A “brand new” 1975 Norton Commando Interstate still in its crate, one of 11 found recently in Belgium
Here’s something you don’t come across every day: 11 brand new 1975 electric-start Norton Interstate motorcycles, still in the crate and awaiting final assembly! The horde of Nortons came to light recently following the death of the owner of Motoshop Podevyn in Aalst, Belgium. Incredibly, the bikes are just a small part of an even larger collection.
From what we’ve been able to learn, the owner of Motoshop Podevyn had quite a reputation for collecting bikes and parts, but he also collected quite a reputation for being difficult to deal with, many former customers saying he rarely let go of parts or complete bikes from the huge collection he amassed over the years.
Here are the other 10 Nortons, still in their original, unopened packing crates.
Regardless, collect he did, and we can tell you from looking over the auction bill that this is going to be an amazing auction, with almost 400 lots being offered. In addition to the 11 Nortons there’s also an ex-Peter Williams Norton-powered space frame racer, a Rotax-powered 1989 Matchless G80 still in its crate, numerous standard and customized Nortons, a Triumph T160, Bonnevilles, piles and piles of wheels and seats, and racks of used and new-old-stock gas tanks.
Also discovered was this never-assembled 1989 Rotax-powered Matchless G80.
The collection is being auctioned online by Trooswijk Belgie, with bids accepted starting April 19 and closing April 26; a public viewing has been scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, April 24 and April 25.
While you can be that getting any one of these bikes running after 35 years in storage will require quite a bit of work, how often do you even get the chance to consider buying an essentially brand new, unmolested Norton Commando? We haven’t heard any guesses on what sort of money they might bring, but even with the considerable work they’ll probably require we’re still betting they won’t be cheap. Check out this amazing collection of new Norton Commandos by clicking here. — Richard Backus
UPDATE: 6/22/2010: Selling prices for the Belgian Norton Commandos have finally been revealed. The cheapest went for just under $21,000, while the most expensive sold for just under $23,000. The Matchless G80 went for a shade under $12,000. — Richard Backus
