£7.5 MILLION GRANT

961Story

Joined
Oct 30, 2014
Messages
71
I was at the Norton Factory the other day and bumped into Simon Skinner head of design,he was telling us about the £7.5 million that the government has backed Norton with. Seems like a huge amount of money or is it a bail out ? Sounds like it ????
 
Hello 961Story , When you were at Norton , Did you ask about any progress with some of the issues people are having . Any improvements coming along ? Did you ever solve your issue ?
 
Yes I was collecting my Sport after another head gasket,becoming quite a regular at the factory. Not sure why this hasn't been sorted once and for all..
Planning to go to the next bike night,will anyone else be going ?
 
So this investment is to build a new line? Possibly two? It really would be nice to work the bugs out of the current line, up their customer service and supply our dealerships with parts. A new 1200CC four, huh? Then what? Leave us begging for parts they can't afford to supply. sigh.....love my bike....love my bike.....love my bike.....(honestly can't wait to see what they come out with, but really....)

http://www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesocial/ne ... bgRCEW-2t_
 
This can't be good for the future development/refinement of the 961 line.
Garner was telegraphing his intensions with all the time and effort that he lavished on his “Norton” IOM TT effort over the last few years.
How much do you want to guess the new V4 will look strikingly like a bored out Aprila RSV4?
Wonderful, just what the world of motorcycling needs, another sportbike.

:(
 
Supposedly, Garner's own words.
It was posted on Bike Social, a Brit Blog.
 
Bernhard said:
tis will be exported to Australia-expect it will break down when it gets there :!: :shock: :D
Click to expand...

Would be more dignified to say:

"It may require additional adjustment when it arrives in the southern hemisphere." :lol:
 
So if Norton use every cent of the government money to build next years TT racer,would them manage to improve on this years 125mph lap ! I very much doubt it !
Rumour around the factory is that Mr Donald won't be back.
 
I personally think it’s nuts for Norton to spend money to develop a V4 or any superbike. Let’s face it. owners of 961’s have had far more problems than owners of just about any other brand of bike. What do you think will happen if Norton introduces a V4 Superbike, and there are gas tank problems, gearbox problems, starter problems, breather/airbox problems, etc.
The world is full of excellent Jap, Italian, and German superbikes at very affordable prices. How long do you think a Norton superbike with potentially numerous problems will be marketable against that kind of competition? Especially with the reputation that the 961 has with haters out there.
If Norton wants to sell superbikes they will have to super-size their quality control by several orders of magnitude to match the competition. 961 style QC will simply not do.
I hope this will not be good money down a rat hole.
 
First of all, these days, 7.5 million is not enough to save anybody. This can work either way. Either they start putting out a few different models to establish a brand like their competitors (let's face it...what company only makes one style bike?) and they really start to profit and expand, OR, they continue to neglect the guinea pigs like us, dump the grant into a super bike, piss everyone off and fail. Currently, as stated, they are using an Aprillia RSV4 engine. So who gets the major portion of that profit? Who gets the glory? (rode one of those this weekend, by the way, WOW! what a beast!) Either way, I still think the 961 is an awesome bike, but hey, we shouldn't have to be self sufficient mechanics to enjoy it. Not at that price. So we have a few talented engineer owners with 961s. Should it be an exclusive bike just for that lot? I don't think so. Fare ye well, Mr. Garner. We're pulling for you.....and us.
 
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