Retro helmet, great quality, Ago heritage. The AGV X3000.

The AGV X3000 is AGV‘s recreation of Giacomo Agostini’s early 70’s racing helmet. And like most modern retro helmets, it’s designed to give you all the look, feel and kudos of a lid from those halycon days but with some of the latest tech and features that make modern helmets safer and easier to live with.

Like the Bell Bullet or Biltwell Gringo – to name a couple of other recent retro helmets – most owners are gonna buy the X3000 for the looks, and probably to match their retro rides in their retro garages. But it needs to offer more than just looks for the modern rider to use it on more than just the very occasional retro ride.

• Fibreglass shell

  

• Ratchet visor
• Leather/suede removable lining
• Three shell sizes
• DOT (US) and ECE (Eu) certified
• Integrated visor head vent
• 1.4Kg (3.1lbs) – slightly lighter than avg
  
• Sizes XS-XXL
• Prices range around £349 (plain) to £549 (Ago)

Best places to buy an AGV X3000?

Please click below to visit the AGV X3000 helmets pages at our recommended stores. And if you buy from one, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you – a massive THANKS! (it’s how we finance the site).

Safety

(more about helmet safety)

The AGV X3000 is a retro helmet but it uses modern helmet tech. Which means there’s no reason why it shouldn’t give heaps of protection to the modern rider.

But there’s only been one retro helmet we know of so far that’s been independently tested by anyone other than ECE or DOT – and that’s Bell’s SHARP 3 star rated Bullet.

Having said that, the X3000 is both ECE tested/approved and DOT certified, and we also know that AGV has a fantastic track record of making safe helmets and is (at the time of writing) one of the safest helmet brands.

The X3000 uses AGV’s latest fibreglass helmet forming tech and is made in 3 shell sizes and expanded polystyrene (EPS) shock absorbing lining sizes – like many of their regular helmets.

Couple that with the fact every AGV fibreglass helmet that has been SHARP tested having scored either four or five stars when safety tested by SHARP… and we can’t think of any reason to suspect that the retro X3000 is going to give anything less than decent impact protection.

It’s secured on the head using typical racing double-d ring fasteners. And there’s a nice large anti-scratch visor to give a decent view of the road ahead as well as good peripheral vision.

So while the AGV X3000 looks a whole heap of 1970’s, we’d expect it to give a large slice of 21st century protection. And because no AGV helmet has scored below a four star SHARP rating since the earliest years of the scheme (out of a staggering 27 tested helmets!) we’re going to give the X3000 a four star rating for safety too.

And if SHARP tests it in the future, we’ll let you know on this page as soon as they do.

Helmet Noise

(more about helmet noise)

The word from AGV X3000 riders is that it’s above average for noise suppression.

It’s less aerodynamically streamlined than most modern helmets (a couple of owners said the aero isn’t that great and quite a bit of air gets up inside the helmet) which means there’s going to be more wind resistance and noise. But there’s also very little in the way of fins, vents and spoilers sticking into the air flow creating noise.

There’s also a decent amount of EPS and lining inside the shell and a neck roll to stop wind and noise getting inside the helmet from below.

So what does that mean for helmet noise? Well, some folks reckoned it’s noisy over 45mph. But more riders say it’s somewhere between OK to quiet at legal speeds.

Could be they expected an old-looking helmet to be mega noisy or it could be that riders wearing an X3000 are more likely to be riding an older bike so taking things steady? Or of course it could be that AGV’s made a pretty quiet helmet!

So, if you buy one, expect it to be about average quietness (and buy a decent pair of ear plugs) and you shouldn’t go far wrong – and you might even be pleasantly surprised!

Ventilation

(more about helmet ventilation)

Unlike the originals, most retro helmets try and include some form of ventilation in there. That’s partly because most modern riders expect their helmets to perform a lot better than in the old days – and partly because we’re much wussier!

The X3000 has some cunning vents slotted into the top of the visor. These mate with vent holes in the helmet shell and direct air through the visor, through the shell and into the helmet, venting air through channels in the polystyrene liner and onto the scalp.

