1969 Norton 750cc P11 Ranger

1969 Norton 750cc P11 Ranger
Frame no. 128920
Engine no. P11/128920
This iconic, late model, street-legal 'Norton twin in a Matchless frame' is very rare, and in this fully restored condition, 'drop dead rare.' Norton-Villiers developed the first P11 from the Featherbed street-focused Norton Atlas as an export model for the growing sport of desert racing. Prototyped by Californian/West Coast Norton distributor Bob Blair's ZDS Motors of Glendale using the Atlas 750cc twin cylinder engine in a Matchless G85CS frame, one made from famed Reynolds 531 lightweight steel tubing. Blair might have been responding to requests from the importer, Joseph Berliner of the Berliner Motor Corporation based in New York City, desert-less and several thousand miles away.

The Norton Ranger was a last year, street-legal version of the P11 – headlight, taillight, speedometer, horn, etc. and with a more comfortable seat. The dynamics were still focused off-road apart from the low-level exhaust fitted with long tapered mufflers and detachable baffles and end caps. Parts interchangeability between the various 'P11' models was extensive – gas tanks, oil tanks, handlebars, even frames stands, cylinder heads and ignition systems – and so an exact specification match is virtually impossible but safe to say this example is 100% 'on paper.' It was restored by the reputable Terry Parker of Parker Performance, Silver Spring, Maryland to the highest of standards and has been described 'as perhaps the best Ranger in existence of the near 500 Rangers Norton produced.' By 1969 Norton Motors was fully focused on their new 750 Commando and so the Ranger was thus taken off the docket.