Norton ..... again? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Norton ..... again?

Chris-CJ

Chris-CJ

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This time, the chances of Norton having a more sustained product run are better.
The new owners, TVS with Venu (their chairman) in the saddle are committed to the long-term. The good news is that TVS is using local management and talent and this will preserve the focus of the marque.
Why am I optimistic?
Many years back when TVS first collaborated with Suzuki to launch their brand of motorcycles in India, I had visited their factory and R&D. Know that now, the BMW 310 is manufactured there. Venu, is a motorcyclist himself!

More news here:

Norton widen their net: Partnership with sportscar firm announced for latest dealership

www.motorcyclenews.com
 
I honestly didn't expect that TVS would keep the same model lineup. V4 is still uninteresting to me, waiting to see the Atlas hit the market
 
You know, that's an amazing looking bike, but I bet it disappears into an already crowded field of excellent performers. The sport bike market is so hyper-competitive, with breathtaking acceleration and handling beyond what any mortal human can fully exploit, that it just seems redundant to have yet another choice on the market.
 
Chris-CJ said:
beautiful bike, to die for!
lets see if it gets on the road, has the "go" and is built better (no disrespect RE!) to the other owned-by-India-company bike.
Click to expand...
Apples and oranges - the Norton is what, triple the price of the RE ?
 
TwistedKestrel said:
I honestly didn't expect that TVS would keep the same model lineup. V4 is still uninteresting to me, waiting to see the Atlas hit the market
Click to expand...
?!?! How can a v4 not get the old heart pounding a bit more? The sound is amazing, power pretty much across the board... So much more intoxicating than any boring i2 or i4 (with the exception of the Yamaha cross-plane)...
 
BigEvilDoer said:
?!?! How can a v4 not get the old heart pounding a bit more? The sound is amazing, power pretty much across the board... So much more intoxicating than any boring i2 or i4 (with the exception of the Yamaha cross-plane)...
Click to expand...
IDK. Maybe it's that it has a lot of garish garnish (carbon fibre bellypan? OK) or that it looks like somebody built it around a chrome plated Triumph Sprint frame, or that it has the style of exhaust that I've come to despise the few times I've encountered it in real life. Like I don't actually hate it, I am just 'meh' about it
 
Roadghost said:
You know, that's an amazing looking bike, but I bet it disappears into an already crowded field of excellent performers. The sport bike market is so hyper-competitive, with breathtaking acceleration and handling beyond what any mortal human can fully exploit, that it just seems redundant to have yet another choice on the market.
Click to expand...

I agree.

Somewhat extended rear swingarm for sure. I do like it but I wouldn't buy a Norton.
 
www.nortonmotorcycles.com

Norton Moves To New HQ | Norton Motorcycles

We’re pleased to announce that Norton Motorcycles has a new home! Our production team will begin the move to our state-of-the-art facilities based in Solihull, West Midlands.
www.nortonmotorcycles.com www.nortonmotorcycles.com

The Norton "wheels" appear to be turning!
 
The V4SV, is the model designation for production release, 185 horses from a V4 wrapped in attractive bodywork, the costing has not been released and fingers-crossed that TVS will bring the price down from the stratospheric MSRP of the previous Norton iterations.
More info here:
www.bennetts.co.uk

New Norton: Behind the Scenes (inc. exclusive video)

18-months after the TVS takeover, Norton’s new state-of-the-art production facility is finally ready. Join us for a tour and exclusive video interview with the new CEO.
www.bennetts.co.uk
 
Hearing this name...I always think it's a ploy to get me to install some free antivirus software....sorry....got me twice already.
 
Forget the bike. Is that not the ugliest couch you've ever seen.
 
Just to give a background, TVS as a manufacturer makes better quality motorcycles than any other Indian manufacturer. Their RR310 (which I believe shares the same engine with BMW GS310 if I remember correctly) is a nice-looking bike. A tad upright for my liking but I still wouldn't mind owning it.

www.asphaltandrubber.com

The TVS Apache RR 310 Is Finally Here - Et Tu, BMW?

As expected, the TVS Apache RR 310 debuted today in India, thus ending the bike's nearly year-long delay in coming to market. Why do we care so much about a motorcycle that will likely never set foot on US soil? Because at the heart of the TVS Apache RR 310 is BMW Motorrad's next...
www.asphaltandrubber.com www.asphaltandrubber.com

If I were still in India and had to choose a 400, I would pick the RC390 first and RR310 probably would be my next choice. However, their quality is still not comparable to the Japanese manufacturers.

So, I'm interested to see how it goes for Norton and TVS :)
Chris-CJ said:
beautiful bike, to die for!
lets see if it gets on the road, has the "go" and is built better (no disrespect RE!) to the other owned-by-India-company bike.
Click to expand...
 
Warning: extreme cynicism follows...

TVS or no, the way the previous iteration of Norton completely screwed their customers (both by keeping deposits on undelivered bikes and by delivering unrideable bikes), followed by this version first promising to take care of them, then changing tack and telling them they were on their own (after discovering what absolute pieces of sh!te the bikes are), and I wouldn't go anywhere near one of these overpriced ornaments. They even hung on to some of the people most egregiously responsible for the screwing of said customers until forced not to by various regulatory agencies because of convictions for such shenanigans as stripping parts from customer bikes in for warranty to build new ones, then leaving the existing customers to twist in the wind.

If I were in the market for an overpriced boutique bike (I expect these will be priced north of £50,000 or ~$85,000), I'd be calling Keanu Reeves first, or at least giving the TVS version of Norton a solid 10 years to prove they don't take their customers for granted...

I don't even think the superbike is particularly good looking, seeming to borrow the bulbous front lines from various Buells and early reincarnated Triumphs, while the tail looks like every half-ars*d streetfighter nub from the '90s. There's nothing performance-wise that puts in the same class as any mass-produced superbike from Suzuki, Kawasaki, Honda, Yamaha, Aprilia, Ducati or BMW, and the only piece of unique tech seems to be a rearview camera (which I had in my 2008 Tacoma)...
 
Have to agree with Priller on most of what he says (above).
However knowing TVS (the previous MD commuted on a 'busa) and the uncanny resemblance of one of their products to the BMW 310, I will guess that they will make a "go" of it.
Hopefully the "new" Norton does not have a boutique bike price.
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