VOLUME ISSUE JULY , P103
STANDOUT FEATURE
Massive increase in comfort over
long distances
RIDER ANALYSIS
The Shoei X-Fourteen and I were
never really friends. I have what I
would describe as a bowling ball for
a head and the 14's ultra-slim design
never really suited my cranium, so I
was skeptical when I got the new 15.
Helmets don't get revamped very
often. Indeed, Arai's Corsair-X is a
year older than the Shoei X-Four-
teen (2015), and that's the helmet
I've predominately been wearing all
these years.
The X-Fifteen is such a massive
departure from the old X-Fourteen
it may as well be from a different
company. Intermediate oval in
shape (which suits me just fine), the
X-Fifteen is a much more relaxed
• GREAT FIT FOR LONG DISTANCES
• FLOWS LOTS OF AIR
• STURDY SCREEN LOCKING
MECHANISM
• GREAT FIT FOR LONG DISTANCES
• NOT THE PRETTIEST HELMET
OUT THERE
• VISOR LATCH AND CHIN VENT
ARE EASY TO FUMBLE
fit than the old X-Fourteen could
ever hope to be. That helmet was
like putting my head in a vice after
an hour, and I've knocked out two
press rides with the X-Fifteen. Like
a good jacket, the more I wear it,
the better it feels.
For me, the best part of the X-Fif-
teen is how snugly it sits on my head
and the venting it has. The increased
field of view over the outgoing model
is welcome, but it's not as noticeable
as how much air it flows.
The visor latch at the front of
the helmet is a bit of a pain as I've
caught my glove on the chin vent
flap plenty of times instead, but
I'm a fan of how tight the locking
mechanism works. Visors should
never come off in a crash and this
Shoei system looks about as sturdy
as I've seen on the market.
The look is taking a bit to grow
on me. It's not the prettiest helmet
but it is a sport/race lid, where
LIST PRICE: Starting at $899.99 (as tested)
WEBSITE: https://shoei-helmets.com/x-fifteen-helmet-technology/
aero is king and looks are a distant
second. I've yet to ride this helmet
on the track but those times will
come real soon. For now, this is an
excellent street lid when you take
into account all the adjustability it
comes with, and very good value
for the price.
Rennie Scaysbrook
you're in the racing tuck and
need to look upwards to main-
tain the correct line of sight.
The CWR-F2R visor itself
has been heavily reworked
and comes with aerodynamic-
enhancing vortex generators on
each side and a two-stage lock
-
ing system—one on the side and
one on the front near the chin
vent—that prevents the visor
from coming off in a crash.
Stability at speed is
never a concern.
