Vitus

About Vitus

I haven't really found much information about Vitus online. I know they are an old company. Vitus is a well known maker of bicycle tubing. According to Sheldon Brown, Vitus is “France's leading manufacturer of high-quality frame tubing.” Many early aluminum bicycles used Vitus tubing. The frames labeled as Vitus were made and assembled by the French aerospace company TVT. Vitus made early carbon fiber bikes, originally using the same designs as their high end aluminum bikes. Later Vitus carbon fiber bikes used monocoque construction They have not sold to the US since the early '90s. The last few years that Vitus frames sold in the US, they were only available through one of the major mail order companies. Vitus bicycles were available in Canada in the late '90s. They then disappeared from the internet for a while. In spring 2005, Nashbar had new old stock Vitus 979 frames for sale. Vitus now has an English website. Vitus is currently a house brand for Chain Reaction Cycles, a bike store in the UK (which for some reason has a .com address). Based on the information on their website, Chain Reaction Cycles has reasonable shipping rates to the USA.

Vitus Bikes

• Vitus 979 — I owned this one
• Vitus 979 track bike
• Vitus 989
• Vitus 992
• Vitus ZX-1 monocoque carbon bicycle (external page)

Vitus Repairs

I have heard many rumors of trouble with the bonds on the bonded (‘glued’) Vitus frames, but I only know of two examples of problems with the bonding. The first reader who had one of the joints come loose says that Vitus fixed it for him, though he had to pay the shipping. The second was more recent, and was on on a frame that has been ridden 40000 miles, including many criteriums. The second reader had his bike repaired by Steve at Open Road Bicycle Shop in Pasadena. I also have many reports of bonded Vitus frames holding up over the years, including some that are still regularly ridden.

Vitus Resources

• Bobby Sapovits has posted several pages from a 1980s Vitus brochure.