Best of luck. Hope the quality is there.
Clint Eastwood was a Norton guy. When not cruising his thumping two-cylinder Norton Commando along the winding roads through the pines and redwoods near his beloved Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, Eastwood used machines from the storied British motorcycle manufacturer while on location for movies such as Where Eagles Dare and Kelly’s Heroes (see earlier post - CW).
Founded in 1898 in Birmingham, England, Norton has had a rough ride since the glory days of the 1950s, when its Manx models dominated racetracks around the world and its road bikes were considered superior to contemporary BSA or Triumph machines. It went through a string of owners and several bankruptcies before being acquired in April 2020 by TVS Motor Company, India’s third-largest motorcycle manufacturer.
Norton used the Manx name between 1936 and 1962 for its racing models, acknowledging its numerous victories in the grueling TT races held on the Isle of Man. (Manx is a term used to describe the Celtic language, people, and customs of the island, as well as its famous tail-less cats.) But the Manx and Manx R are anything but retro machines. New from the wheels up, both are powered by a liquid-cooled 1200-cc 72-degree V-4 engine that develops 206 hp at 11,000 rpm and 93 lb-ft of torque at 9000 rpm. The power and torque peaks arrive at relatively modest engine speeds by modern superbike standards, but after analyzing real-world telemetry to understand how such bikes were ridden in everyday conditions, Norton’s engineers concluded there was little need for an ultra-high-revving powerplant. This insight defined the fundamentals of the engine’s development, with the goal of delivering class-leading torque and usable power between 5000 and 10,000 rpm.
In the middle of an oil crisis, is it smart to come out with a British bike?
ReplyDeleteIt's just another big show about oil, as always. Those at the top want to fleece those below them one last time. It's all been done before.
Deleteif it is in real life what it is on paper, it'll absolutely eat the Ducati's.
ReplyDeleteMy late neuro-surgeon acquaintance, who had a large collection of venomous reptiles, once told me that at least half of his high 6 figure income(in the 80s and early 90s) came from people injured riding motorcycles. Helmets or not.
ReplyDeleteNever ridden one, never owned one.
They are sometimes fatal. Yet, you don't know what you are missing. It takes months of learning and practise to become competent riding a sport bike. Just competent, not good. Integrating traction changes from weight shift, surface condtions, Imagine the best handling auto you've driven. Now multiply that by two orders of magnitude. Processing enormous input data RIGHT NOW. Likely, you've never felt more alive.
DeleteAn early death and/or crippling injury at far higher rates than automobiles are what I'm missing, and that's just when riding safely and sanely, never mind how some idjits flog their crotch rockets. Hard pass on that but you do you. Organ donors welcome!
DeleteV-4? Whoa.
ReplyDeleteHarley x 2.
Lawrence of Arabia has entered the chat.
ReplyDeleteSlap a classic name and model moniker on a cookie cutter bike and this is what you get. It ain't no Norton and sure as hell ain't a Manx.
ReplyDeleteThat's kind of my take- what's the connection between this bike and the old Norton company? That company has been murdered a couple of times- at best this bike has a nice decal on the tank that says Norton. It might as accurately say Spaghetti-O's
ReplyDeleteI’m sure that Indian expertise will keep this gem going /s
ReplyDelete