Cheap Motorcycle Helmets

EXO-700 Neon Review

(24 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5)

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Last reviewed: March 11, 2010

The new Scorpion EXO-700 "Neon" motorcycle helmet was announced in October of 2008. The original press release from Scorpion is included below.

Scorpion recently sent us a production Neon so we could take a closer look, and this is our report.

Why all the coverage on the EXO-700, a helmet that we first reviewed way back in December of 2004? Well, it's all about the colour...

We've been promoting the use of bright and highly visible colours for motorcycle clothing and accessories since 1999. Motorcyclists need all the visibility they can get, whether it's from lighting, clothing, reflective stickers and decals or helmets, and many of our reviews and articles explicitly or implicitly address this issue. Scorpion EXO-700 Neon

Wearing a brightly coloured helmet is one of the best things a motorcycle rider can do to increase visibility because the helmet is the highest visible point on the combined motorcycle and rider unit.

A brilliantly coloured helmet can make a real difference. Next time you're out and about, look for motorcycles and you'll probably notice that the riders wearing brightly coloured helmets usually catch your eye long before those wearing black or dark coloured helmets.

Fortunately, there are many more helmet colour choices in 2008 than there were nearly 10 years ago, and the new Scorpion EXO-700 Neon is definitely the brightest, most eye-popping color we've seen.

We want to publicly thank and congratulate Scorpion for making the EXO-700 in this Neon colour and we hope it's just the beginning of a new colour revolution! Let's hope also that other manufacturers will take up the challenge -- there can never be too many exciting, brilliant and safe motorcycle helmet colours .

For example, there are many interesting patterns that can be created with retro-reflective materials (and we have a very interesting example of that coming soon); paints and -- how about this -- even electro-luminescent helmet shells?

In the meantime, the Scorpion EXO-700 Neon features a blazing lime-green-yellow paint that honestly looks like it glows just when you need it most -- dark morning and evening twilight commutes. These are the conditions where the lime-green-yellow safety colour really pops.

Safest Colours for Motorcycle Helmets
Now I don't profess to be an expert statistician or colour theorist, but some casual searching for topics involving safe colors or most visible colours for motorcycle helmets will bring up a variety of studies and research.

In the U.S., one of the most cited studies regarding the most noticeable colours for vehicles is the Solomon and King "Influence of Colour on Fire Vehicle Accidents" paper, published in the Spring 1995 edition of the Journal of Safety Research.

This study helped establish the trend towards lime yellow fire trucks (Influence of Colour on Fire Vehicle Accidents. Authors: Solomon S.S.; King J.G.. Source: Journal of Safety Research, Volume 26, Number 1, Spring 1995).

Another study, conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (of the U.S. Department of Transportation) states, in part:

"It is noted that the colour red, used for fire fighting equipment, is one of the least visible of vehicle colours. Optometrists note that, for its high visibility, lime yellow should be used by fire and rescue teams, as well as favoured by trucks and car buyers. Lime yellow falls in the middle of the colour spectrum (Schuman 1991)." Shuman M, Traditional Red Colours Safety, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, April 1991;2: 22-24.

Some of the studies I have found, such as the "Motorcycle Rider Conspicuity and Crash Related Injury: Case-Control Study" in the BMJ (BMJ, ex British Medical Journal), published in January of 2004, seem to indicate that black is the worst possible colour in terms of visibility (i.e., wearers are involved in more crashes), while yellow and white are the most visible.

Silver is also apparently not a good colour under many real-world conditions, because it tends to blend in with the background colours of the road surface.

Pretty much everything we said about the red EXO-700 we reviewed in 2004 holds today. The helmet uses an advanced fibreglass and Kevlar "matrix" shell that meets both DOT and Snell safety specifications and it has very good ventilation.

The visor is now very easy to remove and replace with the Scorpion "SpeedShift" removal system, and the circular visor removal button on the side is now rubberised, making it even easier to grip.

The visor also has a large tab on the lower left, which makes it very easy to find when wearing gloves and it's very easy to lift and lower. The visor also smartly pops open just a crack for ventilation, and the Scorpion "EverClear" anti-fog system really does seem to work.

The EXO-700 line also has a number of optional accessories, including a chin curtain, various colored visors and different sized liners and cheek pads.

This new EXO-700 seems to have a slightly modified fit compared to the original red EXO-700 we reviewed nearly 4 years ago. The size XL Neon shown here runs about 1/2 size smaller than expected; this XL should fit a neutral to long oval head shape of about 59 to 61 cm circumference.

The Scorpion website lists an XL as fitting a 61-62 cm head, but we think that may be a tight fit, based on this example. But just as you should for any motorcycle helmet, make sure you try it on before you buy.

Remember that correct helmet fit is crucial for comfort, safety and noise reduction.

Conclusion
Scorpion has taken one of the most popular motorcycle helmets available and made it even better with the choice of this brilliant "Neon" colour. If you're as concerned about motorcycle safety as we are, the EXO-700 Neon deserves your attention. The new colour has just been released and should be on dealers' shelves soon at an excellent list price of only $209.99.