It ' s more than five years since Norton ' s previous iteration collapsed into ignominious bankruptcy before its key assets were bought by India ' s TVS, who immediately reorganised into a new business carrying the famous name. Since then, more than £ 200m has been ploughed into a new factory in Birmingham, England- not far from Norton ' s original home- and now a newly developed range made its debut at EICMA. Four bikes were unveiled at the show: a pair of V4-powered, 1,200 cc machines under the ' Manx ' banner and two 585 cc parallel twins carrying the ' Atlas ' name. They ' re set to be joined by two further models in the near future to complete a planned sixmodel lineup. The Manx R, a V4 superbike based around the engine developed for the " Garner-era " V4SS back in 2016, and heavily redesigned to power the V4SV and V4CR since the TVS takeover, is the first to reach production. The engine has been revamped once again, taking power up from 185 hp to 206hp, and |
more importantly bringing into line with Euro5 + homologation standards and other international emissions rules, allowing the bike to be offered internationally- with target markets in Europe, India and the USA. The engine ' s tune focusses on usable performance across a wide rev range
" Five years of TVS ownership and investment reflected in 2026 lineup "
rather than outright power, with the peak arriving at a relatively low-forthe-class 11,500 rpm, and more outright torque than its competitors, hitting 130 Nm at 9,000 rpm. All that torque is controlled via a suite of rider assists including cornering
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traction control, wheelie control, slide control, launch control, multiple engine modes and a quickshifter. A new, cast alloy chassis replaces the TIG-welded tubular aluminium design of the earlier V4 superbike models, and is paired to Marzocchi electronically controlled, semi-active suspension that ' s connected to the bike ' s IMU, throttle and brakes to modify settings as you ride. It ' s that suspension that Norton says eliminates the need for the winglets that have sprouted on all its key rivals ' bodywork. BST carbon fibre wheels, Brembo Hypure brakes and an 8-inch touchscreen dash( the touch function works only when stationary, for safety) are other key elements that give the bike a high-end look and feel, along with aluminium switch blocks on the bars, and a level of technology that includes not only phone connectivity but smartwatch connectivity to send notifications from the bike to your wrist. The Manx R shares its 206 hp |
powertrain, chassis and technology with the naked Manx roadster, but Norton has revealed less about the two Atlas models that will follow. The Atlas adventure bike and the more street biased Atlas GT, which swaps dual-purpose wire wheels for 17-inch alloys, both use a new 585 cc parallel twin, but few specifications have been revealed. The engine appears to be related to the 420 cc twin that ' s been launched for 2026 in the BMW F450GS, which makes sense as the BMW is also built by TVS, which is expected to adopt the engine in its own models in the future, just as it did with the 313 cc single-cylinder engine from the BMW G310 range that ' s built on behalf of BMW by TVS in India. Norton says the Atlas models have a 270-degree crankshaft, though- unlike the unusual 135-degree design used by BMW ' s F450 motor- and that like the Manx models the Atlas will feature a six-axis IMU with cornering traction control and ABS, slide control, launch control and cornering cruise control. |
The name Thunderbolt might be associated with Buells from the 1990s but way back in the 1960s it graced a BSA model. Now it has returned to that brand on a new 350 cc adventure bike. After Buell ' s rights to the name expired, along with its claim to another ex-BSA title, Lighting, BSA filed trademark applications covering both badges back in 2023. Now the BSA Thunderbolt is reality, albeit on a much smaller machine than either the original BSA or the Buell that last used the badge. The original BSA Thunderbolt was a 650cc twin, but the new machine borrows its 344cc, liquid-cooled single |
from the BSA Bantam. It ' s also used by the Roadster, Scrambler and Adventure models offered by BSA ' s sister company, Yezdi, which is another part of owner Mahindra ' s Classic Legends stable. In the Thunderbolt, the 334 cc motor puts out 29.16 hp and 29.56 Nm of torque- both unusually specific claims- driving through a six-speed transmission. The numbers are nearly identical to the figures claimed for the Bantam, suggesting both bikes use the same state of tune. The chassis is a simple, tubular steel design, with non-adjustable 41 mm forks and a preload-adjustable |
monoshock, offering 200 mm and 180 mm of travel respectively, while the 21- inch front and 17-inch rear wire wheels |
mean the bike can accept serious offroad tyres if you really want to venture far from the beaten track. |