Norton Commander (motorcycle) Norton Commander (motorcycle) The Commander was a Norton motorcycle with a Wankel rotary engine. The first Norton Wankel motorcycle was the 1987 air-cooled Classic, built as a special edition of just 100 machines. It was followed by the air-cooled Interpol 2 model. The Commander was a liquid-cooled successor to the Interpol 2, liquid cooling being adopted for greater power and reliability. The Commander's final-drive chain was protected by a full enclosure. Some cycle parts (such as front wheel, forks & brakes) were bought-in Yamaha items. Two types of Commander were built. The P52 was a single-seat model equipped for police
Henderson Motorcycle down draft carburetion. Advertisements boasted of "57 New Features". The Streamline was fast - capable of a genuine 100 mph (160 km/h), and advanced for its time, with such features as leading-link forks and an illuminated speedometer built into the fuel tank. The Streamline model was produced from 1929 until 1931, and sold for $435. On Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929, the Wall Street stock market crashed, but Henderson sales remained strong, and business continued. At this point Excelsior Motor Mfg. & Supply Co. was one of America's "Big Three" of motorcycle production, alongside Harley-Davidson and Indian. On April 29,