Worthless Arai helmet warranty

I have had 3 Arai helmets over the past 15 years. They are not cheap but I thought I was buying the best, so I was willing to spend the $500 a typical Arai helmet costs. Besides, they come with a warranty, right?

My current Arai Signet Q developed a problem on the face vent and the plastic fascia cracked and split. Well I thought, I have a warranty and this is obviously a product defect so I’ll just enter a warranty claim. Arai’s response? Ship the helmet to us in Pennsylvania and we’ll inspect it and see if it’s covered under warranty. If we decide not we’ll charge you $25 to ship it back and $10 for the part. So all in all I’d be out $60 for them to repair a $10 part, plus whatever time it takes for them to fix it. So I guess I am going with the gorilla tape option to fix it.

Think this is a fluke event? My RX-Q developed the same problem in the same place, stress fractures then cracks. So much for Arai’s supposed “Great Quality”, and not even being willing to stand behind their product, so I guess that is just something they say to sell helmets. That’s the last time I’ll buy an Arai.

Any chance you can order the part and fix it yourself?
I know it is supposed to be under warranty and all, but in this case it looks like too much $$ involved...

I offered that and they refused, said the helmet had to be disassembled beyond what I could do, only they could do it.

The whole experience just pissed me off. So much for expecting a good experience from a supposedly premium product.

Could drive it over and save the shipping?









How about going through the local dealer where you bought the helmet?
OM

Sorry to hear of your issue. I've been wearing Arai helmets (RX7-RR and Corsair V/X) for 30 years. I had one problem about 3 years ago. Contacted my dealer who in turn called the local distributor. The distributor rep met me at my dealer and replaced the broken part on the spot. In my book, that's superlative service.

Bought it online from Motorcycle Superstore, which has been purchased by JP Cycles. The former was a good outfit. Haven't done business with JP so I am outta luck on that end. Since this was my third helmet of the same make and model it was safe to buy online, and the "long Oval" shape is the only shape that fits my head.

It's a fairly long ride from here to PA....

Arai Parts

Try https://www.theservicepavilion.com/store/c31/RX-Q.html#/

for Arai parts.

Omega Man said:

Could drive it over and save the shipping?

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How far can your drive to save $25? I don't care what you drive, car of motorcycle it probably costs 50 cents a mile or more. I suppose an excuse to go for a ride would be one thing, but to save $25?

I have Arai guys give me crap about my HJC helmets. That is all I will buy. Never had a problem and they last until i can't stand to wear them any longer as they are just worn out.

millsaps2 said:

Try https://www.theservicepavilion.com/store/c31/RX-Q.html#/

for Arai parts.

Click to expand...

+1 on Service Pavilion! They have helped out with Arai parts in the past.

AjaxTheDog said:

Bought it online from Motorcycle Superstore, which has been purchased by JP Cycles. The former was a good outfit. Haven't done business with JP so I am outta luck on that end. Since this was my third helmet of the same make and model it was safe to buy online, and the "long Oval" shape is the only shape that fits my head.

It's a fairly long ride from here to PA....

Click to expand...

Pretty sure J&P is now owned by the same parent who owns Revzilla and Cycle Gear.

PoorUB said:

How far can your drive to save $25? I don't care what you drive, car of motorcycle it probably costs 50 cents a mile or more. I suppose an excuse to go for a ride would be one thing, but to save $25?

I have Arai guys give me crap about my HJC helmets. That is all I will buy. Never had a problem and they last until i can't stand to wear them any longer as they are just worn out.

Click to expand...

I have had a few HJC's and never had a problem besides them just wearing out. Now if I can just find one in a long oval shape, that's the challenge. Otherwise the pressure on my forehead is intolerable with other rounder shapes.

PoorUB said:

How far can your drive to save $25? I don't care what you drive, car of motorcycle it probably costs 50 cents a mile or more. I suppose an excuse to go for a ride would be one thing, but to save $25?

I have Arai guys give me crap about my HJC helmets. That is all I will buy. Never had a problem and they last until i can't stand to wear them any longer as they are just worn out.

Click to expand...

