few bikes that has equal appeal from the novice ranks all the way to the very top of national championship standings.