Chinese Bikemaker Zongshen To Launch A Naked Bike Based On Norton Atlas 650

Post the Norton administration, Indian bikemaker TVS has acquired the British brand. We spoke with Sudarshan Venu, TVS’s Joint MD to understand how this partnership would impact Norton and TVS's future. Know all the details here. 

• In 2017, Zongshen sought the help of Norton to develop a 650cc parallel twin motor.
• Now, blueprints of a new Zongshen naked bike with the Norton 650cc motor have surfaced online.
• Engineering firm Ricardo will be assisting Zongshen in developing the upcoming 650cc naked.

In mid-2017, Chinese bikemaker Zongshen got into an agreement with Norton Motorcycles to build a new 650cc parallel twin platform. The 20-year agreement allows the use of this new motor on the ‘Zongshen’ and ‘Cyclone’ brands. Now, pictures of Zongshen’s new bike have surfaced online, appearing to use the 650cc motor developed by Norton. This new motorcycle looks like a modern street-naked. While the fuel tank and tail section have been pixelated in the image, it appears to be minimalistic. We think the headlamp looks like a slimmed down version of the Benelli TNT 899’s unit.

Also read: All-new Norton Atlas 650 Models Unveiled

What we can see clearly is the parallel twin motor that externally looks similar to the 650cc parallel twin used in the Norton Atlas motorcycle. This parallel twin motor is essentially the front bank of Norton’s V4 motor. On the Norton Atlas range, this 650cc liquid-cooled parallel twin motor makes 85.1PS and 64Nm of torque.

Also read: Norton Commando & Dominator Launched In India

Zongshen has enlisted the services of engineering firm Ricardo to develop their 650cc bike. Going by what we can see, the upcoming bike could be a lightweight one, given its trellis frame. It also appears to get good-spec suspension components in the form of upside-down forks, a side mounted-monoshock and disc brakes with radial callipers. 

While we do not expect the Zongshen 650cc twin to come to India anytime soon, the Norton Atlas range will come to India via the CKD route in 2020. You can read all about the two upcoming Norton bikes here.