PCA SDR

I will have to replace my SA2015 helmet pretty soon. But I'd like to understand the time frame. Different rules say different things on the timeframe.

First, the Zone 8 Rule book, page 31, paragraph C clearly states that my SA2015 should expire on December 31, 2026. But the Zone 8 Tech Inspection guidelines says February 28, 2026. This is a pretty big difference. Needless to say, I'd like more time given the tight timeline between when 2025 helmet can begin to come out October 1, 2025 and the February 2026 date.

Related to this, I'm also considering a helmet rated as FIA 8860-2018. I guess that's the latest FIA standard. The rules say FIA is accepted but it doesn't talk about expiration dates on those helmets. If I get an FIA 2018 rated helmet, how long would that be good for?

According to the Zone 8 Rules, December is the correct replace-by date, as the manufacturers frequently get new models out late. Also, the FIA models will follow the same expiration rules as SA, per Z8 rules.

November 20th, 2024 the PCA national HPDE committee messaged PCA DE organizers:

The PCA National HPDE Committee would like to share the following updates with you:

(1) Snell Safety certified SA2015 Helmet Extension:

Because the Snell SA2025 helmet certification labels will not be released until April 2025, manufacturers will not be able to sell SA2025 helmets until October 1, 2025. To accommodate this timeline, Porsche Club of America’s HPDE program will allow the use of SA2015 helmets through February 28, 2026. This extension provides sufficient time for the supply chain to procure and stock inventory and for drivers to order and receive the updated helmets.

Effective March 1, 2026, Snell SA2015 helmets will no longer be permitted.




I need to do research about the use of FIA standard helmets...

But that's my point, the National Rules say February 2026 but the Zone 8 rules say December 2026. So does that mean the Zone 8 rules are wrong or that we're ignoring them for the National rules by precedence?

The Zone 8 Rule Book is not wrong, and we are technically not ignoring anything. How about we use the following sentence?

PCASDR typically conforms to National's helmet guidance.

In our advertisement messages, we have been saying "Snell SA2015 helmets are acceptable before 01 Mar 2026." for a while now.

EricMarc-Aurele wrote:
Effective March 1, 2026, Snell SA2015 helmets will no longer be permitted.

That seems quite clear. Thanks Eric

To recap, the PCA National HPDE Committee sent out a notice last November to event organizers that Snell 2015 helmets would only be grace-period extended through Feb 28, 2026, even though at the time Snell 2025 helmets were not projected to be available until October 2025. As of today, Snell 2025 helmets cannot even be sold until October 1.

I've checked with the Zone 8 Rep, and Snell 2015 helmets will still be disallowed starting March 1, 2026.

The PCA DE Minimum standards state "If inventory is not readily available for the most current Snell rating, then a one-year extension may be granted and notification will be sent by the PCA National HPDE Chair". To my memory, this full year grace period has been granted every five years for at least the last 15 years.

In the interest of the members who participate in DE and TT events, I would urge the event organizers to ask the PCA HPDE National Chair to extend the grace period to December 31, 2026.

"Snell SA2015 helmets are acceptable before 01 Mar 2026."

As of 25 Aug 2025, the above statement is still true.

The first extension was basically manufacturing related, and the second extension is about retail availability.

"a one-year extension may be granted"

The operative words are "may be". After 01 Oct 2025, our HPDE Chair will assess SA2025 availability.

"PCA may extend to June 2026 if inventory is an issue."

It's official - they are extending the expiration date to 30 Jun 2026. In other words, your SA2015 helmets are not permitted on 01 Jul 2026.

Here are the latest details sent out Oct 1, 2025:

TO: PCA Zone Reps, Region Presidents, DE Chairs, Chief Driving Instructors, and Safety Chairs
FROM: Mia Walsh, PCA National Driver Education Committee Chair
DATE: October 1, 2025

The PCA National HPDE Committee would like to share the following updates with you:

SA2015 HELMET EXPIRATION EXTENSION – JUNE 30, 2026
In November 2024, PCA HPDE announced the extension of expiration dates of the SA2015 helmets to February 28, 2026. We are extending the expiration date to June 30, 2026 to allow the manufacturers time to get their product into the supply chain.

Effective July 1, 2026, Snell SA2015 helmets will no longer be permitted.
Please inform your HPDE drivers so they are aware of this update to the PCA Minimum Standards Section 11b.

There is good news, however, in comparison to the SA2010 supply issues:
• Stilo’s SA2025 helmets have already hit the shelves as of today (10/1/25). Kudos to Stilo for their proactive compliance with the SA2025 standards and for projecting and accounting for the industry requirements in the supply chain. GRAZIE MILLE!
• Sparco’s SA2025 helmets are en route and should arrive to the distributors in the next month.
• Bell will send their SA2025 US market helmets first, which may arrive in the November timeframe (fluid date). Bell's FIA helmets are not ready yet, but the M8 model will be the first one available while the RS7 will have later availability.
• Roux’s entry level helmet should be available in November (fiberglass model) and the Pininfarina series will arrive about a month later.
• Arai is not providing an SA2025 spec helmet for this market. Their helmets are FIA compliant, but they did not submit anything for the SA2025 rating compliance.
• Gforce has provided no information to distributors at this time.

We’re looking forward to the new technologies in the SA2025 helmets so please check out our PCA sponsors to buy the new gear: Apex Performance, OG RACING, Stable Energies
With the SA2025 helmets arriving in the chain sooner than historical timelines, we are not surprised to see the SA2020 helmets already on sale. Please note, these will only be valid for 5 years through 2030.