AjaxTheDog said:

Bought it online from Motorcycle Superstore, which has been purchased by JP Cycles. The former was a good outfit. Haven't done business with JP so I am outta luck on that end. Since this was my third helmet of the same make and model it was safe to buy online, and the "long Oval" shape is the only shape that fits my head.

It's a fairly long ride from here to PA....

Click to expand...

My point seems to have been missed. How far is a manufacturer supposed to go? Sounds like they would take care of it (pretty much) when it got there.
When a product is bought on line, reduced/different support is common.
As much as we would like to repair safety equipment, most manufacturers don’t seem to cotton to it for liability reasons. The OP seems to have good luck for the first two. Not a bad record nowadays.
YMMV
OM

AjaxTheDog said:

I have had a few HJC's and never had a problem besides them just wearing out. Now if I can just find one in a long oval shape, that's the challenge. Otherwise the pressure on my forehead is intolerable with other rounder shapes.

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You and I may have the same shaped heads - and not the one with the point at the top.

I bought an HJC FG-17 which fits me very well. Might be worth a look for you?

Omega Man said:

My point seems to have been missed. How far is a manufacturer supposed to go? Sounds like they would take care of it (pretty much) when it got there.
When a product is bought on line, reduced/different support is common.
As much as we would like to repair safety equipment, most manufacturers don’t seem to cotton to it for liability reasons. The OP seems to have good luck for the first two. Not a bad record nowadays.
YMMV
OM

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Actually 2 out of three helmets had the same problem, cracked or cracking plastic fascia, not due to impact or any kind of misuse. It seems to me the plastic was over stressed because of the way the helmet was made or assembled. If this was a cheapo helmet I would understand, but this company espouses how superior their quality is and charges a premium price for it. All I am saying is they should also walk the walk to back up their marketing claims. These are not old helmets, one less than 5 years old within warranty, the other is 9 years old.

Regardless, I am over it. Customer lost, lesson learned.

AjaxTheDog said:

Actually 2 out of three helmets had the same problem, cracked or cracking plastic fascia, not due to impact or any kind of misuse. It seems to me the plastic was over stressed because of the way the helmet was made or assembled. If this was a cheapo helmet I would understand, but this company espouses how superior their quality is and charges a premium price for it. All I am saying is they should also walk the walk to back up their marketing claims.

Regardless, I am over it. Customer lost, lesson learned.

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May I ask, how old are these helmets? I understand the frustration, but age must be considered. I would follow-up with the suggested servicepavillion people or a local Arai dealer.

HJC makes a decent and affordable helmet, but I've never found Shoei or Arai long term quality in their products. But, the Shoei/Arai are (or were) made in Japan and my current HJC is made in Vietnam. Different standards of living.

Glue it back together and enjoy life.

My thoughts exactly since there is no replacement part available for what's busted.

After that back to HJC or Bell.

Well maybe this thread will influence some prospective helmet purchasers, Bill.

Rinty, perhaps, but it is not a bad thing to be informed about what a particular manufacturers "warranty" means in detail before you buy. Most people I think are optimistic and when they hear that term and assume that they are covered head to toe against any problems without an out of pocket expense. No so in this case and Arai is the sole arbiter of what is or isn't covered, a judgement they will make after you spend the money to ship the helmet to them and they hold it ransom until you pay more for repairs and return shipping if they decide you need to. In my case they started saying that maybe I had used "chemicals" on the helmet that caused it to fail. I hadn't, but that didn't matter, they are the judge and jury. Since I hadn't done anything to make the helmet fail I expected them to be more accommodating for a premium priced product. They weren't. So, in knowing the limitations any consumer now has to decide if this warranty is worth paying extra for. This kind of information is exactly why I read this forum, a public service to learn from others experiences good and bad and make decisions based on that and my own research and opinions.

Now if I can just figure out how to remove this front inside piece I think I should be able to remove the broken part, which I was told is held in place by screws from the inside under it. I could then do a better glue job. Looks like a special tool is needed, something similar to removing the trim on the inside of the car. I haven't found anything on the web yet about how to do this, so I just may have to sacrifice my oldest helmet by breaking it to figure that out. Only if I have to.

Rinty said:

Well maybe this thread will influence some prospective helmet purchasers, Bill.

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...or not.

Joe