It’s not the most comprehensive venting system we’ve ever seen but it’s a neat solution and keeps that classic helmet shape intact – and brings air into the helmet in a wide strip from the forehead to the back of the head.

The word from owners is that the top vent works OK. It’s not the best venting helmet for hot summer days but generally it keeps you cool enough.

Thankfully, that skinny chin bar lets a stack of air in underneath the helmet and keeps your face and neck cool.

Note that to open the forehead vent, you remove a rubber cover (much like you still have to in their latest racing lid the Pista-GP R!).

Of course, most of us are gonna lose that once it’s out – but AGV has made a little pocket inside the helmet for you to stick the cover in, which might give us a fighting chance to keep it safe. Nice touch that and one that’s praised by owners.

Other than that, there isn’t a chin or crown vent. Guess there has to be some compromise to looking this classy and authentic!

Visor

(more about visors)

That visor is (almost) as basic as it looks.

Of course it’s anti-scratch like all visors have to be these days. And because it’s on a race-inspired helmet – and one with a thin chin guard at that – it gives a large view all round. That includes when your chin’s on the tank looking down a straight.

That should work pretty well because it’s got a bit of a cut-away on the bottom of the chin guard which AGV legend says Agostini asked for in the original racing helmet so he could get his head tucked in more!

And like visors of old, it needs a 24 piece socket set to get it off. Actually, that’s not true – but it does take a bit more fiddling with to get it off than modern quick-change visors, and needs you to remove another rubber bung and wield an allen key to whip it off.

Unlike visors of old, there’s a decent gasket around the visor hole to keep out rain and air – and the visor can be locked closed using the stud on the bottom left of the helmet. To unlock and open, just push up on the tab on the visor.

The X3000’s visor also works on a ratchet so you’ll find plenty of fixed positions for the visor inbetween closed and fully open.

Just don’t expect the X3000’s visor not to steam up if it gets cold/wet/humid – because it will.

There’s no Pinlock or other anti-fog insert for the X3000 (at the time of writing at least). But then you’ll only be trundling out your Gold Star or classic Kwak when it’s fine and sunny won’t you, so your helmet won’t see any of that inclement weather nonsense anyway.

Downsides? Well, a couple of X3000 owners we found complained that the visor whistles a bit at lower speeds. But that’s about it.

Many were surprised at how easy the visor is to get used to and how well it works considering it looks so old-school (again, maybe low expectations worked in the X3000’s favour here). Plus a few more loved how much vision the visor gives you – especially horizontally.

Comfort and Sizing

(more about comfort and sizing)

AGV X3000s are designed to fit medium oval head shapes. That’s most of us in the West, but if you know you’ve got a rounder head shape, then make sure you buy from a shop that’ll let you have no-quibble returns/exchanges (like our recommended retailers below).

Having said that, there seems to be a bit of a dispute going on because quite a few owners think it’s more longer oval than that. So I guess if you are a longer oval headshape and want to wear an X3000, it might be worth trying one out.

The 3000 is made in three helmet shell sizes – that helps with getting the sizing bang on as well as making a helmet that looks better when you’re wearing it.

If you’re looking to order one, the opinion out there is that it sizes quite small – so you might need to order one that’s larger than your usual helmet size. So we recommend you check our helmet fitting guide then order a size up if you’re on the cusp between two sizes.

And if you’re usually a size medium, the good news is that AGV makes the X3000 in both MS (56cm) and ML (57/8cm) versions to help you get the fit bang on.

Quite a few owners found their X3000 to be tight in the cheeks when they first tried it on. If that’s what you find, don’t worry because most say it breaks in pretty quickly and fits nice and snug in no time.

And if it doesn’t, you can swap out the cheek pads for thicker/thinner pads so you can get the fit just right.

Inside, you’ll find a removable/washable lining that includes both genuine leather and a suede-like fabric for that totally retro feel inside and out.

The early word is that if you get the sizing right and it’s right for your head shape, then it’s a very comfortable helmet with no major problems found so far.

Looks & Graphics

The most expensive version of the X3000 is that Agostini replica (the one on the top picture) – the one that they tell me the AGV helmets’ logo is based on (though it’s back-to-front if it is!).

