Scorpion EXO1000 Helmet Review

Scorpion helmets are one of our favorites even though they are not one of the more popular brands that get all the attention like Shoei, Arai or AGV. The Scorpion EXO-1000 was released on the North American scene last year with a great amount of buzz and excitement.

The EXO-1000 was going to be equipped with what they call "HelmetPump" cheek pads that are inflatable, to allow customization to your face. As you might expect, this generated a lot of excitement and drama and really the EXO-1000 was the must have helmet of 2007. Did the Scorpion helmet live up to the hype generated around it? I guess that depends on the individual, but I will tell you what I thought about it.

Let's cover all the bases.

Paint and Graphics

Like every Scorpion helmet we've been fortunate enough to review, the EXO-1000 is superb. The fit and finish is outstanding, the liner feels great against our skin, the paint and graphics are smoothly applied and we are again impressed with the Scorpion EXO-1000.

I was particularly taken with the vents on the Scorpion EXO-1000 as they are of particularly high quality. Many of the helmets we ride with or review are equipped with very flimsy vents or ones that don't function as good as they look but that is not the case with the EXO-1000. The vents open and close with a very solid feel that inspires confidence in the quality level of the helmet.

The paint quality is outstanding and is more than adequately protected by a very thick clear coat to protect it from nicks, scratches and of course fading.

Helmet Fit and Comfort

Helmet fit is so subjective that is difficult to discuss in a review. Everyone has a slightly different head and what one might find to be very comfortable, another might absolutely despise. I can tell you that the Scorpion shell has a very neutral feel that is slightly oval shaped from front to back.

It has been our experience in the past that this type of design fits the vast majority of head shapes out there and as such the Scorpion is likely to fit your head fairly well. My head is slightly oval shaped and the Scorpion EXO-1000 fit me nicely and was very comfortable on my head.

The liner felt great against our skin and Scorpion calls the material "KwikWick", and they claim it to be a moisture wicking material. I can tell you that I didn't find the material to be all that absorbent however I tested it in August in Georgia so most helmets will fail the sweat test under 100 degree conditions.

Venting System

The EXO-1000 has a not uncommon four intake vent system. The vents consist of a chin vent, a brow vent and two top vents, each with separate controls for that vent. The quality of the vent mechanisms is one of the best I have ever tested but I cannot say the same thing for the flow.

The chin vent has a single vertical cover that opens forward and the way it is designed there is no direct air flow onto the face to cool you down. The vents open in the rear of the chin bar but I was disappointed in the amount of air they flowed. It might be adequate for most, but I am a giant fan of helmets that flow a LOT of air and this one does not.

I was hoping that the brow vent would make up for the lack of air flow from the chin vent but it really didn't. It flowed a small amount of air but not enough to make up for no air flow onto your face. I expected the two top vents to gulp air like it was going out of style but they only flowed adequately. Again, for most people the venting system is probably adequate, I just like lots of air flow and am admittedly baised towards helmets that do flow a large amount of air.

Helmet Weight

Helmet weight is often overanalyzed in my opinion and if you are a weight junkie then this is not the helemt for you. It weighs in at a comparatively heavy 4 lbs which makes it one of the heavier helmets out there. Heavy is a relative term though as a well designed helmet will feel much lighter under speed than it does at rest.

Some will claim the EXO-1000 is too heavy and maybe it is for some, but I am not that sensitive to helmet weight. The Scorpion felt great under speed and I barely noticed the extra weight at all. In fact, if I didn't know it was a heavier helmet before riding with it, I probably wouldn't have even noticed it.

Scorpion Visor

The EXO-1000's clear visor uses the standard Scorpion quick release system that we have tested before. It consists of a round dial that makes removing the visor very simple but can be a touch finnicky when replacing the visor. It isn't something you can't figure out in just a minute or two, and if you can't then you sure as hell shouldn't be riding a motorcycle to begin with.

I have heard of others having issue with the visor on their EXO-1000 helmets but ours fit nicely and was snug against the eyeport. It fit nicely, was easy to get on and off and the clarity of the clear visor was very good. We noticed almost no distortion to speak of at all.

The only thing I didn't care for, was that the visor only had 4 detents to hold it open. I found this to not offer the amount of flexibility that I like to have but was certainly not a deal killer. The first detent is open quite wide too but there is a lever on the side that allows you to slightly crack the visor just a bit. The lever also functions as a visor lock too, which is another nice feature.

Noise Levels

I have to admit I expected the EXO-1000 to be pretty noisy compared to some helmets simply because of the vent design. The top two vents just look noisy. I have to mention though that just like helmet fit, noise is very subjective and individual to the user.

The helmet wasn't too noisy but the vents and the scoops and the knobs did produce a very noticeable "windy" noise going down the road at speed. It certainly wasn't the loudest helmet I have ever ridden but it sure as heck wasn't the quietest either.

Helmet Pump Inflatable Cheek Pads

Ok, let's finally get to what all the excitement was about when this helmet was originally announced. The EXO-1000's cheek pads are equipped with air bladders inside of them and a small air manual air pump in the chin bar to pump them up.

I gotta tell you, I wasn't impressed. The inflatable cheek pads are ok, but seriously, if the helmet fit is that poor that you need to pump up the cheek pads then you probably have the wrong size helmet to begin with wouldn't you say?

It could be a nice feature for someone who likes gimmicks or gadgets I guess or who just has an oddly shaped face but for me it was an unnecessary feature. It doesn't hurt the helmet (other than extra weight) but it also didn't add much to it in my opinion.

Conclusion

The Scorpion EXO-1000 has earned both DOT and Snell approval ratings so you know it meets their standards and will allow you an extra measure of comfort. If I were designing this helmet I would take away the inflatable cheek pad system and redesign the vent system to get those suckers flowing some air.

The EXO-1000 feels well built and is quality helmet no question. I am just not fan of the inflatable cheek pad system and nor am I a giant fan of the venting system. They both work adequately but they just weren't the best in my opinion.

Overall a nice helmet that you will be happy with in my opinion. Scorpion always tries to overachieve at each price point and this helmet is no different. A lot of features for the money.