The Model 76 was a

New Imperial Motors Ltd New Imperial was a British motorcycle manufacturer founded by Norman Downes in Birmingham, between 1887 and 1901, and became New Imperial Motors Ltd in 1912, when serious production commenced. New Imperial made innovative motorcycles that emplo ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

marketed under the slogan "The King of Motors" between 1936 and 1939, when the company was turned over to wartime production.

Development

In the mid-1920s New Imperial were producing 300 machines a month and continuing to expand the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

of the early 1930s. Like many manufacturers of the time, New Imperial found it very difficult to maintain sales through the 1930s and even Bob Foster’s win on a unit-construction model in the 1936 Isle of Man TT (the last time that Great Britain won a Lightweight TT) failed to lead to the much needed sales. New Imperial Motorcycles badge

Following the TT win all 1937 models were designed with the same pioneering unit construction engine, although the design was modified so that there were separate compartments within the unit for engine and gearbox. The engine was a

overhead valve An overhead valve (OHV) engine, sometimes called a ''pushrod engine'', is a piston engine whose valves are located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier flathead engines, where the valves were located be ...

unit construction

twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

with a twin-port head. A range of different ignition systems options were offered the Model 76 was available in either standard trim, with a hand-operated four-speed gearbox, or from 1937 as a ''de-luxe'' version, with a foot-operated gearchange. New Imperial ceased trading in 1938, and sold the company to Jack Sangster, owner of

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...

and Triumph motorcycles. Surviving examples prove that limited production continued even after the company was liquidated, however, being assembled from spare parts right up to the outbreak of war, when a former director of New Imperial, Solomon Joseph, negotiated the purchase of the company and moved the equipment to the Triumph works in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...

to turn it to production for World War II and the Model 76 was finally discontinued.

References

External links

New Imperial 1935 unit construction advert
* {{Citation , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522214142/http://www.cybermotorcycle.com/gallery/new_imperial/New%20Imperial%201936%20500cc%20Type%2076%20Deluxe.htm , url= http://www.cybermotorcycle.com/gallery/new_imperial/New%20Imperial%201936%20500cc%20Type%2076%20Deluxe.htm , title= Picture of New Imperial 1936 500cc Type 76 'Deluxe' , archivedate= 22 May 2011 Motorcycles of the United Kingdom Standard motorcycles Motorcycles introduced in the 1930s