Someone Will Buy Norton Eventually
The tragic story of Norton Motorcycles and all of the people wrapped up in the company’s issues has been a focal point of motorcycle news for a while now. The company appears to have been horribly mismanaged and has entered administration as of January. Not surprisingly, interested buyers are taking a look at the iconic company despite its millions in debt.
According to a new report by Bloomberg, TVS Motors, the third-largest motorcycle manufacturer in India, is taking a good hard look at Norton and considering buying the motorcycle company. This move, if undertaken, would allow TVS to branch out to more premium models. Currently, the company is on a downswing with its shares having fallen 40 percent this year. Norton could be a brand to help the company claw some of that back.
TVS approached Norton’s administrators about a potential deal. However, no final decision has been made on whether or not the company will officially bid on Norton. According to Car and Bike, the CEO of Norton sold the rights to the 961 engine to a Chinese company, so that could be a major issue if TVS wanted to continue making bikes base around that powerplant. I’m sure there are more issues with a potential deal between TVS and Norton, and I’ll report on them as I come across them.
Norton could work around that , maybe….buy and use Triumph engines. Harley at one point, if i remember correctly, used Indian engines.
Triumph engines would certainly be a smart fit here, but I think the Norton engine was part of the appeal of their bikes. I hesitate to say that sales would be as good. TVS would either have to buy back the rights or come up with its own engine design. It has the resources and could develop a similar engine to the original Norton mills. If they move forward with this, I hope they go that route rather than sourcing engines from Triumph.
First it was Royal Enfield, then BSA and now Norton. All big British classic marques now owned by Indian companies. Hopefully others like AJS, Ariel and Matchless etc also follow suit.