In January 2020 Norton Motorcycles, then owned and run by Stuart Garner, collapsed into bankruptcy, and on April 17 that same year was acquired from the liquidator - for a cash payment of £16 million - by India's third largest motorcycle manufacturer, TVS Motor Company. Currently manufacturing more than three million powered two-wheelers annually at its factory near Bangalore, TVS has also been associated with BMW Motorrad since April 2013. That's when the two companies signed a long-term contract for TVS to manufacture sub-500cc BMW-branded motorcycles for global sale, with over 100,000 examples of the single-cylinder BMW G310R and G310GS built in India for sale around the world. The BMW CE-02 electric scooter, which began production in October 2023, was also developed by the Indian manufacturer in conjunction with BMW.
After acquiring Norton, TVS invested a further £100,000 in establishing and equipping a new state-ofthe-art Norton factory on the southern outskirts of Birmingham, Norton's traditional home city where it was founded in 1898. TVS then re-engineered the existing Garner-era Commando 961 to make it production-friendly, and to meet Euro 4 compliance.
Even though it was under no legal obligation to do so, TVS management - led by joint MD Sudarshan Venu committed to manufacturing a series of Commando 961 Classic variants for delivery at no additional cost to the 29 customers who had paid Garner's by then defunct company for their bikes, before launching the updated product to the general public, as the first new series production Norton model under TVS ownership.
Denne historien er fra May 2024-utgaven av Motorcycle Sport & Leisure.
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Denne historien er fra May 2024-utgaven av Motorcycle Sport & Leisure.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Honda CRF1100L ES Africa Twin
Without panniers he was adventuring nowhere - so at least Bertie's got something sorted now
BMW R 12 nineT
Chad gets a track day surprise when BMW's R 12 nineT turns out to be surprisingly fun on track
Test fleet: VOGE 525 DSX
After testing the Voge's abilities on a long ride, it was time to take it to the Cotswolds and see how it would manage on the rougher stuff
Portuguese Perambulations
Nearly over before it had begun, a brief workshop stint allows Spain and Portugal to be explored
Highway to Heaven
Three friends take on the challenge of riding the length of Canada, from Vancouver in the southwest to Inuvik in the north. The road is long, the conditions merciless, and wildfires are tearing through the country. To top it all off, the final leg of the journey is the ultimate test of gravel riding skills, nerves, and courage - it's the legendary Dempster Highway...
Battlaxes at the ready!
We tend to take tyres for granted, never really looking at them in any detail, or at how they work, just hoping that they keep us shiny side up at all times. Even in the wet
Ducati Riding Experience
When I rode the Ducati DesertX to France last year, I did have a bit of an explore on some easy fire roads and gentle green lanes in the wilds of the Médoc area, but was left with the feeling that, had I the experience, the DesertX would have been capable of taking me along some more extreme trails to some even more exciting places. If only there was a way of finding out just how well the Italian adventure bike could cope with some more extreme terrain...
Four pot flyer
Many said that sports bikes, and particularly bikes in the traditional Supersports class that was populated by 600cc inline fours, were dead. Maybe they spoke too soon?...
Eastern adventurer
With an increasing interest in smaller capacity adventure bikes, the market expands with a new entry
First Time Lucky?
It's ironic that the first all-new MV Agusta model to hit the marketplace right after Italy's No.1 trophy brand was acquired by Austrian giant Pierer Mobility, owner of off-road titans KTM, should be the company's first dual-purpose model of the modern era, powered by MV's all-new 931cc three-cylinder engine that's destined to form the basis of a whole series of new models in coming months and years.
