The Tucano Urbano Urbis looks like a plain black jacket, right?
But like most of the other Tucano Urbano products, behind that exterior many clever and unique features are hidden.
The Urbis jacket is also stylish in a subtle way and that is a recipe for success.
And the very popular Urbis is now in its 4th generation.
The design with its unique “Aero 3D thermostatic lining” makes this jacket one of the most weather-protective (i.e., warmest) I have ever tried.
It’s waterproof, windproof, breathable and it keeps me very warm.
A detachable vest adds to the comfort and once you unzip it and flip it over, you have a nice-looking vest that can be worn on its own.
Like most Tucano Urbano jackets, the Urbis looks good on and off the bike.
Optional CE-rated protectors are available and they’re the real thing, not the fake “CE approved” junk that comes with too many jackets.
The Urbis even has a pocket for a back protector.
Many hidden internal pockets are labeled with embroidered tags; combined with the two upper cargo pockets and two easy-entry handwamer pockets, the jacket has plenty of storage.
A few touches of eye-popping reflective material brighten things up.
But my only wish is that the Urbis was available in perhaps a gray or light brown color.
Tucano Urbano Urbis Jacket Styling
We’ve now reviewed several Tucano Urbano jackets and other products and the brand never ceases to amaze.
In a copycat world saturated with look-alike motorcycle gear, Tucano Urbano has managed to stake a claim in a different niche.
They offer stylish clothing that looks good on and off the bike or scooter, while providing owners with those unexpected “surprise and delight” features that also perform.
The Urbis jacket has a vaguely Barbour retro look.
And although black is more popular than you might think, the color probably doesn’t do the jacket too many favors, as it’s subtle to the point of being nearly invisible.
But once you start looking at the included features, the dark color no longer matters so much.
In fact, with its stand-up collar surrounded by very bright reflective tape, the safari/military style cargo pockets on the upper chest and the easy-to-use waist adjustment belt — along with a slightly tapered fit — the Urbis looks urban cool.
Sizing and Fit
The Urbis jacket is available in sizes from S to 3XL. Our jacket is a size large and fits as expected to perhaps 1/2 size big when the insulating vest liner is removed.
Tucano Urbano Urbis Jacket Features
The Urbis is now in its 4th generation, having proven itself with many European motorcyclists and scooterists.
I’m told that this new version (new for 2014) has a softer exterior shell fabric.
It’s a fine weave called “Oxford Polyamide” that may not be as protective as canvas-like Cordura, but it sure looks better.
The fabric repels water and the jacket seems to meet its fully waterproof claims, although I haven’t worn it in a heavy downpour as we’ve had more snow than rain this winter. The seams are taped and the shell feels very windproof, however.
The most impressive feature — and one you wouldn’t know about until you removed the vest liner — is that “Aero 3D thermostatic lining” on the inside.
It has a sort of squishy three-dimensional feel and it sure does the job at keeping the elements at bay.
It’s a permanent liner and it’s backed on the inside with a thick 3D-type mesh of the type found in some of the Rev’it jackets, so the Urbis is comfortable to wear even with a T-shirt underneath.
The sleeves have a thinner lining between the outer shell and a taffeta-type lining on the inside.
They probably did this to keep the bulk reasonable, but the sleeves do feel cooler in winter than the body of the jacket.
The removable vest fits with two hefty YKK Vislon zippers with metal pulls.
The zippers are reversible because when you remove the vest, you flip it inside-out and zip it up the front for a very nice garment that can easily be worn on its own — a bonus.
The main entry is a large YKK Vislon zipper with double sliders so the jacket can be opened from the bottom to allow more room when sitting on a motorcycle.
The zipper is covered by a large flap that snaps across and acts as a wind block.
Ventilation?
The Urbis jacket doesn’t include any vents, so in that regard, it’s more like a street jacket than a motorcycle garment.
But in winter, that doesn’t really matter much and the Urbis liner breathes, so I haven’t really missed the vents I wouldn’t be using anyway.
It’s sort of a northern European/UK type jacket, I suppose for weather that stays mostly cool and too occasionally wet and it’s probably perfect for that.
Not so much for hot, humid mid-Atlantic summers maybe, but then what is?
Pockets
The two cargo pockets on the upper chest are pretty basic, with fold-over flaps that snap to the body of the pocket.
The pockets are unlined and made from the same type of fabric as the shell.
Below in front are two quick-entry hand pockets. These have no zippers or snaps, just a fold-over entry in front. The entry folds so that the flap points to the front, but that doesn’t seem to make a difference when riding.
