Norton

Norton LIVES!!


The company is alive and well and living back in England! Here is a video of their rotary powered racebike. Wow what a sound! Website HERE!

Norton Comes Home
Category: Norton Racing, Press Clipping

By: Tony Norton

After nearly fifteen years of US ownership, Norton, the quintessential and most famous of British motorcycle brands returns home.

As a result of prolonged negotiations and a multi-million pound deal we can announce that the Norton motorcycle brand is, at last, back in caring British hands.

Stuart Garner a UK based businessman and owner of Norton Racing Ltd has bought back all the trademarks and development work relating to the Norton, Manx, Atlas, Commando and Dominator brands.

Norton Racing Ltd is already in development of a new rotary engined race bike and now with the ownership of the brand itself plans are being developed to introduce a new road bike for 2009.

‘This has been a challenging and exciting period for us’ Commented Garner ‘We are proud to have brought the brands back home and we now intend to focus on re-establishing Norton as a premier motorcycling brand across the World’ he added.

In the early nineties the brands were bought by Norton Motorcycles Inc in the USA with the view of developing a new Commando road bike for the US market. Nearly $10 million was spent on IP, design and development, and this development work has formed part of the new deal. The investment can now be brought to bear on the new global project for the Norton Commando 961.

Norton intend to develop a strong presence on the track and on the road during 2009 with a new 15000 sq foot factory and office complex based at Donington Park – Norton are at the heart of motorcycle racing once again and committed to investment to make the initiative work.

As well as creating a new ‘state of the art’ road bike the Norton brands will see a vigourous licensing programme through Norton Global Brands to safeguard and develop licensing of all kinds from spare parts to clothing.
Commenting on the programme Garner said ‘Our trade marks and brand have incredible strength and value, we will strongly enforce our position as the new owners of these world famous brands and ensure our new partners benefit from a robust protection programme going forward’.

‘This is the beginning of a new and exciting era in a brand that was started over 100 years ago by James Lansdowne Norton. It has sustained ups and downs over the years but still stands for performance and excellence. These will be the standards we live by from now on’ stated Garner.”

Some more Norton action..


sorry about all the Nortons but I’ve recently been made aware of a local Commando that’s complete except for tank, seat and gauges for next to nothing so I’ve got Norton on the brain lately. Decisions decisions… I’m already so invested in 2-strokes and I’m too low on storage space to start in with old brit bikes…. hmmm…

Rusty Old Norton Commando.


Most folks see a bike like this and visualize the “end product” of a restoration after hundreds of hours of work and thousands of dollars spent. I tend to lean the other way. I think a bike like this makes for a great rider. No fussing over every bug splatter. Just ride the damm thing and enjoy yourself. As long as it’s a mechanically safe and sound bike, then you should just revel in it’s patina. Let the vacuum sealed 100 point restoration fanatics stay at home or on the showgrounds.

Remember, “rust never sleeps” but chrome sure does..

A shoutout to the Blogroll!


I’ve been thinking about all the great blogs I’ve discovered since I started this little hobby. I really enjoy checking into them regularly and I hope my readers are heading over there too. I realize that a few of them are not in English and a few are more motorcycle culture than motorcycles in particular. But please don’t let that stop you. A picture is worth a thousand words after all and there is a TON of interesting pictures and stories and info.

While I’m at it, I just added a link today to a fellow who seems to be on to something. He’s literally brand new but I think he’s got a good idea. His webpage has a first rate layout and he’s got a great philosophy. Go give him (and everyone else) a look and maybe a friendly suggestion or two.

I think a good site for digging into the technical side of these old bikes is a great idea. Check him out at Vintage Motorcycle Tech

His first post is sure a beauty.

Triton. Cafe Racer porn..


drool… Just you average flawless Norton featherbed framed Triumph powered “Triton” leaning up against a barrier. ho hum…

"Cafe Rouge" Norton.


We here at “Motorcycle Picture of the Day” do not endorse doing this to a Norton… at all. But you have to be awestruck at the amount time effort and detail that went in to this… this… well decide for yourself I suppose. different strokes and all that.