Launch of new 650 range

I have not be aware of this class until now. Could the rules have been developed to exclude the highly successful Ducati 750 from dominating yet another class ? You may have a winner on your hands ! Thanks for the information .
 
I won’t be racing one Tony. But I am very interested in one as I think it would be a fabulously fun thing to ride on road and track days.

I’ll try and find out what I can when I go to the NEC show this week.
 
I won’t be racing one Tony. But I am very interested in one as I think it would be a fabulously fun thing to ride on road and track days.

I’ll try and find out what I can when I go to the NEC show this week.

It is the Patton or Pattoni that is the Bike that won last year. Michael was riding 121 + speeds. I have seen lots of those bikes with the green/white colors . I thought they were only in the classic races , but I guess they've got a modern version too . Thanks for the link !
 
Also the article you linked to was written 158KG weight . That must be a typo ? Not a typo.
 
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Read the literature above for the Superlight, add a race can and add 6bhp to the figure, and that is aftermarket offered to Joe Public. I am pretty sure that Norton will have a few more tricks up their sleeves to squeeze more horses out of a TT prepped bike.
 
Agreed ! This is a very exciting time . Lots of Norton things to look forward to.
 
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Cos it’s designed for torque I’d say.

The 105bhp in the Superlight (or Supertwin I’m seeing it called elsewhere) peaks at 12,500rpm, so it’s a rather different ball game to the T120!
Not comparing the Triumph to the Norton. Comparing the Triumph to the Triumph.
 
Not comparing the Triumph to the Norton. Comparing the Triumph to the Triumph.

Cos they wanted one to be a cruise and t’other to be more sporty.

T120 has a heavier crank and lower compression ratio (amongst other things) to achieve the different characteristics.
 
Can you describe that class a bit ? Racing against 600cc 4 cyl Japanese ?
EDIT. Sorry,I mixed the bikes up totally. The bike pictured looked so like the V4RR I thought it was the V4RR you guys were talking about
 
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That may be so and good. FE posted the superlight or lightweight class rules . UP to 650 liquid cooled 2 cylinders. Air cooled can be 800cc or slightly more . So its a special niche class. A Patton won last year with Michael D riding. The other bike on the podium was a Kaw Ninja 650 twin . So its for small twins .
The 2012 specification for entries into the Lightweight TT race are defined as;-

  • Any solo machine complying with the following specifications:
    • Machines must comply with general technical rules as per ACU Standing Regulations and 2012 IOM TT regulations.
      • Any four-stroke twin cylinder motor-cycle originally sold for road use with a water-cooled engine of up to 650cc.
      • Eligible machines must be from models homologated for road use 2005 or later.
From Wiki :
 
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Britfan asked
"Kind of makes you wonder why the T120 is only 80hp when it's the same engine as the Thruxton 1200?"
Nigel responded

"Cos it’s designed for torque I’d say"


The Thruxton version has a lot more torque than the T120 right from 2500rpm to redline.
So the " high Torque" designation of the t120 is misleading.

Glen
 
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Agreed ! This is a very exciting time . Lots of Norton things to look forward to.

It was interesting that Garner mentioned that they were breaking ground on the factory construction where the new bikes will be built.
And, they expect to begin producing the bikes in April/May next year.
That's one hell of a rapid turnaround, from vacant lot to product out the door.
 
Well, at the NEC show today the Norton stand was chocka. Especially the Atlas display area. I got talking to a bloke who had just ordered two for him and his son to ship over and ride across America on!

As others have said, they really do look MUCH better in real life, the Ranger in particular is a very fine looking but of kit IMHO and I would probably have ordered one if I hadn’t been distracted by something else (see separate thread on the new Lightweight).

I got chatting to a certain Mr Skinner who was a very amiable chap, obviously very passionate about the product too and happy to chew the fat with folk on the stand. He reckons the new factory should be running in 4-5 months, hence the estimated delivery dates. Sounds a tad optimistic to me, but they’re on it!

I reckon these are gonna sell like hot cakes and it looks good for Norton !

Sorry, I didn’t take any pics due to the afformentioned distraction...!
 
I reckon these are gonna sell like hot cakes and it looks good for Norton !

I agree provided the new machines can establish a new reputation for few/no problems like these that the 961 suffered from.
The 961 established a poor repetutation that endures. Changing that is important.


Sorry, I didn’t take any pics due to the afformentioned distraction...!

That is unforgivable!
Those of us across the pond rely on you folks to provide the latest Norton product info.
Now there is a Norton 650 info gap.:(
 
Sorry. My brain can only handle so much and I was overwhelmed by the Superlight ...!
 
These new bikes have state of the art components hand made in the U K and they look fantastic .Did not want to rant on about them until others had seen them but where can you get a bike of this standard for the money.The reaction of the people attending when they started the V4 up was amazing my only concerns is the infrastructure needed to sell them to the bike being public, after sales servicing and number of dealers.Hope them every success for the future can only be good for biking.
 
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