Scorpion EXO-400 Helmet Review

(33 votes, average: 3.67 out of 5)
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Last reviewed: March 12, 2010

Quick Summary: Bargain priced helmet with quality features, very nice graphics and paint and a few quirks. Heavy, but doesn't feel it. Probably one of the highest quality helmets currently available at this price point.

What is a more polite term for "bottom of the line"?  I guess I could say that the EXO-400 is Scorpion's "entry level" full-face helmet, but that term might also be a turn-off for some.

The problem is that Scorpion makes some pretty nice helmets, and the EXO-400, occupying the, uh, entry level, is probably better than the best helmets made by several other companies I could mention, but won't.

We are still waiting for an EXO-1000 to review but it's obvious from the numbering scheme alone - that helmet will be the top-of-the-line Scorpion offering, at least in the foreseeable future.  We first reviewed the Scorpion EXO-700 in December of 2004 when the helmet was released to dealers; that was Scorpion's first full-face helmet effort and it was - and still is - a good one.

I haven't tried a new EXO-700, but the EXO-400 reviewed here is just about equal to the EXO-700, in my humble opinion anyway.  The 400 yields an aura of solidity and quality right out of the box, unlike a lot of other helmets I can think of,  for the $149.95 asking price (MRRP).

The EXO-400 uses an "Advanced Polycarbonate Composite Engineered Shell", and since some riders prefer the relative softness and "crushability" of polycarbonate anyway, that's not a bother.  The chin bar is lined with EPS (expanded polystyrene), which is also supposed to make a difference, but it feels like pretty hard stuff to me.

It just doesn't feel or look like any manufacturing or assembly short-cuts were taken on the EXO-400, so the bottom line is that there's nothing wrong with buying the bottom of the line.  I'm really not sure what the EXO-700 offers that the EXO-400 doesn't; at least the EXO-1000 supposedly comes with unique features like air-adjustable cheek pads and an internal sun visor (let's hope it doesn't add too much weight) to justify the more-than-twice-as-much asking price.

I honestly think that this is a 150-buck helmet that could serve as anyone's full-time, all-around lid that should last about as long as anything else, providing yeoman service along the way -- as long as you can live with its foibles, as you'll see.

Paint, Graphics and Finish

You can save a tidy sum by buying an EXO-400 in a solid colour, but the "Sting" graphics shown here are a nice compliment to the helmet design.  Scorpion offers a very large number of colour choices in each graphic; the Sting can be had in blue, green, matte silver, silver, orange, red and yellow.

The orange colour is a real stand-out -- the decals are perfectly applied, they look three-dimensional and the helmet has a nice, thick clear coat that's been polished to a beautiful shine without a hint of orange peel or captured dust.  Very nice.

Unlike the first batch of EXO-700's, I can't find a thing out of place on the EXO-400 -- the gasket around the bottom of the helmet is perfectly attached; the liner is plush and uses quality material; the visor is excellent and the plastic vent assemblies are just so.

Well, maybe there is one thing -- the breath guard is slightly loose at either end, but I usually toss these things anyway.

Score: I give the EXO-400 a rating of "Outstanding" for paint, graphics and overall quality, with a slight ding for the breath guard.

Helmet Fit and Liner

The EXO-400 fits just like the EXO-700.  I'd say it's a moderate round head shape, tending towards neutral.  Scorpion played it safe here and I think the helmet should fit a wide variety of owners, except maybe extreme long ovals.

We compared the size XL shown here to other helmets and based on this example, we think the EXO-400 runs about 1 size small.  Our XL fits much more like a size L, so plan accordingly.  You may want to try this one on before you buy it, which shouldn't be a problem because Scorpion seems to have a fairly large distribution in the dealer network.

The helmet liner is claimed to wick moisture.  The liner is also removable and washable, as are the cheek pads, and the cheek pads are available in different thicknesses, which is rare at this price point.  And get this -- the liner and cheek pads are supposedly available as accessories in "wild colours and patterns".

Two strange items to note:  Our helmet came with a size large liner installed and a size XL liner in a bag inside the helmet box -- the first time we've ever experienced this.  We installed the XL liner for our evaluation and we're assuming that the helmet is otherwise identical to an XL.

Also, the liner had a strong chocolate smell that was overpowering when new and is still there after a couple of months.  This was interesting/funny at first but quickly became tiresome.  I'm not sure if the smell was added at the factory?

In addition to the similarity to the EXO-700 fit, I'd say the EXO-400 fits like the old Shark RSR (not the extreme long oval Shark RSi) and similar to an HJC AC-12 Carbon and very close to the URBAN N20 Astro.

The EXO-400's thick padding and smooth Nylon-feeling liner material goes a long way, I think, towards making the helmet fit comfortably.

