Metrea? A Greek goddess? One of the Marvel Avengers superheroes? Nope, it’s a bit more prosaic: it’s Shimano’s urban bike-specific groupset launched back in 2016 but still not seen that often. As for Mach 3, I don’t think you’re ever going to approach three times the speed of sound on this Vitus, which is pretty much the classic commuting ‘hybrid’ that most of us would imagine.
That’s also how Vitus pictures it, calling the Mach 3 "a dedicated flat handlebar urban bike that’s geared towards commuting and darting around the urban jungle". But Vitus continues: "It’s also perfect for getting away from it all and setting off on relaxing rides in the countryside at the weekend." Is it right?
The copper finish is lovely – not sure about that kinked top-tube – and the Mach 3’s up-to-date features include radically dropped seatstays for rear-end comfort, mainly internal cable routing, a tapered full-carbon thru-axle fork and Metrea’s single-ring chainset and hydraulic flat mount brakes.
The 42t chainring is paired with an 11-32 Shimano 105 cassette, which would have been seen as wide-ranging not that long ago. But two other bikes that I also have on test have ultra-wide cassettes with an 11-42 spread.
The Mach 3’s 42x11 combo gives a decent 106in top gear (a little below 50x12) but the bottom gear (roughly equivalent to 34x25) left me puffing and grunting my way up Bristol and Bath’s steeper slopes, of which I'm not exactly starved.
A pair of small bar-ends would have helped here, giving greater leverage when climbing out of the saddle. And I’d have also preferred flattened handlebar grips rather than the Mach 3’s round rubber grips – but that’s subjective and they’re easy and inexpensive to replace.
On the flat, however, the Mach 3 nipped along delightfully, helped by quick, crisp gear changes from the Metrea’s right-hand thumb-shifter and Shimano’s excellent hydraulic brakes, offering power and precision with minimal effort.
The handling is everything you want for urban riding. The position is upright for excellent visibility, the short stem makes for lively, fast-acting steering and the straight 62cm bar isn’t too wide to dodge through gaps in the traffic.
At less than 10kg the Mach 3’s decently light too. The 35mm Schwalbe Kojak tyres are, of course, slick and offer more comfort than a cheap suspension fork on tarmac and much better control, and though reasonably light they do feature a puncture-protection layer.
Practicalities are taken care of by rear rack mounts and front and rear mudguard fittings with plenty of clearance for full-size fenders. These contribute to a bike that really does hit the spot for commuting, even my 17-miler – though that route is largely flat.
Once again bar-ends would have helped with comfort. The Vitus Mach 3 is easily good enough for longer countryside rides, but the bottom gear might make any hillier away days hard work. But it’s a solid, comfortable commuter bike with good kit and great brakes.
Vitus Mach 3 VRX Urban geometry (M)
- Seat angle: 73.5 degrees
- Head angle: 71 degrees
- Chainstay: 43.7cm
- Seat tube: 48cm
- Top tube: 56cm
- Head tube: 13.6
- Fork offset: 4.8cm
- Trail: 7cm
- Bottom bracket drop: 6.5cm
- Bottom bracket height: 28.3cm
- Wheelbase: 1,050mm
- Stack: 39.9cm
- Reach: 55.1cm
Product
| Brand | vitus |
| Price | 1500.00 AUD,900.00 GBP,1050.00 USD |
| Weight | 9.8300, KILOGRAM (M) - |
Features
| Fork | Full-carbon, tapered |
| br_stem | Vitus |
| br_chain | KMC X11 |
| br_frame | 6061 aluminium |
| Tyres | Schwalbe Kojak 700x35 |
| br_brakes | Shimano UR300 hydraulic discs |
| br_cranks | Shimano Metrea 42 |
| br_saddle | Vitus |
| br_wheels | Vitus 700c |
| br_headset | FSA full integrated |
| br_shifter | Shimano Metrea |
| br_cassette | Shimano 105 11-32 |
| br_seatpost | Vitus 27.2mm |
| br_handlebar | Vitus |
| br_bottomBracket | BSA |
| br_availableSizes | XS, S, M, L |
| br_rearDerailleur | Shimano Metrea |
