The right kind of Vyrus

New Alyen matches next generation hub-centre steering with last generation Ducati V-twin lunacy

‘It is pure technological madness… an absolutely new way of thinking’

The latest creation from Italian manufacturer Vyrus is their most extreme yet, which is saying something. The new Alyen (pronounced alien, obvs) has hub-centre steering partly operated by hydraulics, a magnesium frame and swingarms, and was made without any clay modelling – the design went straight from computer to 3D printer.

‘It is pure technological madness,’ Vyrus boss Ascanio Rodorigo admits to Bike. ‘It is the continuum of our lineage, but this time we wanted to dedicate extra design effort to create an absolutely new way of thinking.’

There’s certainly a lot of new thinking going on. The steering is perhaps the most interesting aspect; instead of the traditional cluster of rods and rose joints connecting the handlebars to the front wheel that you’d see on a Bimota Tesi or a previous Vyrus, the Alyen uses a wire per handlebar to activate a piston in a hydraulic line which transfers the steering forces to the front wheel. The system has redundancy built in, so if one side fails, you can still steer. ‘It is simple but e…cient,’ says Ascanio. ‘Each wire terminates in a 6mm rod that functions as a piston and acts on a special nanoparticle fluid. This gives steering fluency and absorbs vibration from the road.’ Much of the chassis is made from a new magnesium alloy, which is claimed to be 30 per cent lighter than the best aluminium alloys. The problem with magnesium alloys has been their tendency to corrode, but Vyrus say the new alloy can be guaranteed ‘for life’. You have to hope they’re right, as the main Omega frame, front and rear swingarms, steering connectors, radiator supports, shift lever and rear brake lever are all made of it. Combined with lashings of carbon fibre, the magnesium makes the bike outrageously light – Ascanio says wet weight is 155kg. Couple this with 205bhp from Ducati’s 1299cc Superquadro V-twin and you have a power to weight ratio not far off a World Superbike. ‘It is extraordinary to ride,’ says Ascanio. ‘It has no real purpose [like a tourer or sportsbike] – it’s an artistic creation.’