Matchless G45
Matchless G45 Background & History
In 1951 the Matchless G45, which was a factory road racer that was made available to the public by AMC (Associated Motorcycles) who owned Matchless, AJS and Norton, among others. In the 1950s, if you were a privateer racer and you wanted to compete in the 500cc grand prix circuit your most likely choice would have been a Norton Manx, but the BSA Gold StarVV. Clubman might have also been in the running. Matchless not only gave the private person another choice, but what a choice. The 500cc Matchless G45 was set up just like a factory grand prix race bike. Right out of the box it was competitive.
This 1954 Matchless G45 had all the looks of a factory grand prix bike, available for sale to the public. And it was just as fast as it looked!
Matchless G45 Engine
The engine remained at the stock 66mm X 72.8mm bore and stroke for a displacement of 498cc. But everything else was massaged. Twin Amal 9300 carburetors and a Lucas competition magneto helped make 48 to 54 hp, depending on tune, for a top speed of 130 mph +. Coaxing too much power out of it could make it fragile so the engineers had to be smart about it.
The Matchless G45 engine was an extensively-modified 500cc G9 engine.
Matchless G45 goes Racing
The Matchless G45 was built on the bones of the 500cc Matchless G9 road bike, but extensively modified for racing. The first prototype appeared in 1951 at the Manx Grand Prix where scored a respectable 4th place, first time out, behind three Norton Manx’s. It’s first major win was in 1952 at the Senior Manx Grand Prix. Soon Matchless G45s were popping up at the Isle of Man and other UK and European events. The victories just kept piling up.
The Matchless G45 was a very strong competitor and a winner of races. This is a 1955.
Matchless G45 Banned by AMA!
Less than 100 Matchless G45s were produced from 1951 through the 1957 model year, and in 1959 it was superseded by the Matchless G50. It was also a 500, and underpowered when put up against a Norton Manx, but it was lighter than anything else in its class at 300 lbs. Handling was superb and the low weight helped in that. They were so fast that in 1963 the AMA (American Motorcycle Association) banned the Matchless G45 from racing in the US because it wasn’t based on a production bike. Matchless deftly outmaneuvered them by producing a limited run of G50CSRs, which were street legal. They accomplished this by cramming the G50 engine into a G80CS frame. The CSR actually stands for ‘Competition Sprung Roadster’, but the public came up with the nickname ‘Coffee Shop Racer’. Matchless also used the name ‘Golden Eagle’ when describing the G50 in ads. Only around 80 Matchless G50s were ever built from 1951 through the 1957 model year, including the CSRs. That makes them super-rare, but they do come up in auction from time to time
Note the all-alloy top end on this 1955 Matchless G45.
The End of the British Motorcycle Industry
Hats off to parent-company AMC for having the passion for the business to build a bike like the Matchless G45 and make it available to the public. It was a rare thing back in those days. Alas, by the mid-1960s Matchless, it’s parent company AMC, and the entire British motorcycle industry was on the verge of bankruptcy, battling not only the Japanese imports, but also a hostile government in the form of the Socialist Party who were ruling Britain at the time, and they hated industry. They offered absolutely no help or encouragement to the beleaguered British motorcycle industry or their auto industry, at a time when the Japanese government was lavishing all sorts of assistance to Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha and Kawasaki. The Socialists got their way, both industries, Britain’s auto industry and motorcycle industry, once the envy of the world, were both allowed to completely collapse. AMC officially closed it’s doors in 1966 although they hadn’t built any bikes since 1963. Norton was bought by Manganese Bronze Holdings who also owned Villiers in 1966. In 1972 BSA, on the verge of collapse attempted a merger with Norton-Villiers, but went belly up before the deal was done. No matter, the newly formed Norton-Villiers-Triumph now owned Triumph and proceeded to shut the Triumph factory down in Meriden. The workers revolted and nothing came in our out of the place for almost all of the 1974 model year. Norton relented and allowed the workers to buy Triumph and continue on making Bonnevilles as the Meriden Co-Op. Norton continued on making it’s only bike, the Commando until 1975. They were done. The Co-Op struggled along, underfunded, and unable to cope with the withering competition from Japan. They built fewer and fewer bikes each year until 1983 when they finally gave up. The British motorcycle industry, which in 1960 was the largest in the world by far, had dwindled down to nothing in less than 10 years. Wow!
Matchless G45 Motorcycle Books
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"AJS/Matchless Gold Portfolio, 1945-1966" By Brookland Books, Ltd., 172 pages |
More Matchless G45 Pages
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