2009 norton 961

[brix821]

i think i like the right side up forks..... anywho i will take the cafe racer in black

[DucSeason]

After seeing that video, I soooo wish they would sell those here.

[Travman]

After seeing that video, I soooo wish they would sell those here.

They do sell the new Nortons here.  If you are bold enough and have the money just call South Bay Norton.  It may take a year or more to be in your driveway, but it could happen.  For now there is one importer/dealer in the U.S.
http://www.southbaynorton.com/

[DucSeason]

They do sell the new Nortons here.  If you are bold enough and have the money just call South Bay Norton.  It may take a year or more to be in your driveway, but it could happen.  For now there is one importer/dealer in the U.S.
http://www.southbaynorton.com/

Yeah, well, I live in Florida. I was hoping for a dealer a little bit more "local." 

[duccarlos]

Yeah, well, I live in Florida. I was hoping for a dealer a little bit more "local." 

Good luck. Before it hits FL, they will open a dealer in NY and work their way dog. Noston's will have to sell almost mainstream before they open a dealer down here.

[DucSeason]

Yeah, yeah, I know. "Cold day in D.C." Around these parts we're lucky we even have Ducati. The nearest BMW dealer is over 2 hours away, and there's no place local where MV or Aprilia can be had. Heck, we may not even have Suzuki much longer.

[Travman]

New Norton vs. Triumph video with a retro 70's vibe.
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid711883929?bctid=78236115001

[duccarlos]

That Norton looks and sounds so much better.

[Travman]

Agreed.  The only place you can even hear the Triumph is around 0:57-1:03.  The Norton makes good sounds.  The stock Triumph sounds weak.  Although, I have heard Bonnevilles on YouTube with aftermarket exhausts that sounded nice. 

[Travman]

Evidently a stock Norton 961 just made some sort of record at Bonneville this August.
The story is now on their website. http://www.nortonmotorcycles.com/

[triangleforge]

Bringing this thread back from the dead seems somehow appropriate; an interesting interview with Norton's Stuart Garner about the future of Norton. Norton has a future, you say? Fair question. Still seems mighty slippery, but I'd love to see the marque back on the road:

http://rideapart.com/2013/05/stuart-garner-on-nortons-future/

[El-Twin]

Bringing this thread back from the dead seems somehow appropriate; an interesting interview with Norton's Stuart Garner about the future of Norton. Norton has a future, you say? Fair question. Still seems mighty slippery, but I'd love to see the marque back on the road:

This is my own spin, of course, but Nortons just stir feelings from back in the day.

I think it's because many grizzled veterans, many on this forum, were schooled on the British bikes of the '60s. Triumphs, BSAs and Nortons spring to mind.

Then this same group caught the Japanese wave of the '70s and rode it all the way to families and other "respectable" commitments. At that point, many were knocked out of the saddle.

But the memories of youth are strong, and here we are today admiring simple mechanical beauty and considering the possibilities....

/End of wishful thinking....

[Travman]

It sounds like these new Nortons will always be built to order, which means they will not sell in big numbers. If they ever do start being shipped to the U.S. nobody will ever have a chance to ride one unless you are the person who orders the bike.  This is probably the only way a small maker can come close to staying profitable.

[Curmudgeon]

This is my own spin, of course, but Nortons just stir feelings from back in the day.

I think it's because many grizzled veterans, many on this forum, were schooled on the British bikes of the '60s. Triumphs, BSAs and Nortons spring to mind.

Then this same group caught the Japanese wave of the '70s and rode it all the way to families and other "respectable" commitments. At that point, many were knocked out of the saddle.

But the memories of youth are strong, and here we are today admiring simple mechanical beauty and considering the possibilities....

/End of wishful thinking....

This sounds like a personal "story". You survived a CB500 and she made you sell it?! She must be one hell of a cook! Mine wasn't, so I ditched her and kept the kid for "ballast". And He was BIG, so rode on the back with full gear from age 4.

You've only had 4 bikes? I'm on #35. Not everybody went Jap though. In the '60's I had a 250 Sachs, 175 Tiger Cub, 250 Ducati Diana factory race bike, and R26 and an R69S.

As my kid reminds me, a lot of old bikes were pretty awful and reliability was dicey. A pal's 650 Bonneville went OK but reminded me of a Jeep Wrangler. At the time I was on an early R90S with 40mm Dellortos which needed little.

One of my Benz mechanics rode an 850 Commando which seemed reasonable and had that trick frame so that it didn't shake both itself and the rider apart! HE carried spares and knew how to keep it going and took some long tours on it. Just to REALLY mess up your head, have a look at this hedge fund guy toy! http://coloradonortonworks.com/about-us/photo-gallery/?album=1&gallery=59

As for the new ones, IMO that's a lot of scratch for an unknown quantity which can't touch your Evo and might not be around in a few moons.

Four years ago I broke my shoulder bigtime (don't ask) and could no longer handle my K100RS 16/ABS. I needed a "standard" motorcycle to have something to ride. I bought a T-100 because it was cute and I could manage it. Was $7,800 with warts and $1,200 later it's rideable and a nice "cruiser" in the vein of an R90/6. The engine is delightful, very understressed, and they go 100,000+ miles with minimal maintenance.

When Bloor, who has tons of cash, decided to revive Triumph, he did not make the mistake of starting with a "retro" but waited to establish a good reputation first. Bonneville came back in 2001 and was an immediate hit, perhaps because Japs didn't offer a "standard" except for the W650. On balance the T-100 is better. It has remained relatively cheap and popular with minor updates, but it weighs a ton!

This 961 has a nice chassis and components but still weighs a lot more than your Evo. I'd be tickled if my T-100 only weighed that though!

IF..., Triumph made a hot-rod Bonneville based on the current bike, with premium components and a double cradle which wasn't made of water pipe and had alloy spoked wheels, I might have paid $12,000 for that. Fact is..., not enough people would buy it, even though a huge number buy "little" Harleys. Lots of people have $20,000 in their Bonnevilles and are still stuck with the water pipe chassis. All that stuff is SOOO much cheaper for a manufacturer to buy from scratch. Mine's still nice on bad backroads now that I've partially "fixed" the suspension. It's also a pleasure in town because that engine has so much low end torque. (Vibes don't start until 5,000 RPM = 80 MPH.) Over 70 MPH it's pretty windy though. My 796 is dead calm at 80 relatively speaking.

After this ramble..., my point is..., this 961 has limited appeal IMO to many besides bond traders. Not sure they're enough to float new Norton's boat!

NB, upside down forks also look funny on a retro IMO. I see they fixed that on the "Sport".

[El-Twin]

This sounds like a personal "story".

It is 

You survived a CB500 and she made you sell it?! She must be one hell of a cook!

She was... And still is.  She was also one hell of a passenger.

You've only had 4 bikes?

Hey, a 32 year gap will do that to you.