Arai has been considered one of the best mass-market motorcycle helmet brands since forever. Their gear doesn’t come cheap, but it consistently rates high for comfort and quality. The 2016 Arai Corsair X, which you can take a close and complete look at here, will be the foundation of their future lids.
You can watch a complete breakdown and explanation of features on the Corsair X right here. (I put it below but you’ll have to click to see it.) Actually, it’s the European version called an RX7-X but the heavy, overgrown hat is identical.
Anyway the bullets are:
- It’s got a new, easier-to-use mechanism for swapping visors.
- Taller vents for better airflow
- A new shell design that’s supposed to be more aerodynamic
- A new adjustable, ergonomic liner.
- A Pinlock anti-fog visor insert and wind-blocking chin guard are now included as standard.
And by the way it comes in bowling ball sparkly black! Of course, maybe most significantly, it sounds like all Arai’s helmets for the near future will have the same basic skeleton as this Corsair X.
This will probably end up costing around $700 when it comes out later this year. Whether it’s actually seven times better than a $100 lid that also meets Snell M2010, I guess we’ll have to wait and find out. But a lot of bikers have been spending a lot of money on Arai products for a long time, hopefully some will chime in in the comments and give us some first-hand impressions.
Contact the author at andrew@jalopnik.com.