Norton Classic Cars for Sale

The British motorcycle manufacturer Norton Motorcycle Company was founded in England by James Lansdowne Norton in 1898. The brand's most famous bike is the Norton 16H, in production for four decades. The rights are held by Stuart Garner today.

Norton before World War One

The first Norton motorcycle was produced in 1902, using engines imported from Switzerland and France. Sporting achievement quickly followed, with class wins in the Isle of Man TT in its first year of 1907. At this point, the Norton logo was a simple, art nouveau affair wit the company name in capitals. This was also the year that Norton began to produce its own engines, and entirely British-made bikes were sold from 1908 onwards. Despite this early success, the company struggled in the marketplace and by 1913 it had to be saved by its major creditors. Over the next year, Norton motorcycles set a number of speed records, including the prestigious "flying mile" record, but the outbreak of war in August 1914 meant that many sporting events were suspended.

The glory days at Norton

1913 saw Norton adopt the logo it would retain for many decades, with a swirl leading from the initial N to surround the other letters. Two of Norton's classic models were born in those early days: the 16H and the Big 4. In various configurations, both models remained in production into the early 1950s. The 16H was a single-cylinder 490 cc model; by the 1930s there was a "Colonial" derivative for export markets which had a higher ride height to allow it to be used on rough roads and tracks. The Big 4 was a 633 cc side-valve machine which was very popular for use with sidecars. Both models, especially the 16H, were used extensively by the British military, and Norton contributed almost 100,000 bikes to the war effort during World War Two alone.

Norton's decline and revival

Norton returned to civilian motorcycle production after the war with popular lightweight models such as the Model 50 OHV tourer and the twin-cylinder Model 7. However, by the 1960s nimbler Japanese bikes were starting to dominate the UK market, though the 1969 Commando proved both powerful and popular with riders. Norton underwent several mergers and changes of ownership, as well as a largely ill-fated decision to use innovative but unreliable Wankel rotary engines – though this period did produce the Interpol 2, which became a favourite with police forces. By the early 1990s, Norton several million pounds in debt, and production came to a halt in 1992.