PRODUCT WE RATE: ARAI TOUR-X5 HELMET

A product the Transmoto team has tried and tested and would recommend to a mate.

WHAT IS IT?

Released in early 2024, Arai’s Tour-X5 adventure/dual-sport helmet is a completely redesigned version of its long-standing and super-popular predecessor, the Tour-X4. Besides the visible differences to the visor system and peak design, the Tour-X5 also gets big changes to protective elements, ventilation system and comfort liner. And, as you’d expect with Arai – an iconic 70-year-old Japanese company who’s build a reputation for producing the most protective helmets on the market – it complies with the latest ECE R22-06 helmet standard.

As Arai’s ethos is all about making the best possible product for a specific purpose, the Tour-X5 is both the top-of-the-line and only adventure/dual-sport helmet the brand produces (as it supersedes the X4). And, as always, Arai has gone to great lengths to reinforce that, “every improvement on the Tour-X5 has been made with a priority for protection”.

So, after using and abusing Arai’s Tour-X5 helmet for more than a year, here’s what we can tell you about it…

WHY WE RATE IT

PROS…

• Fit & Comfort: Adventure-style motorcycle helmets, by definition, tend to be worn for longer periods, which puts an even greater premium on getting the fit right. So, let’s just say straight up, Arai’s Tour-X5 is one of the most comfortable adventure lids we’ve ever used. Even when you’ve got the thing on for a six-hour stint between fuel stops, you hardly notice you’re wearing it. There are no pressure points, and no protruding stitched seams that leave indentations on your forehead or cheeks. Riders accustomed to MX-style helmets will also notice that the cheek pads wrap further around under their jawline, which helps secure the fit and reduce road noise. To ensure the most accurate fit, the Tour-X5 comes in three different composite-construction shell sizes (XS/S, M/Large and XLarge), while the liner features nifty peel-away foam layers for both the temples and cheek pads. Accessory cheek pads and liners (with plus- and minus-size thicknesses) are also available to further customise its fit.

• Versatility: The Tour-X5 can be quickly and easily ‘configured’ to suit adventure (peak and visor fitted), road (peak removed) or off-road (visor removed, goggles added) applications. And no matter which guise, it looks the part. Unlike the goofy aesthetic that many dual-sport helmets tend to have, Arai’s Tour-X5 is a good-looking specimen that, in our experience, passes the pub-test for adventure, road and off-road riders.

• Aerodynamics: Few dirt bike riders ever consider a helmet’s ability to slice through the air without straining your neck or generating excessive wind noise (unless you’re a desert racer or ride a lot of high-speed trails, that is), but you can’t help but notice how aerodynamically efficient the Tour-X5 is at high speeds, and how quiet it is as a result. This is largely due to the (Storm Trooper-esque) ‘flying-bridge’-style peak design that channels the air so well, it barely feels like it’s there – even at 120km/h with your head up above the bike’s windshield. This new peak is also robust and effective in shading your eyes from the setting sun. Speaking of streamlined, the low-profile new hinge mechanism also minimises wind noise right where you least want it: next to your ears.

• Ventilation: Increased ventilation is one of the major claimed upgrades to the Tour-X5, and it sure delivers on that front. The combo of three intake vents (including one that’s integrated into the 3D Arai logo) and five exhaust vents (in addition to the plastic spoiler designed to draw air out of the rear ports) gives you plenty of scope to increase or decrease airflow. The chin-piece’s all-new grill is particularly efficient in dealing with visor fogging – simply open it up (and then flick the inner-vent’s ‘gate’ from mouth to visor position) and any visor condensation clears instantaneously. With adventure helmets, being able to shut down the airflow in cold conditions is equally as important as being able to add ventilation when it’s hot, and the X5 is notably better than the X4 at reducing airflow. The only issue with having all these airflow adjustments at your fingertips is that you need to make a mental note about which way each vent needs to be pushed to open/close it!

