NORTON RELAUNCHES COMMANDO BUT NOT FOR NZ ( YET )

Norton Motorcycles has relaunched the iconic Commando , but Kiwi fans of the storied British brand will have to wait if they want to get their hands on one . The new Norton Commando 961 family , which consists of the Commando 961 CR and 961 SP , has been launched solely into the UK market with a price tag starting at £ 16,499 for the SP model . The bikes retain the iconic silhouette we are familiar with from the last Norton Commandos to be sold here in NZ , but Norton has improved the bikes somewhat and shifted production to the firm ’ s brand-new factory in Solihull , England . Both versions of the Commando are powered by an air-oil-cooled 961cc parallel twin , which develops 76.8bhp at 7250rpm and 81Nm at 6300rpm . The transmission is a five-speed constant mesh type , using a single plate wet clutch . While the power figure and use of a five-speed gearbox may come as disappointments for some , the Commando 961 makes up for this somewhat by opting for Öhlins suspension at both ends . Up the front is a 43mm USD fork with adjustment for preload , compression and rebound damping . At the rear , the Commando runs a twin shock setup which is again fully adjustable . The high-end suspension is complemented by a Brembo brake setup , with radial-mount calipers at the front coupled to a radial master cylinder . The main difference between the bikes comes in the handlebars . While the SP keeps things relatively tame with a set of traditional upright bars , the CR - as its name suggests - opts for clip-ons to give the bike the cafe racer role of the Norton lineup .