Review: Alpinestars Motegi one-piece suit - £649.99

THIS SUIT has been nothing but good to me. I’ve used it for everything from blisteringly hot foreign bike launches to freezing cold track days and lots of road riding in the UK. I’ve even managed to do a little crash while wearing it, all in the, er… name of testing. It's never failed to keep me safe, comfortable and a little bit stylish.

It’s supremely comfortable and supple – it has been since day one so there was no need for me to wear it around the house for a weekend, wear it in the shower (does anyone actually do that?), or massage it with Unicorn tears to get it feeling peachy. In short, the 1.3mm full-grain leather was lovely from the get-go.

The fit is sublime; I’ve never worn leathers that fit so nicely. The Motegi is snug without being tight or restrictive and there’s no excess material – leather or Aramid stretch fibre, so the suit never bunches up, rubs, restricts or does anything to distract from riding. Some people say that you should do up a size with Alpinestars, but I didn’t do this, and the suit fits exceptionally well, although I’m fairly slight. I’ve not had any problems wearing it with my back and chest protector either.

There’s double stitching at crucial areas and perforations at the front and rear to allow air in and out. The perforations do a good job of allowing cooling air in but on the hottest days, I often end up peeling myself out of the Motegi suit. It’s certainly not the most effectively vented suit I’ve ever worn. And when I’m fighting to extricate a sweaty limb, it can be easy to take the removable mesh lining with me, although it’s easy to reattach it using the Velcro tabs at the arms and legs. That reminds me actually, it’s due a wash.

Impact protection comes courtesy of CE approved internal armour at the shoulders, elbows and knees/shins plus external TPR armour at the shoulders. Accompanying that is padding at the chest, coccyx (or is ‘gooch’ the medical term?) and side of the body.

All the armour sits comfortably where it should, without restricting movement or making a nuisance of itself. I can attest to the armour in the forearm after a lowside on track not too long ago, which resulted in me coming down on my right arm. The armour took the brunt of the fall, leaving me with just a small bruise to my arm (and pride). The leather in that area now bears some very minor scratch marks but is otherwise fine and the same goes for the right thigh, which has a small scuff on it; they’re like badges of honour. Or lack of ability.

The zips (at the chest, arms and calves) are good quality and have never snagged or split apart.

Then there’s the small details – the Alpinestars graphics and logos all look sharp and even though I expected them to show signs of marking and wearing from being packed, unpacked and generally chucked around, they’re still in perfect nick nine months later.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I think it looks ace too – it’s well styled without being over the top or bland. If red and white isn’t your colour, it’s also available in black and white, black, white and fluro yellow and black and fluro yellow.

Based on all that, I’m well pleased with the Motegi. Wearing it is a complete pleasure – it looks good, and is superbly comfortable. That, combined with supple leather and CE-approved protection, means that once I’ve wiggled my way in to it, I feel reassuringly safe and a bit cooler than I’ve got any right to feel.

Tested: Alpinestars Motegi one-piece suit

Price: £649.99

Contact: Alpinestars