Norton Interpol 2

One of one (or possibly two) development machines modified for City of London Police.

Where do we start with our description of chassis (and engine) number 3283 P41 Interpol 2? Well, let’s start at the end; what is advertised here is a fully sorted proven Norton air cooled twin rotor rotary engined motorcycle, recently serviced, exhaustively checked and finely fettled to mechanical perfection by Paul Ralph who really knows and loves these strange and interesting machines. It is unique in that it incorporates modifications to reverse the flow of oil and air to aid cooling, and this makes it a very special example of the Norton rotary. Indeed, David Garside and Doug Hele worked on the walking pace IP2 aspects of the rotary progression through the factory before going to the race team so it really did have some special attention. It works in a similar way to the water cooled Commander models in that it’s reverse flow: oil is fed into the main bearings and air out of the centre plate directly into the frame. Air is fed to the transfer ports directly form a modified air intake and this machine is also fitted with Doug Hele’s oil pump modification which keeps the pump running even when the machine is stationary in gear.
How it got here is a real adventure, starting life as a development machine with the City of London Police where it was modified to provide efficient low speed performance for city duties. From 2002 it was owned by the jounalist Frank Westworth and it’s history is therefore well documented including the time in May 2011 when the engine was completely overhauled by Richard Negus. This rebuild is extremely well documented and the comprehensive overhaul notes with pictures run to 14 pages. Frank let it go in June 2015 since when it has done very few miles and in May 2016 Classic Bike Workshop brought it back to it’s best. It could be improved cosmetically and it needs a set of tyres really, but it is well sorted and full of character as it is. It has been improved quite significantly in many areas recently and these pictures show it, although the video was taken before the latest detail work. It still needs a new owner’s choice of tyres really but nothing else.