Ahead of the 2012 Motor Bike Expo that takes place in Verona from January 20th to 22th, Motocicli Speciali of Cremona, Norton’s official importer in Italy has teamed up high end fashion brand + People created by Pier spa of Treviso and designer Luca Bucari to give three Norton Commando 961s an exclusive Italian styke fashion makeover.

The Norton + People special editions will be displayed during the show, which will then be followed by a spring tour where the bikes will be exhibited in over 20 fashion boutiques in Milan, Rome, Florence, Venice and Naples and later in five stores in Germany along with a Norton (+) People garment line.

It’s a mixed motorcycle news day as reports of the continuing economic crisis and its effect on the European motorcycle market continue (Italy’s July motorcycles sales for 2011 are down 23 percent on last year), but now we get the announcement that Norton Motorcycles from the UK is receiving a government grant.

Getting the Norton brand off the ground and selling bikes is no easy task, and the trade loan from the UK government has been issued under the Exports Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme. The funds will go to increasing Norton production to 1,000 units a year, but we’re guessing that they won’t be looking at Italy for high sales.

Under the agreement, Norton will receive £625,000 (approx. €715,000) from the Santander bank to increase its production. The export financing is also expected to provide more jobs as Norton expands its workforce to 60 full time staff by 2012. Head of Norton Motorcycles, Stuart Garner, says:

The ExEFG scheme has enabled our business to grow rapidly to meet the demands of an ever increasing international customer base and I am thrilled we now have the opportunity to take on more staff to join our team. This scheme will not only benefit Norton and the local area, by supporting enterprising firms across the country it will help drive forward the British economy.

Here’s hoping we get to see some more Norton Commando models coming our way as the company expands, despite the difficult economic environment the motorcycle industry is in right now.

Source | MCN

The flaming wheels of the Norton Motorcycle in this ad are only really a small part of the Gucci Guilty commercial - the rest doesn’t leave much to the imagination to be perfectly honest. But it seems motorcycles are coming back into a heyday of cool and enjoying some product placement - especially after the Keira Knightley, Chanel and Ducati trio got things started. I’ll be honest and say I prefer this ad for its leather-clad subject matter…. and the retro, café racer Norton bike.

Source | Motorbiker.org

One of the rumors that rocked during last summer’s racing hiatus was that Norton was working on a MotoGP bike, and they even signed a tentative agreement with Dorna about placing two bikes on the grid in 2012 when CRT teams get the chance to compete in the very expensive high profile championship.

When MCN revealed a CAD drawing of Norton’s new 1000cc V4 engine and that it’s going on the dyno in the following weeks, some imaginations went into overdrive, just like this Motoblog.it reader Mario Fedele, a wannabe Pierre Terblanche, offered up his idea of how the Norton MotoGP bike could look like once completed.

Send your funny, bizarre or surprising pics to us and we’ll post them, with your name. We’d love to share what you guys find in the world of motorcycling! Send to: pics@twowheelsblog.com

Pierre Terblanche, the famed motorcycle designer will be putting his brilliant skills to work for Norton Motorcylces and will head their product development and design department.

Terblanche the former head designer for Ducati, credited for designing such models as the Supermono, the Hypermotard, the 888, the 999 and the original Multistrada. Leaving Ducati in 2007, he did a stint in designing boats and then headed to Piaggio to work alongside former and Ducati colleague, Miguel Angel Galluzzi who designed the Ducati Monster. His recent designs include the 2009 Moto Guzzi V12 concepts.

“Norton is one of the great names in motorcycling, and it was too good a chance to pass up to be involved in bringing it back to its former glory, by creating something fresh and new by drawing on its history, but expressing it in a modern context,” said Terblanche.

“Pierre’s experience of bringing innovative new products to the marketplace will be a vital factor in developing the Norton range, while paying due respect to its traditions,” says Stuart Garner, owner Norton Motorcycles. “His proven ability to think outside the envelope while respecting the image of the marque he’s working with makes it very exciting to have him come here to Britain and work for us. Combining his flair for original concepts with Norton’s sporting traditions will allow us to create a range of motorcycles bearing the historic Norton badge that’ll be unlike anything else in the marketplace.”

Source | hellforleathermagazine.com

After reading about the rumor that Norton will be entering MotoGP in 2012, the famed motorcycle designer Oberdan Bezzi has come with his idea of what the Norton MotoGP bike should look like with this cool looking rendering.

Apparently the Norton rumor is not a rumor at all, because if you check out the cover of this week’s issue of MCN you’ll see a small headline stating that Norton is confirming their MotoGP plan with all-new four-cylinder bike.

Double take. While we thought Norton wanted to return to racing through the BSB and/or WSBK championships with their 210hp rotary engine, it now seems that they are looking to make a much bigger step by entering MotoGP when the series returns to the 1000cc displacement in 2012.

According to Gunther Wiesinger of the German language Speedweek who leaked the news, Norton’s CEO Stuart Garner has already signed an agreement with Dorna’s Carmelo Ezpeleta to field a two man team on the 2012 grid.

Returning to racing through MotoGP is part of a long-term and ambitious marketing plan by Garner, (who bought the legendary Norton marque in 2008 which is now based at Donington Park) who wants to introduce a brand new range of high-tech road bikes in the future and MotoGP Championship is the high profile platform which to do it from.

Whether Norton will be entering a full fledged factory prototype team or a CRT team will be up to the Grand Prix Commission to decide under the new FIM rules issued at Brno and we could see two more bikes on the grid and English made ones at that and hopefully they won’t be a chimera like FB Corse.

Source | speedweek.ch via motomatters.com

Norton will be back to motorcycle racing next year with a brand new Norton superbike fitted with a Wankel engine. The bike is set to be a rotary model with more than 210 hp which could see Norton enter the BSB and WSB in the next few years.

The new Norton Commando 961 SE is already a lovely bike that has moved the English motorcycle public, and according to MCN the company has also been working on a new Norton race bike since last year, with an eye to developing something for the 2011 Tourist Trophy.

Norton has some successful racing history off the back of a Wankel-engined bike which was developed by mechanic Brian Crighton in the early 1990’s. The company participated in a numer of British championships before its collapse in 1992. Hopefully we could also see a street-legal superbike developed with the new engine.