In the 1980s the company went through several incarnations - the rights to the name were split between several companies in several countries.
The brand was relaunched in Lichfield in 1988 and in 1989 Norton made an emphatic return to racing when Steve Spray won the British Superbike Championship on the all-black JPS bike, a victory repeated in 1994 by Ian Simpson on the Duckhams Norton.
The commercial market was slower, though the Wankel engined Interpol 2 motorcycle was popular with police forces and the RAC. This led to the creation of a civilian model called the Classic.
In 1992 Steve Hislop, on an ABUS Norton, defeated Carl Fogarty, riding a Yamaha, to win the Isle of Man Senior TT, recording the first victory for a British bike for almost 30 years.