Score: It's hard to rate the fit, but I rate the liner and padding as excellent.

Helmet Weight

We were all shocked to discover that the Scorpion EXO-400 shown here in size XL weighs 1785 grams (3 lbs., 15 oz.), which puts it right up there in Hungry Man territory, along with the heavy hitter flip-ups.

Why shocked?  The helmet just doesn't feel that heavy; we didn't notice the weight during evaluation trials and it doesn't seem that heavy when I'm wearing it.  We never weigh a helmet until after the evaluation, saving that step for the last minute, so the statistics won't bias the report.

It turns out that the EXO-400 is a bit on the heavy side., but I don't think it should be a bother, unlike some helmets that feel every bit of their mass.  This helmet feels nicely balanced in use.

If I had to guess, I'd say that two features are responsible for the extra avoirdupois: polycarbonate is heavier, all things considered, than fibreglass or carbon fibre matrix.  Also, the EXO-400 meets both DOT and Snell approvals, and, as the saying goes, "Meeting Snell means a thicker shell".

Score: I give the EXO-400's weight and weight distribution a "Good" rating.

Visor

Not much to say here; the EXO-400's visor is about as thick as can be expected for a good quality helmet.  It does flex slightly when lifted from one side using the tab.  The tab is moulded into the bottom lower left side of the visor and it's larger than normal, which is nice.

The helmet lifting mechanism seems tight but only has 5 detents and the first one opens the visor too wide for just a slight defog, which is a disappointment.

The visor uses Scorpion's "SpeedShift" removal mechanism, which we still find a bit cumbersome.  It's hard to remove the visor smoothly; I find that I usually have to mess with the wheel a bit and the post that works against the detent notches is slightly fussy.  The EXO-400 visor removal and replacement is demonstrated in our video below.

Scorpion claims that the visor is anti-fog treated on the inside, but we haven't been able to verify this in our evaluations, due to the recent warm weather.  The visor is also claimed to have an anti-scratch treatment on its exterior.

The visor does not quite meet the eye port gasket on either side, which is a disappointment.

Score: Visor quality, clarity, operation and removal/replacement is rated as "Good".

Helmet Noise

The EXO-400 is schizophrenic when it comes to noise.  When it's worn while riding an unfaired motorcycle, it actually seems to be one of the quieter helmets we've tried.

However, when it's worn behind a small fairing that dumps turbulent air around the lower chin or bottom of the helmet, the EXO-400 can become very noisy indeed.  Dropping down behind the windscreen to direct the turbulence to visor height lowers the noise somewhat.  So if you're riding a motorcycle sans windscreen, you should be fine, but beware if your motorcycle's fairing dumps "dirty" air at the bottom of your helmet.

I don't really notice any whistling noises coming from the vent array, but the helmet does seem to have a tendency to vibrate when buffeted or when I'm riding on a bike with a fairing with turbulence and my head turns about 30 degrees from the centreline.

And the helmet does seem to have a stronger than normal draft up under the chin.  The plus is that this serves as the helmet's primary form of ventilation, but the negative is that this causes extra noise.

Score: So my feeling is that the EXO-400 rates a "Good" if it's worn on a "naked" bike or behind a full fairing and "Poor" on certain types of fairings or windscreens that dump turbulent air around the bottom of the helmet.

Venting

The stylists probably had too much influence on the EXO-400's venting system, because it sure seems to me that the complex vent array has more vent buttons and levers than are necessary.

The top vent has a horizontal tab that opens or closes the small and narrow top vent.  A rocker lever is provided on either side of the top vent to open or close the two vertical vents.  All of these are difficult to locate when wearing gloves and they vents don't really seem to flow much air anyway.

The chin vent is a small vertical on/off switch, but the chin vent openings are narrow and the lack of a vent in back of the chin bar means that what little air comes in is directed up on to the back of the visor.

There are two lower rear exhaust vents and a top exhaust vent that also has an on/off sliding switch, but this vent could have been left permanently open with no problems.  Why make things unnecessarily complicated?

All this and the vents don't really seem to flow much air anyway.  Most of the air comes in from up under the chin bar.  The liner does not have any visible holes or mesh, so any air that flows in doesn't seem to flow on to the rider's head.

Score: I rate the venting system on the EXO-400 as "Poor".

Miscellaneous

The EXO-400 has a D-ring attachment system that includes a fabric pull tab and a snap to secure the extra length of strap.

Conclusion

If you can overlook a few idiosyncrasies, the Scorpion EXO-400 helmet is a bargain.  It's well made, the graphics and paint are very well done and the liner is comfortable (and smells like chocolate!).  The downsides are the inconsistent venting and the noise in certain circumstances.

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