Inside is where the pocket magic begins.
On the lower side of the left part of the jacket in front is a large pocket with an elastic top, it’s labeled for gloves and newspaper/magazines with the embroidered info tabs.
Above that on the inside of the left chest is a zippered pocket labeled for money or a passport.
Along the lower back but on the inside of the Urbis is a pocket with vertical zippers on either side, it’s labeled with a tab that has what looks to me like a turkey leg on it — but is probably an icon of an umbrella.
The removable vest can be stowed here also.
On the right-hand side of the jacket on the inside is a very large (21 by 26 cm) zippered pocket labeled with the icon of a tablet (Android or Apple style).
The removable vest has pockets on the inside and out.
The outside pockets are on the back side of the vest when the vest is installed in the jacket, so they’d make a sort of hidden pocket system which might come in handy, depending on what city you’re touring.
More on the Insulating Vest and Liner
The vest comes in very handy, much like the nice “puffy” vest of the Tucano Urbano Trip jacket (review), which can also be worn alone.
The vest in the Urbis jacket is windproof, which makes the jacket doubly wind-resistant when the vest is installed.
The combination of the fine weave of the outer shell, which is water-repellent and wind-resistant (or windproof), plus the vest and the “Aero 3D” insulating lining in the jacket make for a very cozy atmosphere inside.
Tucano Urbano apparently calls this their “Hydroscud” system, which may be similar to one of the premier and long-running Tucano Urbano products, the Termoscud scooter leg cover, which has probably sold by the millions by now.
The vest has a zipper on either side to attach it to the jacket; the zipper then acts as the main entry zipper for the vest when the vest is being worn by itself.
The inside of the vest has the same nice micro-fleece as the collar and the outside of the vest is an interesting weave of black flecked with tiny silver dots or what appear to be tiny little “V” shaped fabric embroideries.
It’s a nice design that looks good, as you can see in the photo above.
Collar, Cuffs and Reflectivity
The removable vest has a very comfy collar, with a padded interior and a soft micro-fleece on the outside.
The jacket’s stand-up collar is lightly padded and comfortable enough, but doesn’t have the micro-fleece lining.
The collar has a two-position metal snap for adjustment and the reflective material on the rear of the collar can be folded over to hide it for city stealth when walking.
The jacket sleeve cuffs also have a hidden section of the highly reflective material inside.
We missed this when taking the photos when the jacket first arrived, so it doesn’t show up in the photo below, although you can just see it peeking out of the left sleeve in the photo on the right:
CE-Rated Protector Kit
I’ll use the same photo we used in the Tucano Urbano Trip jacket review and the Tucano Urbano Dora jacket review for the optional shoulder and elbow protectors (“armor”) that fits into pockets in the jacket shell.
The protectors are made by Betac S.r.l. in Italy.
These are CE approved to the EN1621-1:1997 (Level 1) standard and they do come with the official CE approval documents, unlike many motorcycle clothing jackets or pants that claim to have “CE rated” protectors that are obvious fakes.
If your protectors do not come with the official CE documentation package, chances are they have not been tested and approved by an approved CE or European EN testing lab, so beware.
Optional Airbag Back Protector?
The Tucano Urbano Trip jacket has an option for an airbag back protector system.
It’s the Modulo Airbag that inflates in 80 ms to a CE Level 2 protective device, certified to the EN 1621-2:2003 Level 2 standard. It can also be worn alone.
The airbag system for the Urbis jacket isn’t listed and I’m not sure if it will work with this jacket or not.
Conclusion
The Tucano Urbano Urbis jacket is yet another stylish and different offering from the British-based company.
They seem to have a knack for combining good looks with features that satisfy motorcycle and scooter owners and the Urbis jacket looks great on and off the bike.
I do wish it came in some other color choices; I’ve seen brown listed (and Tucano Urbano confirmed that brown is available) and I’d like to see one “in the flesh” in that color.
A nice gunmetal gray or even silver might look good and offer a bit more visibility for two-wheeled riders, although all of those black-clad New Yorkers might disagree.
The price is right also and the Urbis G4 (fourth generation) should prove to be just as popular as the previous three generations, no doubt.
| wBW Product Review: Tucano Urbano Urbis Jacket | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer: Tucano Urbano (UK) Retailer: Urban Rider (UK) |
List Price: £169.99 (~$284.00 USD) Street Price: £124.49 (~$214.00 USD) |
| Colors: Black | Made In: China |
| Sizes: S to 3XL. | Review Date: April 2014 |
Note: Item provided by a retailer, distributor or manufacturer with these Terms and Conditions.