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[TN]

i have a couple of these, the product is quality along with there business practices , but it seems they are no longer DOT certified.


TN


http://www.carbonfiberhelmets.com/

ADVANCED CARBON COMPOSITES EXT MOTORCYCLE HELMETS

This notice is provided to all purchasers or owners of Advanced Carbon Composites EXT-001, EXT-002 and EXT-003 models of motorcycle helmets, regardless of size and regardless of date acquired, in accordance with the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

REASON FOR THE RECALL

In a March 26, 2010 Settlement Agreement and Consent Order between Advanced Carbon Composites and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Advanced Carbon Composites agreed that all models and sizes of its EXT-001, EXT-002 and EXT-003 Half Shell Motorcycle Helmets, regardless of date manufactured, fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 218, 49 C.F.R. § 571.218.  FMVSS No. 218 establishes minimum performance requirements for helmets designed for highway use.  Among other things, the standard requires that motorcycle helmets meet the minimum performance requirements of penetration tests and impact attenuation tests, as well as labeling requirements.  Advanced Carbon Composites’ helmets do not comply with FMVSS No. 218 in the areas of impact attenuation, penetration and/or labeling.  In the event of a crash, the wearer is not adequately protected, and could suffer severe injuries or even death.

As a part of its Settlement Agreement and Consent Order with NHTSA, Advanced Carbon Composites has agreed to implement a remedy program by which Advanced Carbon Composites is providing notice to, and obtaining helmets from, owners and purchasers, and Advanced Carbon Composites will refund an owner or purchaser for the purchase price of the helmet.  The remedy is limited to refunds to owners or purchasers, and under no circumstances will Advanced Carbon Composites attempt to repair or replace the recalled helmets.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:

After you contact us and we record your information, Advanced Carbon Composite will send you a prepaid shipping label for your helmet.  Upon its receipt of the helmet and documentation regarding the price you paid for the helmet, Advanced Carbon Composite will send you a check in the full amount of the purchase price, which you should receive within 7-10 business days.  This includes all EXT-001 or EXT 002 helmets that were previously repaired by Advanced Carbon Composites in previous recalls.

Please call Advanced Carbon Composites at 1-800-300-9813, or contact us by mail at Advanced Carbon Composites, 6127 Anno Avenue, Orlando, Florida 32809, to begin the refund process.

If you believe we have failed to issue a refund to you within a reasonable amount of time, you may submit a complaint to:

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
U.S. Department of Transportation
1200 New Jersey Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20590
Toll Free Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236
TTY 1-800--9153 or go to www.safercar.com

[YesItsLoaded]

Thanks for the 'heads-up'  

Figures - finally found a helmet I could stand the feel and looks of - guess I've been rolling the dice for years - I've got 2 to go back.

UPDATE: Called today and had absolutely no problem getting a return shipping label sent to my door - still the best customer service for those who don't need/want DOT

[CVOTequila]

I hope this gets cleared up soon I want a helmet from them!!

[Chains]

I hope this gets cleared up soon I want a helmet from them!!

Checked out their website, these are some real stand up guys or gals, they posted the recall on their home page.  Can't get much more honest than that.  They make some of the best looking lightest helmets I have ever seen.  With the abuse they take in other sports, I have to wonder why DOT pulled the certification.  Did they truly fail, carbon fiber is super strong and very hard to break or did they fail to grease some bureaucrat and he got even?  Never know for sure do you>

[grc]

Checked out their website, these are some real stand up guys or gals, they posted the recall on their home page.  Can't get much more honest than that.  They make some of the best looking lightest helmets I have ever seen.  With the abuse they take in other sports, I have to wonder why DOT pulled the certification.  Did they truly fail, carbon fiber is super strong and very hard to break or did they fail to grease some bureaucrat and he got even?  Never know for sure do you>

I think you will find that like most vehicle related regulations in the USA, manufacturer's are self-certifying.  In other words, the manufacturer is responsible to test his products to the DOT specs and then certify to the government and the purchaser that the product complies with all requirements.  The government does some random compliance testing on some things to try to keep folks honest, but there isn't enough manpower or money to test every single product out there on a timely basis.  This is the Federal "honor" system that lets tons of unsafe products into the marketplace each year, like the repeated instances of lead and other poisons in products from China.  Honor systems only work when all participants have competence, honor and integrity.

Sounds to me like the helmets didn't meet several of the requirements, such as penetration and impact force reduction, and thus the label certifying DOT compliance was also a violation.  The comment about the shell being super strong and hard to break may be true, but that is not what is most important with a helmet.  The most important trait is the ability to absorb and dissipate some of the energy, and not just transfer it straight to your head.  That is a function of many things, but the type and amount of compressible material (styrofoam type materials usually) has a lot to do with it, and the ability of the shell to absorb and redirect energy without being penetrated also enters into the equation.  Having a super rigid shell can work against you, especially if you are trying to keep thickness and bulk to a minimum for cosmetic reasons.

