The Contour-X is the model that Arai should have made years ago. Why?

The Arai standard bearers for the last several seasons have been the Signet-X and Quantum-X. These models are, and remain, fantastic all-around street helmets, but they are quite literally not for everyone. That’s because they’re each specifically made for outlier head shapes—Long Oval, and Round Oval, respectively—while the bulk of the North American craniums are in-between, in the “Intermediate Oval” category.

Enter the recently christened Arai Contour-X: the new goldilocks of the Arai Intermediate-Oval product catalog, which not only fits a wider swath of the North American from an, ahem, phrenological POV, but it’s also got more/better venting, comes intercom-ready.

Ventilation
Like the top-tier Corsair-X, the new Contour-X gets a central forehead vent coming directly through the shell. This is usually a forbidden feature for Arai, as the company has a policy preference to not compromise the integrity of the shell by poking any extra holes in it. This is why Arai insists on building vents into the brow, via the shield; not the shell.

But as with the Corsair, the new Contour-X gets a beefed up Kevlar/Fiberglass shell construction, allowing Arai to break its own rules and add a pair of central vents directly into the shell without comprising the integrity.

In addition to the main 3D logo vent, it also gets temple vents with redesigned switches, and since it shares the same X-Series shields with the rest of the Arai fam, it inherits the brow vents built into the shield, too.

Add em all up for a total of SEVEN intake vents, plus a couple of side exhaust vents, and a rear exhaust vent with a 3-position open/half-open/closed switch.

While not big fans of flashy logos, it's hard to find a quality helmet without one plastered across it. We thought we'd hate the 3D central vent, but it's very low-key in real life, sitting only 3mm off the shell of the helmet.

Note that the switch down indicates it’s Open, and when it’s flipped up, the vents are closed.

Aerodynamics
The Contour-X gets a distinctive rear spoiler that Arai says is wind-tunnel tested  to the Nth degree. And functionally and aesthetically,  it just sort of works here.

It's distinctive, but not distracting, like the giant spoilers found on AGV Pistas and other extreme MotoGP style helmets.

By comparison the Contour's little micro mullet is just a little extra party in the back, and it doesn’t look out of place, even on a classic bike. The fact that all Arai helmets since motorcycling’s glory days of the 1970s all share the same shield-plate silhouette helps give even this most modern of Arai helmets a classic look and feel.

That said, we’ve already started playing around with hacking this helmet. We’ve found the QVR type rear vent (used on the Regent, Quantum, and Signet) is a direct bolt-on. So if you would rather have a standard duct on the back rather than the wind-tunnel tested Contour spoiler, we can make that happen.

Note, besides the QVR Duct, you’ll also need the QVR slider mechanism found on the other Arai helmets, as it has an interface that the QVR Vent locates into. Arai Americas lists this part for $9.95, but doesn’t sell to the public.

As an Arai authorized dealer we’re happy to install the alder-style vents onto any Contour-X starting at $30, including labor. You’ll retain the old parts should you ever want to switch back.

Bluetooth Ready
The Contour-X has a smooth and flat edge that will accomodate a variety of 3rd party communications devices, including the latest generation mesh-network options.

If you're just looking for basic phone pairing, and the earlier style Bluetooth channel communication, Sena makes a Contour-X (or Quantic, as this helmet is known in Europe) model called the Sena ACS-10, which is as close to a factory comm system installation as you'll find, with no big barnacle hangign off the side of the helmet. Instead, the battery tucks underneath the back of the neck roll, and a small, model-specific 3-button panel adheres discretely to the left-hand side of the helmet. 

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Beyond the specific features/benefits of the Contour-X listed above, below are are a few design details that Arai bakes into all its helmets:

Round exterior head shape.
Known as the R75 concept, Arai very consciously refrains from contours in the outer shell of its helmets that violate the 75-degree -radius rule. Why? Because hard edges could catch on pavement when the helmet is sliding down the road at highway speeds. By maintaining R75, the helmet has a better chance of glancing off objects safely. 

Kevlar reinforcement.
Ever seen a helmet that's been laid down at speed? Pavement makes for a hell of a belt sander. Arai anticipates this and incorporates an internal belt of abrasion-resistant Kevlar inside the fiberglass shell of every helmet it makes to provide added impact/puncture and resistance to being sawed through by passing asphalt.

Exterior shield pods.
Following with Arai's focus on keeping a round-as-possible exterior shape, and with prioritizing energy absorption over all else, Arai's telltale exterior shield pods exist to elimiate the need to carve into the spherical integrity of the helmet. This design both allows for more EPS liner between the wearer and the road, and allows for the helmet to better glance off passing objects.

Shell integrity.
Most Arai helmets forgo the classic vents drilled directly through the "forehead" of the helmet. Instead, Arai builds intake ports directly into its face shields. However in the case of the Contour-X, and the top-shelf Corsair-X, extra Kevlar belting has been added to give the shell enough support to allow fo extra venting directly through the shell—making this one of the best-vented Arai helmets ever.

All SNELL all the time.
Arai is particularly dedicated to the SNELL standard in the U.S. Some argue that this test is imperfect because it requires a helmet to pass impact testing twice in the same spot, as would happen in race car/roll cage situation, where the driver is strapped in, but is less likely to happen in a motorcycle accident, where the physics of a crash are likely to be different. It's easy to go down the rabbit hole on this one. We maintain that the more safety certifications on your helmet, the better. 

Note: The version of this helmet sold in Europe, called the Quantic, is an ECE 22-06 helmet. This one is a DOT/SNELL

Also see, "no drop-down sun visors, ever". Because this would violate the Snell safety standards that Arai is so dedicated to (having a void between the shell and EPS liner to house a sun visor is an automatic disqualification for the Snell standard.)

*Custom fit.
Last but certainly not least, Arai is the only company offering multiple interior-fit shapes to better address the infinite variety of riders’ head shapes and sizes. In addition to customizable cheek pads and head liners, Arais various models EPS liners are shaped differently to accomodate the natural variation in peoples' head shapes.

Besides the Contour-X, Arai’s other “Intermediate-Oval” helmets include the "entry-level" Regent-X, and the Corsair-X top-shelf race lid. The Signet-X is he company’s “Long Oval” model; and the Quantum-X is best suited for “Round Oval” head shapes.

It doesn't matter how much you like the looks or features of any given helmet—fit should always be the first and foremost consideration. Within any given helmet model there are aftermarket cheek pads and central liners to help fine-tune fit, if needed.