• Visor Design: The new Variable Axis System (VAS-A) hinge mechanism makes visor removal for cleaning (or converting to off-road configuration) a quick and easy tool-free job – which is something that can’t be said for many road and adventure bike helmets. Plus, the revised radius of the visor itself better follows the helmet’s shell shape, providing a higher level of ‘glancing-off’ performance. As is common with Arai helmets, the visor itself takes a bit more finger force to open and shut, but we don’t mind that as it also tends to ensure a better seal around the eyeport when shut. Also, as the Tour-X5 now uses a ‘Max Vision’ visor, an anti-fog Pinlock insert (supplied with the helmet) can easily be installed. Compared with the Tour-X4, the X5’s field of vision is noticeably larger (a product of the new visor and the now-narrower EPS liner above the eyeport), and gone is the subtle vision distortion issue that some complained about with the X4. The other big improvement is the new quick-release system, which lets you to remove the visor’s sidepods (with peak attached) in a matter of seconds. That then allows you to remove and/or replace the visor way quicker than you could on the Tour-X4.

• Comfort Liner: The liner is anti-microbial/bacterial, and it genuinely works. Aside from drying quickly, it does a bloody good job of not getting crusty or skanky after repeated sweaty use. And the liner and cheek pads are all quick and easy to remove (for washing) and reinstall.

• Special Features: Rather than being a design afterthought or just another bullet-pointed feature in the helmet’s brochure, the Tour-X5 comes with some genuinely practical touches. Front and centre are: the Emergency Release System (EMS) cheek pads; the rubber nose/breath deflector (which doesn’t have to be removed if you want to run goggles, thanks to the larger eyeport); and the pull-down/retractable chin spoiler (which is much more effective than you’d think). Also, to accommodate a comms system, the side of the shell is designed with a small flat spot for easy device installation; the liner has pockets for speakers; and there’s a cavity at the rear where the wiring can be neatly routed. Our only request is that Arai replace the peak’s plastic fastening screws with alloy ones to better resist abuse from ham-fisted screwdriver operators! Same goes for the visor’s locating pins with Phillips Heads, which secure the Pinlock lens.

• Quality of Finish: When you’re paying $1200-$1300 for a helmet, you expect it to have a high quality of finish, and the X5 delivers. After a year’s use and abuse, our white lid still looks and feels near new. Nothing appears tired, worn or dog-eared – the liner included, despite it not being washed as often as it should.

• High-Vis White: The Tour-X5 comes in a bunch of graphics and solid colours (including a really cool ‘Eagle Gray’), but we went for the White solid because it’s the closest thing to high-vis on a dark, rainy night for surrounding road traffic. Yep, that Arctic white is a safety feature.

CONS… 

• Liner Adjustability: We’re all for being able to adjust the comfort liner to optimise a helmet’s fit, but in our view, the adjustable pad at the rear of the liner’s crown is overkill – its range of adjustment is negligible, plus it means the liner is less robust (that said, Arai recommends the liner is “hand-washed with mild soap and lukewarm water”, not machine-washed – like most MX riders are accustomed to).

• Chinstrap: We’d prefer the chinstrap-end was secured by a magnet (instead of the conventional plastic press-stud) for the simple reason that, because thicker adventure gloves mean less dexterity, it’d be less fiddly than the press-stud to locate and snap shut.

• Sans Sun-Visor: We’ve heard some complaints about the X5 not coming with an internal, drop-down sun visor. In our view, however, that feature is unnecessarily complicated, plus it compromises the integrity of the shell (because it requires a gap between shell and EPS liner above the eyeport). For those who claim the internal visor is handy to protect their eyes when riding with the main visor open … try a pair of sunglasses.

• Weight: We’ve At 1650-1690g (depending on shell size), the Tour-X5 is about 20g heavier than its predecessor, and not the lightest adventure helmet on the market. To our way of thinking, though, that’s a small price to pay for the added protection you know you’re getting with an Arai. Plus, the Tour-X5 is so well balanced on your head, it doesn’t feel in the slightest bit heavy.

At $1200-$1300, the Arai Tour-X5 isn’t cheap. But the old saying that “you get what you pay for” applies more than ever when it comes to motorcycle helmets. In our view, the Tour-X5 improves on its predecessor in every respect (protection, fit, comfort, airflow control, vision, quality of finish, looks and added features) and has proved to be the best adventure helmet we’ve ever tested. It’s a premium product at a premium price. But it also offers excellent value for money.

PRICE: $1199.95 (solid); $1299.95 (graphics); $119.95 (replacement Max Vision Visor, including Pinlock lens); $44.95 (replacement Pinlock insert/lens).