To each his own, but if you wear a helmet for real protection and not just to comply with a state helmet law, I'd suggest that DOT is the absolute bare minimum, and Snell would be a much better choice.  And unlike DOT, with Snell the testing is actually performed by the Snell Foundation and not just self-certified by the manufacturer.  And Snell does ongoing tests by purchasing helmets on the open market (not just the samples supplied by a manufacturer) to make certain helmets they have certified in the past are still meeting the standards.

OK, leaving the soapbox now.  Have a great day.


Jerry

[Texaz]

    FYI,

They told me a few days ago the Kayak which they sell now is the same as the novelty they sold before but has a water proof liner. Buckle is plastic.

[UFO_HOG]

Did any of us that bought that helmet buy it because we expected total DOT standards and safety. I purchased that helmet, like I think most others did, because it was DOT approved and would keep the PoPo off our arse if we got pulled over. Now, will a memo go out to all LEO to lookout for that helmet? My guess is no! If I get hassled about my half helmet, will I show the Officer the DOT label and be let go. I believe so! Therefore, I have made the decision to keep my helmet and move on and not have to look for another helmet until they get it worked out and have one available...........

OK... ...I'm done!

[Ed45]

I have 2 of their helmets and love them. I have known they will not pass the penetration test for several years now. The Ensolite (I think they call it) padding, however protects from the shock of impact much better than the hard foam chit in full DOT approved helmets. I'd rather sacrifice the penetration resistance and have the shock protection. "DOT" stickers are cheap enough to buy and I don't see the po-po doing field spec testing.

[grc]

I have 2 of their helmets and love them. I have known they will not pass the penetration test for several years now. The Ensolite (I think they call it) padding, however protects from the shock of impact much better than the hard foam chit in full DOT approved helmets. I'd rather sacrifice the penetration resistance and have the shock protection. "DOT" stickers are cheap enough to buy and I don't see the po-po doing field spec testing.

I don't think so Ed.  Read the notice again, and you will see that the helmet also didn't meet the impact absorption requirement as well as the penetration requirement.   

No skin off my nose if all you guys want to use a helmet that doesn't actually protect you, but it does seem just a little strange.  I mean, if you have no choice and have to wear it due to state law, and there are similar helmets that do in fact meet all the standards, why choose one that you know doesn't protect as well?  Is it just a perverse thumbing of the nose at the authorities, to prove that while they can make you wear a helmet, they can't make you wear a good one?  I don't see how the joke is on them if you wind up being the one with your brains scrambled.


Jerry

[Ed45]

Excellent point Jerry. I will call on Monday and see what the response is only because I would like to give them the benefit of the doubt just in case there is some terminology or jargon issue involved. Thanks, Ed

[roadrunner]

i have a couple of these, the product is quality along with there business practices , but it seems they are no longer DOT certified.


TN


http://www.carbonfiberhelmets.com/

ADVANCED CARBON COMPOSITES EXT MOTORCYCLE HELMETS

This notice is provided to all purchasers or owners of Advanced Carbon Composites EXT-001, EXT-002 and EXT-003 models of motorcycle helmets, regardless of size and regardless of date acquired, in accordance with the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

REASON FOR THE RECALL

In a March 26, 2010 Settlement Agreement and Consent Order between Advanced Carbon Composites and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Advanced Carbon Composites agreed that all models and sizes of its EXT-001, EXT-002 and EXT-003 Half Shell Motorcycle Helmets, regardless of date manufactured, fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 218, 49 C.F.R. § 571.218.  FMVSS No. 218 establishes minimum performance requirements for helmets designed for highway use.  Among other things, the standard requires that motorcycle helmets meet the minimum performance requirements of penetration tests and impact attenuation tests, as well as labeling requirements.  Advanced Carbon Composites’ helmets do not comply with FMVSS No. 218 in the areas of impact attenuation, penetration and/or labeling.  In the event of a crash, the wearer is not adequately protected, and could suffer severe injuries or even death.

As a part of its Settlement Agreement and Consent Order with NHTSA, Advanced Carbon Composites has agreed to implement a remedy program by which Advanced Carbon Composites is providing notice to, and obtaining helmets from, owners and purchasers, and Advanced Carbon Composites will refund an owner or purchaser for the purchase price of the helmet.  The remedy is limited to refunds to owners or purchasers, and under no circumstances will Advanced Carbon Composites attempt to repair or replace the recalled helmets.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:

After you contact us and we record your information, Advanced Carbon Composite will send you a prepaid shipping label for your helmet.  Upon its receipt of the helmet and documentation regarding the price you paid for the helmet, Advanced Carbon Composite will send you a check in the full amount of the purchase price, which you should receive within 7-10 business days.  This includes all EXT-001 or EXT 002 helmets that were previously repaired by Advanced Carbon Composites in previous recalls.

Please call Advanced Carbon Composites at 1-800-300-9813, or contact us by mail at Advanced Carbon Composites, 6127 Anno Avenue, Orlando, Florida 32809, to begin the refund process.

If you believe we have failed to issue a refund to you within a reasonable amount of time, you may submit a complaint to:

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
U.S. Department of Transportation
1200 New Jersey Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20590
Toll Free Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236
TTY 1-800--9153 or go to www.safercar.com


www.safecar.gov