Norton motorcycles has new and wonderful things in the works. For one, the headquarters was moved from Oregon, USA back to the temperate isle beauty of the UK. That was in 2008. Since then they’ve slammed the Pro/Engineer 3D modeling gauntlet down and redesigned the entire 961 motorbike. Seat, engine, fueltank, attitude… everything.
Redesign a Motorcycle
So why the move? Why the redesign? Stuart Garner, pyrotechnics manufacturer from the Midlands, committed to seeing the Norton legacy thrive in the country of it’s origin, bought the company and put right back in Donington Park, just south of Derby. The redesign came out of desire to sell the bike after manufacturing it. Imagine that. In order to sell a motorcycle in the UK, Europe and other environmentally regulated parts of the world, the motorcycle needed to drop the carbs and be outfitted with a fuel injection system. So, they designed a brand new Parallel twin, air-cooled block with 80PS at 6500RPM. They used Pro/Engineer Foundation X/E (pdf) to design the engine and the rest of the bike over a twelve month period.
Along with cooking up camshafts and coolness in Pro/E, they went hardcore and also used the integrated CAM capabilities to whip out test parts and Pro/MECHANICA for analyzing such things as frames and swing arms. Beasty belly-shovers that live up to the Norton appeal could now be churned out for the masses. The bike, available in Sport, Cafe Racer and SE flavors, is now in full production, ready to rattle the gravel of the UK motorways. Oh, you want a price? Here’s the breakdown.
Norton Commando 961 Sport – £12,495 (US $19,513)
Norton Commando 961 Cafe Racer – £13,995 (US $21,855)
Norton Commando 961SE – £15,995 (US $24,980)
With each motorcycle design screaming of style and reaking of vintage delight, it just may be worth the cost, if you’ve got the cash.
