Norton Classic
air-cooled twin-rotor Wankel engine | |
Transmission | duplex primary chain, 5-ratio gearbox, single-row final drive chain |
---|---|
Wheelbase | 1,486 mm (58.5 in) |
Related | Norton Interpol 2, Norton F1, Norton Commander |
The Norton Classic is a rotary-engined
Engine development
Engine geometry:[1]
- Generating radius R = 71 mm
- Eccentricity e = 11.6 mm
- Equidistance a = 0.5 mm
- Rotor housing width B = 68.2 mm
- Chamber displacement Vk = 294 cm3
- Compression ratio ε = 9.2
The Classic used an
Wankel engines run very hot[
The Classic motorcycle
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/de/Norton_Classic_P43_Rotary_Engine_%281988%29_%287872425726%29.jpg/220px-Norton_Classic_P43_Rotary_Engine_%281988%29_%287872425726%29.jpg)
While its engine was revolutionary, in other respects, such as appearance, suspension and brakes, the Norton Classic was a conventional
The Classic was discontinued after a limited production run of only 100 motorcycles,[8] and was succeeded by the liquid-cooled Norton Commander. [i].
Wankel engines in motorcycles and aircraft
Compared to pistons, the rotors of a Wankel engine are massive and need time to warm up; yet, as NSU found to their cost with their Ro80 car, neither bikers nor car drivers have proved patient enough to give the engines time to reach operating temperature, and this impatience adversely affected reliability.
The Wankel's virtues of smoothness, compactness and lightness should be particularly suitable for aircraft, especially since the start-up procedure and the taxi to the runway gives ample time for warm-up. However, although wankels have been fitted into gliders and light aircraft such as the ARV Super2, such engines are still uncommon in aviation.
Perhaps inevitably, the Norton Classic's Wankel engine was further developed at Staverton into the MidWest aero-engine. The Midwest engine's output increased from BSA's 85 bhp to nearly 110 bhp[9] by improving volumetric efficiency as follows: cooling air was pumped under pressure by a belt-driven centrifugal fan through the interior of the rotors, but then dumped overboard. Filtered induction air at ambient pressure was then drawn into the combustion chambers.[10]
References
- doi:10.4271/821068
- ISBN 978-0-7864-2905-9
- ^ Denniss, Tony (1990). "The Norton Rotary". Retrieved 14 August 2011.
- ^ "BSA, Born 1861, died 1973" - W P Murray, July 1994 - Staffordshire
- ^ "Bike" magazine Summer 1973
- ^ "Cycle World" magazine February 1971
- ^ Bill Murray monograph 1985: "The decline of the British motorcycle industry"
- ^ Salvadori, Clement. "Retrospective: Norton Classic, 588cc Rotary Engine: 1988" Rider Magazine, 22 November 2007. Retrieved: 2 August 2012.
- ^ Midwest AE110R operator's Handbook
- ^ Midwest AE110R operator's Handbook
- ^ Norton Motors Ltd of Lichfield continue to support Norton Wankel engines. (The firm is to be distinguished from Norton Motorcycles Ltd of Donnington Park, the new company that manufactures the updated Norton Commando)
Bibliography
Perkins, Kris (1991). Norton Rotaries. The Crowood Press.
Magrath, Derek (1991). Norton the Complete Story. Osprey Publishing.
Development of the Norton Rotary Motorcycle Engine', D W Garside, SAE paper 821068