Note some X3000s are called just that while some are called ‘Super’. The only difference is the paintwork – no difference other than that.

If you’re thinking of buying an X3000, there’s plain/matt black versions as well as a gloss white and matt grey. The Supers have some simple classic paintwork and then there’s the multi-coloured Gloria and that classic Agostini replica, the Ago 1 – though if you want to look like Ago, AGV has only made 3000 of the Ago 1s so you’d better get your skates on.

As always, to see the latest graphics and deals at some of the most reputable online stores around (we continually check their 3rd party ratings to make sure they give great service) then click the links below. Cheers!

Best places to buy an AGV X3000 helmet?

Please click below to visit the AGV X3000 helmets pages at our recommended stores. And if you buy from one, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you – a massive THANKS! (it’s how we finance the site).

AGV X3000 Video

Here’s a decent 6.5m video showing you round a couple of X3000 Supers.

Other stuff – fasteners, audio, weight, build quality, warranty

Because they’re an (albeit old-style) racing helmet, the X3000 comes with the obligatory double-d ring fastener.

If you’re after using a bluetooth headset with your X3000, you might want to think again.

There are reports of owners fitting Sena and Packtalk headsets to their X3000s – so it is possible. But there’s no earphone cut outs inside – and you don’t want to go hacking about with the EPS lining as that’ll compromise safety.

So you’ll really have to do without a comms unit if you buy an X3000. Which shouldn’t be too much of a bind – it’ll give you that properly authentic retro riding experience after all!

Because it’s a fairly basic fibreglass helmet, the X3000 is pretty light – weighing in somewhere between 1.3-1.4Kg (2.9-3.1lbs) depending on size. Many X3000 owners say it feels lightweight when you’re wearing it too, so all good there.

And as is often the case with an AGV, the quality is reported as being good – better than some of the other retro helmets built to a lower budget. Various comments include the materials feeling high quality and the paint’s finished to a high standard

If you buy one, expect it to come with a 2 year warranty (what’s up AGV, think it’s not going to make it past 2 years?!?)

Overall/Summary

If you’re after a retro racing helmet that’s as authentic as you can probably get, then the AGV X3000 is a good bet.

It’s got the great heritage of being made by the original manufacturer while having a decent sprinkling of modern materials and features thrown at it to make it that bit more usable than the original.

The word from owners is that it’s a damn good helmet without any major faults.

It’s reasonably quiet, the visor works well (though could suffer from fogging if you’re looking to use it anytime other than a summer’s day) and we’d expect it to give excellent protection. It’s well built too so should last and continue to look the part for years alongside your shiny retro ride.

There’s quite a few retro helmets out there to choose from. But the word from owners is that the AGV X3000 is one of the better helmets – it looks the part when you’re posing and plays the part when you’re riding. It’s not cheap, but then style never was. Well worth a look.

Crash Helmet Buying Guides & Top 10s

For (hopefully!) other useful information to help you when buying your next helmet, check our various Motorcycle Helmet Buying Guides - or have a look at our Top 10 best helmet lists where we've got the top 10 best rated helmets overall along with Top 10 Best Budget/Top 10 Safest/Top 10 Best Full Face/Top 10 Best Modular/Flip-up/ Top 10 Best Sportsbike/Track helmets.

Good Alternatives to the AGV X3000?

After a decent retro helmet? Then check out these bad boys…

The ‘original’ retro is probably the Bell Bullet (if we can call it that!). It’s been SHARP 3 star safety rated, it’s comfortable with good ventilation, weighs about the same as the AGV but it’s a heap less dosh.

So too is the composite fibre Nexx XG.100 which is even lighter than the Bell and AGV, though it doesn’t have any vents.

The real budget retro is the Biltwell Gringo – that’s a thermoplastic shelled helmet. But note, it’s DOT certified only (i.e. not legal in the UK).

Best places to buy an AGV X3000?

Please click below to visit the AGV X3000 helmets pages at our recommended stores. And if you buy from one, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you – a massive THANKS! (it’s how we finance the site).

Star Ratings