Norton Commando Production Racer

The Norton Commando Production Racer, nicknamed the Yellow Peril, was a hand-built production racer made by Norton-Villiers from 1970 to 1972. It was based on the road-going Commando and, although it carried lights, it was never meant as a road bike. After dealer-entered Commandos did well in 1969, including Paul Smart's second place and Mick Andrews' fourth in the Isle of Man TT Production class, the company decided to build a production racing model. It was assembled at the Norton Villiers Performance Centre at the Thruxton circuit, mostly by senior development engineer Peter Inchley. Two variants were built, the first based on the 1969 Commando R from Plumstead with a twin-leading-shoe front drum brake and cigar silencers from the Atlas, the second on the 1971 Commando Roadster after production moved to Wolverhampton. The exact number built is unknown, with estimates from 119 to nearly 200.