AGV Horizon Full Faced Crash Helmet Review

The AGV Horizon is AGVs sports-touring helmet. They’ve designed it to be quiet and comfortable and incorporated an integral sun visor which is a nice feature for a full face lid. It’s on the market at a middling price point – a place where there’s lots of strong competition – so lets see if it can cut it with the competition.

AGV-Horizon-in-white
AGV Horizon in White showing front vents and sun visor
  • Approx 1.6Kg
  • SHARP 4 star safety rated
  • Integral sun visor
  • Double D ring fastener
  • Well rated for comfort and ventilation
  • Target price range – £160-£175 (depending on paint scheme)

Looking to buy this AGV?

It's been discontinued for a while now, but you could still find it on Amazon UK the last time we checked. Please click the link and you'll drop straight onto their AGV helmets pages (then use site search).

Safety

The shell of the AGV Horizon is made from a carbon fibre and fibreglass composite material, called Carbonglass by AGV, that’s designed to be both tough and light. That’s coupled with a multi-density polystyrene shock-absorbing liner on the inside of the shell and a comfortable/padded internal liner and double-d ring fastener to keep the helmet in place on impact. And it works. The helmet has been ECE 22.05 approved (as all UK helmets should be) and has been tested by SHARP and rated 4/5 stars which is pretty good going – only failing slightly on the side impact tests. All of which means that the AGV Horizon offers good performance in terms of impact resistance and safety.

Helmet Noise

Quite mixed reviews here but the consensus seems to be that it’s somewhere between average to poor on noise suppression. AGV have tried to design the helmet to reduce noise by creating an aerodynamic shell and improving the helmet lining so it cuts out noise. However, it’s only worked so far. Owners say that above 50-60 mph that things start to get quite noisy and that the Horizon is only quieter than more budget helmets. There’s also a few reports of a whistling noise from somewhere around the visor. Not many people have found a solution but one guy did at his local helmet shop, even after the AGV technicians couldn’t. The visor mounting baseplate is adjustable and it’s the poor adjustment of this that seems to cause the whistle. They didn’t go into details of how it was fixed, but if yours whistles (and not all do) then that’s where to start looking.

If a quiet crash helmet is your number one priority, then you should look elsewhere – probably starting with our quietest helmets section – where you’ll find reviews of helmets that score highest in noise suppression. Of course, if you wear a decent pair of ear plugs, even the AGV Horizon should be fine so it won’t be an issue.

Ventilation

The AGV Horizon has something called AGVs Integrated Ventilation System or IVS which was first used on their more premium helmets and developed from their racing program but has trickled down to their mid-priced helmet range. In truth it’s much the same as many other helmets at this sort of price point comprising multiple front vents with the forehead and top vents passing air through channels cut into the polystyrene liner and onto the scalp. There’s usually a couple of exhaust channels that are then used to take the air away from the head and out of the rear exhaust vents (in this case hidden below the rear spoiler). In the AGV Horizon’s case, the whole system works very well with owners saying it’s great for defogging as well as keeping your head cool in summer.

AGV-Horizon-Racer crash helmet
Rear view of the exhaust vents on the Horizon in Racer colours

The Horizon has four mesh-covered slots in the chin guard that direct air up onto the visor. They look fixed but you can actually open/close the chin vent from the inside. It can be a little tricky to do, especially with the chin guard fitted – although there is a handy hole fitted in that to allow finger-access which is a nice, well thought out touch.

Overall, ventilation on the AGV Horizon is very good.

Visor

The Horizon has both a main visor and an integral sun-visor that’s operated by a single lever to the left hand side of the helmet right behind the main visor pivot. The main visor is anti-scratch of course but is also anti-fog treated which users say works well. The visor opens and closes with a nice positive movement along the ratchet too. Interestingly, the Horizon comes with a choice of replaceable ratchet mechanisms that you can adjust depending on choice. There are three inserts in the box offering a different number of notches or ratchet settings – from 3-5 – what AGV call their PVM or Personalised Visor Mechanism. It’s an unnecessarily complication for most people, but it’s there if you find the default visor opening notches a bit of a pain – in which case it’s a nice touch.

