Off-road riding is hard enough without adding unnecessary weight to your head. AXOR, the premium helmet brand from Vega Auto, has now unveiled the MX Carbon, a new off-road helmet that puts lightweight construction right at the centre of its engineering brief.
According to AXOR, the MX Carbon weighs approximately 1,050 grams in the large shell, with a tolerance of ± 50 grams. Smaller shell sizes are expected to weigh around 50 grams less. More importantly, the helmet combines its predominantly carbon-fibre construction with ECE 22.06, DOT and ISI certifications, making it a triple-certified helmet designed and manufactured in India.
Carbon fibre takes centre stage
The MX Carbon has been developed around a fairly obvious problem with off-road helmets. You want something strong enough to meet the required safety standards, but you also have to carry it around on your head while riding for hours through terrain that has seemingly been designed specifically to make your life difficult.
AXOR says it has focussed on optimising the use of carbon fibre across the helmet shell, while also working on its construction and manufacturing processes to bring the weight down.
The result is a predominantly carbon-fibre shell that is claimed to be significantly lighter than conventional alternatives, while still meeting the requirements of three different certification standards. AXOR says the reduced weight is intended to reduce the burden on riders during longer and more demanding off-road rides, particularly when tackling technical terrain.
The company’s own material expertise has played a significant role in getting there. Vega Auto began working with carbon fibre in 1998, and has spent nearly three decades developing capabilities in carbon-fibre development, composite manufacturing and helmet engineering.
So, according to the company, the MX Carbon isn’t simply a lightweight helmet that appeared overnight. It is the product of years of work with composite materials.
Nearly three decades of carbon-fibre development
Vega Auto has also continued to invest in its composite manufacturing capabilities. The company says it has recently invested approximately Rs 2 crore in the area and has expanded its composite division to three times its 2020 capacity.
That investment has helped build greater in-house expertise in advanced composite materials, which AXOR says has provided the foundation for developing lightweight helmet platforms such as the MX Carbon.
The helmet is designed and manufactured at Vega Auto’s facilities in Belagavi, Karnataka, making the MX Carbon another example of a performance-oriented product being developed and manufactured in India.
AXOR says the process brings together carbon-fibre development, composite manufacturing and final helmet engineering under one roof, with the company aiming to create a product that can meet global benchmarks while retaining its Indian manufacturing roots.
Triple certification is the big talking point
Weight might be the headline number, but the MX Carbon’s certification package is arguably just as important.
The helmet meets ECE 22.06, DOT and ISI certification requirements. For AXOR, the challenge was therefore not simply about shaving grams off the shell. The company says the engineering process involved optimising the material, construction and manufacturing methods while retaining the required certification standards.
There is a slight discrepancy in the supplied material, with the headline specification quoting approximately 1,050 grams, while Vega Auto’s Managing Director refers to the result as approximately 1,040 grams. The company otherwise describes the large-shell weight as approximately 1,050 grams with a ± 50-gram tolerance.
Just the start
AXOR sees the MX Carbon as more than a single product. Vega Auto says the helmet marks the beginning of a broader lightweight engineering roadmap, with plans to use its experience with carbon fibre and composites to develop future helmet platforms and introduce the learnings across its wider portfolio.
For now, the MX Carbon is a rather interesting demonstration of what Indian helmet manufacturing can achieve when the brief moves beyond simply making something safe and affordable.
A predominantly carbon-fibre construction, triple certification and a claimed weight of around 1,050 grams make for a compelling combination, particularly for riders who spend long hours off-road.
And perhaps the most interesting bit is where it was made. The MX Carbon is not merely designed in India and assembled elsewhere. AXOR says the helmet has been designed and manufactured in Belagavi, bringing Vega Auto’s nearly three decades of carbon-fibre experience into a new generation of riding equipment.
