ARAI XD-5 ADVENTURE HELMET REVIEW: THE FEED

Arai isn’t a company that pops out with a new product every few months. When a new helmet arrives, it’s a big occasion. Last week we got to try the Arai XD-5 Adventure helmet for the first time. This replaces the XD-4, which had more or less become the go-to headwear for the most serious adventure riders. The helmet obviously has a new look, but the core beliefs that guide the company haven’t changed for a very long time. The shell still has a roundish shape made from 25 separate pieces of fiberglass, hand laid together to form a strong, smooth structure. Arai sticks to its belief that a helmet’s exterior should be free of any irregular shapes that could catch and cause rotational forces in a crash. The plastic pieces that funnel air into various ports are made to break away on impact, leaving a smooth “egg” shape. The EPS liner is made of multiple densities to absorb the impact, whereas the shell itself is designed for strength.

When it comes to safety, we more or less have to trust the helmet company to look after our best interests. We don’t have the knowledge, resources or willingness to test that aspect of helmet design. But, for what it’s worth, we drink the Arai Kool Aid. If any company is worthy of trusting with your head, they are.
After spending a week with the XD-5, we can certainly report that we love wearing the helmet. Some new features are pretty impressive. It’s designed to be used in any of three configurations; full street mode is sun visor off, face shield on. Dual-sport mode is sun visor and face shield both in place. Off-road mode is sun visor on, face shield removed and goggles in place. The engineers know it’s unlikely that you will change the helmet configuration during any given ride, but they put a lot of thought into making it easy. The face shield and the sun visor are both designed to come off or go on quickly. At first it’s a little tricky, but you get the hang of it. You don’t need tools, although if you want to ride in full street mode, you will have to use a quarter to remove the plastic screws on the sun visor and move them to the face shield. It’s a very clever system.

One capability that the helmet lost in this generation was the ability to use goggles with the face shield flipped up and out of the way. The new face shield pivot interferes with the goggle strap. Arai engineers say that the pivot was lowered in the interest of safety. It’s now in a less commonly impacted zone and therefore less likely to catch on anything in a crash. With these guys, changes are always driven by safety. Another aspect that you notice immediately is that there’s a huge port between the sun visor and the shell. This allows wind to pass through easily for ventilation. Also, if you look to the left or right at speed, the visor doesn’t catch nearly as much wind and try to twist your head.

We can report that ventilation is excellent and comfort is outstanding. There are four ports that can be opened or closed and you can instantly tell a difference. There are also several options for a dam under your chin to help with windscreen fogging. We know that every head has a different shape, but almost everyone likes the way the XD-5 fits. We attended a press briefing where a dozen different riders were fitted with new helmets–virtually none of them needed modification. Arai engineers say that, over the years, they have learned that western heads and Asian heads have different shapes. These helmets were all designed for western heads. They say that other helmet manufacturers might not make that distinction.
As you might expect, the XD-5 is a very expensive helmet. The helmet we used was the Cosmic Red colorway, which sells for $950. It’s a piece of riding gear that, barring crashes, should outlast your current motorcycle. Maybe even all your motorcycles to come. For more information go to https://www.araiamericas.com/node/417

THE KTM 790 IS BACK

We used the Arai XD-5 helmet intro as an excuse to get some more time on the KTM 790 Adventure. In case you haven’t already heard, the 790 is back! We loved this bike when it came out in 2020. Back then the base model sold for $12,699. Not long afterward, that bike morphed into the KTM 890 and the price went up to $15,799. Now, KTM has reintroduced the 790 with a price of $10,990. How is that possible? The bike is now manufactured by KTM’s Chinese partner CF-Moto. All the original tooling was shipped to Hangzhou, so the 790 could be offered as direct competition to the Honda TransAlp ($9999) and the Yamaha T7 ($10,799).
We have a pretty high opinion of CF-Moto–we actually toured the factory back in 2013. But, we still don’t have enough time to really know whether or not the 790 is built to the same standard as the original. Stay tuned.

JEFF STANTON ADVENTURES

Jeff Stanton was along for the ride with the Arai guys, too. As it turns out, Jeff is a big adventure bike fan and has turned it into a business. He hosts about six rides a year in Northern Michigan. He has 20 current Triumph adventure bikes, so all you have to do is show up and have a good appetite for riding. Go to https://jeffstantonadventures.com/