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Norton Motorcycles

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Big things are moving in the Norton Motorcycle company. After the company’s purchase by TVS, the Norton V4SV superbike program has been rebooted, with some pretty substantial changes and updates to the platform.

The British brand is set to bring a naked version of its superbike as well, showing a prototype of what is being called the Norton V4CR café racer.

True to the ethos of the café racer genre, the Norton V4CR is very much a superbike without fairings, including clip-ons rather than an upright handlebar.

What is old is new again might as well be the theme for this week, after the Crighton CR700W reemerged and the Husqvarna Norden 901 finally debut, and that theme continues now with the relaunch of the Norton V4 superbike, which has changed names to the Norton V4SV.

With the company now in the hands of India’s TVS Motor Company, the British firm is starting to make good on some of its previous owner’s promises, and one of those is making the Norton V4 work properly and land into the hands of happy customers.

The Norton Motorcycles brand has gone through the wringer this past year, with the company’s financial scandal culminating in  India’s TVS Motor Company purchasing the beleaguered British marque.

Much was said about what the future of Norton would look like under TVS ownership, but it seems clear now that the new regime is set on righting the ship.

In addition to its product lineup commitments, TVS has invested heavily in Norton’s long-term future. The latest evidence of this is the creation of a new headquarters for the iconic motorcycle brand in Solihull, in the West Midlands of England.

While the year 2020 will be known almost exclusively for something else, for Norton Motorcycles the year marks a key point in the brand’s 100+ year history.

It is the year that the British marque collapsed in on itself, with accusations of fraud and mismanagement, and was then bought by India’s TVS Motor. The full history of the brand is still being learned and written in its most current chapters, but our eyes are already turning to the future of Norton Motorcycles.

Talking about his company’s acquisition of the Norton, Sudarshan Venu (Joint Managing Director of TVS Motor) has already given us some indication on what to expect.

It has been a long sad road for Norton Motorcycles lately, and we apologize for not covering the complete debacle that has unfolded from this historic British marque.

That being said, it is hard to condense what has happened to Norton in the past few months, as well as the accusations that have been levied at the company’s CEO Stuart Garner; but cutting to the point, the company has gone bankrupt, which has lead to allegations of the mishandling of funds and even of fraud.

Now after a week of rumors regarding a pending sale, on Friday we got confirmation that Norton Motorcycles has been sold to TVS Motors, the third-largest two-wheeled manufacturer in India, with a price tag of $20 million.

Earlier today, the British site Visordown reported that Norton Motorcycles was set to go out of business, as the British Companies House (a sort of business registrar in the United Kingdom) was striking Norton Motors UK Ltd from its list and dissolving the business for inactivity.

It was a shocking development, to say the least, and though Norton is a small company, the news came as a surprise. After all, the last few months have not been kind for the small manufacturers in the motorcycle industry, with the deaths of Alta and Motus still fresh on our minds..

Norton is getting closer to releasing its next motorcycle, this one being a 650cc twin-cylinder street bike. As you can see above in the photo, courtesy of our friends at MotoFire, the Norton 650 will take a roadster form, with a positively vintage vibe.

The bike will serve as a platform though, for several 650cc motorcycles, one of which will be the basis for an Isle of Man TT race bike.

Said to make around 100hp, the Norton 650 would be a potent weapon in the Lightweight TT race class. It would also serve as a good counterpoint to Norton’s 1200cc superbike project.

A year ago, to the day, Norton announced that it was working on a street-going superbike that featured a 200hp, 1,200cc, V4 engine. Now, Norton confirms that news, saying that we will see the limited-production (200 units) machine later this fall. Yay.

On the bright side, Norton posted a concept drawing of the new bike to its Facebook page, giving us at least something new to whet our appetites on the new motorcycle.

The concept looks very similar to the sketch we saw last year, making today’s new a little bit about nothing. But, our friends at MotoFire report that Norton is still working on a 650cc project, which will debut later this year as well.

Norton Motorcycles recently got £4 million in grant funding from the UK government, funds that will go towards creating a new manufacturing facility, more jobs, and new models. All-in-all, it’s good news for the British marque and its suppliers, who will also benefit from the grant.

The good news for us though is that Norton plans to bring to market a 200hp V4-powered sport bike, not too dissimilar to the “SG” models that have been raced at the Isle of Man TT.

Adding to the good news is that British site Bike Social has gotten their hands on the sketches, and had a chance to talk to Norton’s Head of Design, Simon Skinner, about the new model and Norton’s future.

With the start of the qualifying rounds for the 2014 Isle of Man TT just two months away, Norton Motorcycles has confirmed that Cameron Donald will be riding for the British company in is this year’s TT. As such, Donald will be straddling a Norton SG3 for the Dainese Superbike and Pokerstars Senior TT events, starting in 19th position.

Both manufacturer and rider are looking to make a comeback as Norton has not seen a TT victory since 1992 and Donald saw his last victory in 2008. That is not to say that the Australian does not have an impressive track record with 10 career podium finishes, including second place in last year’s Superbike race, just behind Michael Dunlop.