The MotoDry brand of motorcycle apparel has only been available in New Zealand since mid-2020, but the mid-range gear has made a serious impact on our riding wardrobe In the months since.
After seeing the MotoDry appear on the Motogear.co.nz website, I got in touch with local distributors Darbi Accessories and soon saw a set of MotoDry’s Rallye gear appear make its way into the wardrobe.
First impressions were good (click here for that write up) and now after nearly a year riding with the MotoDry Rallye suit, I feel I can give a full honest review of it.
The Good
Let's start with the good points. Fit and finish are right up there with big European brands, but at just $319 for the jacket and $249 for the pants, they are up to 1/4 the price of some of the premium brands. After nearly a year there is no fraying at the stitching and apart from discolouration from various road grime hitting it the suit still looks fantastic.
Style-wise the Rallye suit is right up there and was definitely one of the reasons I parted ways with my own money to get it. While the Light Grey and Black primary colours might not be everyone’s cup of tea I love them. Plus it is bright and visible to other road users which is a big plus in my books.
Both the jacket and pants zip together which not only helps keeping the pants up but stops you getting a draft yup your back side in cooler weather.
Construction is of the 600 H/D textile variety, meaning it is both lightweight but quite strong to boot. With the liners out the jacket is quite airy and light – perfect for hot New Zealand summers. Throw the waterproof and thermal liners in and you could quite happily ride across the desert road in winter without freezing.
The design is a clever one, with the usual dual front pockets and a larger rear pocket that will accommodate one of the liners for the jacket happily. There’s plenty of easy to use ventilation in both the jacket and pants too which is a real blessing when working hard off road.
A big plus for me is that the internal armour that comes with the suit sits closely and reasonably securely to my body. This is in part thanks to clips on the arms which being the elbow armour in nice and close. Being an adventure rider of dubious skill means I’ve fallen off a few times (I’m no Chris Birch that’s for sure) but even during the biggest unplanned dismount I came away bruise and abrasion-free unlike my experience with my other adventure riding suit.
The Not So Good
To be fair there aren’t many bad points but this is what I’ve noticed after nearly a year with the MotoDry Rallye suit.
Despite the name (and the waterproof liner) there are limitations to how waterproof the MotoDry Rallye suit is. For a quick downpour or light rain it holds up well to the elements, but sustained heavy rain over multiple hours will overpower the waterproofing as I found over a miserably wet ride from the Wairarapa to Waiouru one day.
At the end of the day it’s a mid-price suit so expecting Goretex levels of waterproofing is a expecting a bit much, I reckon.
The other minor gripe is the zipper system can be fiddly. The zips are quality YKK units, but i often find myself putting in a bit of effort to get them to engage, particularly the main zip on the front if the jacket which seems to want to be held at a specific angle before it will close.
The Verdict
So after a nearly a year of varied riding do I recommend the MotoDry Rallye to Kiwi motorcycle riders?
In short, yes.
If you can’t stretch your budget to a premium European brand the MotoDry Rallye suit offers some real top-notch attributes that mimic the best in the biz for half the price. Sure, it’s got its limitations but for the average rider it is more than up to the job of providing protection from New Zealand’s riding conditions.