Cycling has been increasing again for a long time now, and the number of electrically assisted bicycles in particular is increasing. And with it the number of accidents and the number of seriously injured cyclists. Many people are overwhelmed by the speeds possible with e-bikes. You should at least wear a helmet, and ideally one that provides good protection. A total of 14 have now been tested.
“Aside from developing safe infrastructure and showing mutual consideration in road traffic, a helmet is the easiest and best way to protect yourself. And we know from accident research that even the weakest models are better than not wearing a helmet at all,” explains ÖAMTC technician Stefan Kerbl. The club and its partners have not only identified clear test winners, but also a price-performance winner . It also became apparent that a high price does not mean that a helmet is any good.In the test: Eleven and three special casesTwo categories of helmets were tested, eleven normal bicycle helmets and three special S-Pedelec helmets, which represent a special case: S Pedelecs are e-bikes with a particularly powerful motor that supports pedaling up to speeds of 45 km/h. In contrast to the classic e-bike, they are considered a moped in Austria, which requires users to wear a motorcycle helmet, among other things. “In other countries this is not the case, which has led to the development of special S-Pedelec helmets. In Austria you are only allowed to wear them on a bicycle or ‘normal’ e-bike, but you could take advantage of the supposedly better protection there,” says Kerbl. However, these helmets are not necessarily worth the higher price: a test with three models showed that they are only in the middle range when it comes to accident protection – and are therefore sometimes weaker than simple bicycle helmets. So it’s no use, as these helmets are particularly expensive, but no better than simple cycling helmets. Recommendation for the cheapsdorfer Even the cheapest candidate by far, the Crivit from Lidl, clearly trumps the three special helmets in terms of safety – and it costs 15 euros only around a third. And it even has its own rear light. The Urban Planet LED model from Uvex made the best impression among the bicycle helmets. Kerbl: “This helmet leaves the other products behind in terms of both accident protection and handling and is also free of harmful substances. The fact that it was only enough for the grade of ‘good’ is mainly due to the workmanship in the area of the straps, the ends of which are not sewn around, which can cause fastening parts to come loose.” Only slightly weaker – and also with the overall grade of “good” – Alpina Gent MIPS and Limar Torino performed well. Expensive helmet failed. At the lower end of the table there is a helmet from the upper price segment, the E.Motion 2 from Casco. His problem: The seatbelt buckle broke during two different tests. “It’s a shame, because the E.Motion 2 is actually a solidly made, comfortable helmet that protects your head well in accidents – but it’s of no use if the belt buckle breaks and you can lose the helmet in a fall,” says the expert . “Without this defect, it would have been enough for a ‘satisfactory’ rating.” For most of the helmets that were rated “satisfactory”, Kerbl sees potential for improvement, especially in the shock absorption properties, but also in the protection of the temple area.
source site-13