AGGAGV Horizon helmet in Absolute colours
Horizon in Absolute colours showing sun visor and red visor switch

The sun visor is another nice touch for a full face helmet with many folks saying the shading is just the right level – not too dark and not too light – meaning it doesn’t need to be raised when you enter shaded areas. One or two people say theirs was a bit distorted – but generally it works well and is easy to use with gloves.

There are no problems with the main clear visor. Apart from the potential for whistling caused by the baseplate, then it seals well and keeps the rain out. It’s optically very good too and has a reasonably wide opening for good peripheral vision.

One last point about the visor is AGVs quick release system – AGV feel the need to call it XQRS (maybe it’s company policy that everything they design has to have an acronym?) Either way, it works really well – arguably the best around at the moment. All you do is pull a red slider beneath the visor pivot and the visor gets released. To replace the visor, you just push it in at the pivot and it snaps back in place. Totally simple and works really well. Top marks.

Best place to buy this AGV?

The last time we checked, you could still find this helmet at Amazon UK. Click the link to drop through to their AGV Helmets page (then use search) - but make sure you only buy from the highest rated sellers. And if you order from there we get a small payment from Amazon at no extra cost to you - so thanks for that (it's how we cover the cost of the site).

Shop for AGV helmets at Amazon

Comfort

Of course, the most important factor in getting a comfortable helmet is to get one that fits right in the first place. Assuming you have, then the AGV Horizon is reported as comfortable by every review we’ve seen. It’s got an antibac lining that’s also made of a wicking material in the padded places that touch the scalp (that AGV call Dri-Lex), and an area that’s mesh to let ventilation in. It’s fully removable and washable too. AGV reckon the type of fabric they’ve used is designed to be as comfortable as possible and also make it easier to pull the helmet off. One owner reckoned it was very easy to get off and on – but in general people just say it’s very comfortable – moreso than some of the other top helmet makes they’ve used.

AGV-Horizon-Stamina-crash helmet black-white-grey
My favourite colours – the Horizon Stamina

Sizing and Shell

The Horizon is produced in two helmet shell sizes and is available to fit sizes XXS-XXL. It has AGVs usual shock absorbing liner (which is very good) and in this case has cut outs for a microphone and speakers in the liner; they’re designed specifically for AGVs SHARE communication system but should be big enough to fit 3rd party communicators too.

The helmet shape is pretty slippery and owners say it generally performs well at keeping buffeting to a minimum, though that’s very dependent on if your bike is naked or faired. Paint finish and overall build quality is reported as very good.

Video

Other stuff – fasteners, weight, glasses etc.

The AGV Horizon is about an average weight full face helmet at about 1.6Kg. It has a double-d ring fastener so should be good for track days and ACU gold sticker (though check it’s been applied before you buy if you’re planning on taking it to the track). No reports of whether it’s good for glasses wearers though a couple of users have said there’s lots of room around the ears for ear plugs, so maybe that means it’ll be OK. If that’s a particular issue for you, you’re best trying before you buy.

Overall

A solid helmet but with a couple of possible niggles. Owners are broadly happy with the helmet – especially where having good ventilation and/or comfort are their main priorities – but often find at least one minor problem. The positives are that it’s well constructed, has some nice touches and is well rated for safety.

Alternatives

The Nolan N86 is very similar to the Horizon in that it’s a mid-priced full face helmet with integral sun visor. It’s also SHARP 4 star rated for safety too and edges the Horizon for quietness. If your pockets go a little deeper, the Shoei Qwest is 5 star rated, is well built and performs above average in most other respects. Or if you really want to buy an AGV, check out the rest of the AGV helmet range.

Looking to buy this AGV?

It's been discontinued for a while now, but you could still find it on Amazon UK the last time we checked. Please click the link and you'll drop straight onto their AGV helmets pages (then use site search).

Definitely want an AGV?

Here you'll find all our AGV crash helmet reviews and previews including full face, flip-up and open face helmets.

REVIEW OVERVIEW
Safety
Comfort
Noise
Features
Value
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agv-horizon-full-faced-crash-helmet-reviewWorks well in most areas with just a couple of niggles that let it down. It's a safe helmet though that's got great ventilation, is comfortable and has an excellent visor release system and integral sun visor.

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