Featured Pages "I wants to make yer flesh creep" Some Gruesome Relics of Bygone Days seen by the Motor Cyclist on Tour
Wayside GibbetsThe Mother of Invention "I recommend that you maintain the business connection with Daimler. His invention is entirely trustworthy, and it will have a future, the magnitude of which we cannot begin to imagine today."
Levassor, Panhard and the woman who brought it all together - Louise SarazinHawker Motorcycles An obscure marque built by an Australian. He is the Hawker of Hurricane and Harrier fame.
Harry Hawker
Toreador motorcycles were produced from 1925 to 1928 at works at
Ribble Bank Mills, Preston, Lancashire, to a design by Bert
Houlding.
1925 Having previously been involved with the Matador marque, Bert Houlding continued his talent for sporting motorcycle design with the Toreador range. His first model was a rakish 495cc ohv MAG V-twin, with Burman three-speed all-chain transmission and an exhaust system coupled into a Mador silencer. This, and patented adjustable handlebars, had already been pioneered by Houlding in his Matador days.
1926 JAP
engines were standardized - 344cc and 246cc ohv and 490cc sv singles, plus
a 490cc ohv model with a 90mph speed guarantee. All had Burman
gearboxes.
1927 There was a three model range, still with Burman gearboxes. These were a 349cc ohv oil-cooled Bradshaw
model, and the 490cc JAP,
in either sv or ohv forms. Superports options were available on
the Bradshaw and the ohv JAP.
1928 The 344cc returned, in two-port racing trim, and 346cc ohv JAP
models, plus a new 498cc ohv JAP
racing machine. After this, the marque folded and the works closed.