anyone got an arai viper?

have a look at what arai say:

http://www.araihelmet-europe.com/php/language.php

Originally Posted by Paws

They have snell on the back, .

sorry but whats snell?

Originally Posted by Paws

and if you look at the little red label inside the helmet on the strap they should have number-if that number is blanked out, its a fake arai
Shops do put the gold stickers on themselves.

sooooo......... how come this place
http://www.gearchangeonline.com/
is selling them with gold stickers for £150+ less then you?

Snell is the European level of testing, instead of the Gold ecu sticker, it has Snell on the back.
Ive had a look at that gear change online and im wondering hwy they have rx7's sooo cheap! i deffo be suspicious.

Originally Posted by Paws

Ive had a look at that gear change online and im wondering hwy they have rx7's sooo cheap! i deffo be suspicious.

i am,

& dont think i would buy one off the net anyway
cartwrim got a £400 viper with gold sticker for £280 & this was not in a sale, it was when they 1st came out.

and the guy in HG said arai tell you what to sell them for, thats why they wont knock anything off the price

Originally Posted by Paws

have a look at what arai say:

http://www.araihelmet-europe.com/php/language.php

cant find anything on the saftey markings

I've got an Arai Viper GT Sinistar.

I absolutely love it, soooo comfy, chin spoiler is nice and vents galore. Paint scheme is pretty I happy to think its quite quiet too. But I am getting used to wearing ear plugs as they are sooo nice tbh.

Hovis,

I sent an enquiry to gearchangeonline earlier to ask them if their helmets were imports, this is the reply I have received:

' Hi Matt, the helmet you have purchased from ourselves is the European spec ECE2205 which is the legal requirement for our roads. Please call 01724280888 for further information. Gearchange'

I have taken some photos of the helmet, it has all the correct markings, inside and out, and there is no doubt whatsoever that it is a genuine Arai helmet - the quality is just too good for it to be a 'fake' or anything. From the inside lining, to the paint finish, weight, feel, everything. I've been in to my local bike shop and compared it to the ones on their shelves and it was exactly the same. For some reason they just seem to sell them at more realistic prices. I know they are a relatively new website, in fact I think my order was number 000010 or something, implying I was the tenth person to place an order so maybe they're just undercutting to get customers?

To be honest, even if they were 'imports', an arai is an arai, they don't make lower quality helemts for other countries, their helmets meet the requirements for all countries so they just have whichever sticker on the back that is relevant for that country. So if you're worried about your head, you don't need to be, and if you're worried about plod / trackday inspector they will be satisfied by the ACU sticker. Get one, they're cheap!

Here are the photos of my helmet (steady!)

Any more questions about it mate, just give me a shout but I think they're pukka.

Cheers,
Matt

it seems your helmet is up to stadard then but to sell them at that price they must be paying less than HG unless HG are making a lot more profit?

i would like to hear what PAWS has to say about this, as the guy in HG said you will not get a cheaper price on an arai as arai set the prices.

the usa & china arai's are not up to our standard, & will not be serviced by arai in this country AFAIK?

Yep, I do believe it is fine!

This is just my opinion but I would imagine that Arai sets the prices for helmets to be sold through their '5 star dealers'. I.e., they will not want one '5 star dealer' selling cheaper than another. But afaik, gearchangeonline are not a 5 star dealer and thus they can get away with selling them cheaper.

Also, most places that sell Arais, such as jsaccessories, cissburyleathers, sportsbikeshop, to name a few, are selling online but they also have shops incurring overheads. Gearchangeonline have no shop thus can turn a profit selling at a lower price.

If you imagine the average quiet bike shop on a Tuesday, with two assistants in all day and they sell 5 items, one of them being an arai helmet, they are paying all day for the rent, overheads etc on the shop plus paying the staff, so making a low profit on the items. Alternatively, a completely online shop with minimal overheads can make the same profit selling at a much lower price.

The rest of the stuff that gearchangeonline sell doesn't seem to be that much cheaper than the competition but why not snap up that helmet you want while it's cheap?!

Cheers,
Matt

AFAIK Arai helmets are tested to the same standard no matter where they are sold in the world. There is a variance in shape for different markets, since different locales have different head shapes.

Also, the Snell test is the USA standard, and from memory is the highest (hardest to pass) test, of the standard locale tests. They do kerb tests and penetration tests that the EU and other areas don't do. A while ago, when MCN was on it's high horse () about helmet safety, they wanted the eu to come up to Snell standard.

Anyway, Arai's all exceed the Snell test no matter where they are destined for sale, unlike some other brands.

Originally Posted by hovis

POO

just phoned them to see if they had a medium,
yup
cool can you keep it for me i will be over in ½ hour £249 right
wrong, the large is £249 the med is £399
howcome?
because its last years
eh? they are both the same
yes, but its last years model
grrrrrrrrrrrrr

just been to try them on the large @ £250 is to big, so they wanted £400 for a medium

Originally Posted by cartwrim

Hovis,

I sent an enquiry to gearchangeonline earlier to ask them if their helmets were imports, this is the reply I have received:

' Hi Matt, the helmet you have purchased from ourselves is the European spec ECE2205 which is the legal requirement for our roads. Please call 01724280888 for further information. Gearchange'

I have taken some photos of the helmet, it has all the correct markings, inside and out, and there is no doubt whatsoever that it is a genuine Arai helmet - the quality is just too good for it to be a 'fake' or anything. From the inside lining, to the paint finish, weight, feel, everything. I've been in to my local bike shop and compared it to the ones on their shelves and it was exactly the same. For some reason they just seem to sell them at more realistic prices. I know they are a relatively new website, in fact I think my order was number 000010 or something, implying I was the tenth person to place an order so maybe they're just undercutting to get customers?

To be honest, even if they were 'imports', an arai is an arai, they don't make lower quality helemts for other countries, their helmets meet the requirements for all countries so they just have whichever sticker on the back that is relevant for that country. So if you're worried about your head, you don't need to be, and if you're worried about plod / trackday inspector they will be satisfied by the ACU sticker. Get one, they're cheap!

Here are the photos of my helmet (steady!)

Any more questions about it mate, just give me a shout but I think they're pukka.

Cheers,
Matt

this looks good?