Have never supplied LIDL, but I have supplied Aldi, I can tell you that there products are regular quality, they just work to lower margins and have a tender process where the bidder with the lowest price that matches the quality standard is rewarded with an order. So If LIDL are the same then the quality should be as you'd expect of a £70 helmet, but for £40.
Motojohn glad you said that, looking at the shark range last weekend, very impressed. The arrai chaser I have is way to noisey for a 300 pound lilid plus the sharks have internal visors so I need not worry about the plod and my non approved tinted visor
Went to lemans motogp a few years ago and anyone who took thier Arai to the free Arai storage facility got a completely overhauled helmet back. The even changed the foam padding interior like for like . No new visor but completely clean with a new Arai bag . Only seen it done once though.
My regular lid is approved by some euro-boffin, and passed the Sharp test with flying colours, it's quiet, it fits perfectly and has a drop-down sun visor - surely the greatest invention in helmet-kind - and it cost £100. You can pay more, as is your right, but don't try to tell me it's for safety's sake, you're buying for the label. Admit it.
I agree to be honest. Whether £100 or £1000, they all pass the same BS Standards. One helmet is no safer than the other when both are manufactured to the same standards. Yes I agree you can pay more for carbon, perhaps fit and the badge, but that doesn't make it any safer.
That only holds if all manufacturers design helmets that are just good enough to pass the BS standard. Said in a "there must be a good reason that I spent the extra on Arai helmets" type voice. :smile:
I went on a suomy product training course a few years ago and they ran us through the approval testing procedures. They showed us how manufacturers of "value" brands design helmets to pass theses tests and showed us examples of how this was done (thicker material just on impact points etc). Where as the higher end helmets are designed to save lives. Like its been said earlier why risk a cheap lid. 10 pence helmet for a 10 pence head etc etc
Funny enough, I met a guy from Airoh who said they'd say that! Actually he was talking about Arai, but the point was the same, more expensive brands justifying their prices. In his opinion the reason Arai and Shoei were ubiquitous was simply the amount of money they spent on advertising and sponsorship. I've no doubt that there are quality differences between brands, linings and soforth, but the end result is they all pass a test regime designed to test the safety of helmets. (In his opinion Arai did less well in the Sharp tests because the shape of their lids defines the brand and they don't want to change the shape). So unless each manufacturer goes to other factories and directly compares each others testing procedures and outcomes, any claim of one helmet being safer than another has to be regarded as spurious, cos the government tests suggest otherwise. Not that any of this matters, they're all fit for purpose, so the only choices you have to make are between comfort, style and price.
MCN did a cheap helmet test a few years ago. they all failed . But unfortunately , true to MCN , they didnt follow it up with an expensive helmet test to prove they were any better .
They wouldn't though. When was the last time Uvex advertised in MCN (they did, by the way, some years ago)? Stick an Arai lid or a Shoei or an AGV in the same video, and how much revenue would MCN lose if the results weren't favourable..? Why haven't Arai, who have faired quite badly in test results in the Sharp ratings, contested the facts in court? They are saying the test doesn't mimic real life situations; you'd have thought a company who lives on it's reputation would be the first to the solicitors' office...
The sharp tests are a waste of time! Yes all helmets homoligated for the road meet a minimum, it's brands such as arai that go well beyond that minimum in terms of stiffness, EPS softness, impact resistance etc. all of which means your head is better off in an impact. I've seen the arai testing regimes and their standards are second to none. ALL other brands are cheap immitations by comparison.
The top brand make more money by selling to suckers who like the brand. Same as people who buy Audi rather than Skoda, it is all about perceived values of the brand and buyer. Don't think for one moment the high cost equals anything more than high marketing spend.
