Oil-in-frame model 1971 - 1973

Although they were unpopular when new, don't reject the oil-in-frame twins. Only 201 of this 750cc version, the A70, were made.

Very much BSA's last hurrah, the oil-in-frame models feature the familiar unit construction engines in strange cycle parts. For the first year the Thunderbolt was painted in dove grey combined with the amusingly named Stirling Moss Green.

The Lightning and Firebird Scrambler were both grey/bronze. The new models were unpopular, their sales further frustrated by rumours of BSA's imminent collapse.

However there is no evidence that the new frame handled badly. Before rejecting these final machines, remember that by the early Seventies BSA's parallel twin power unit was a proven product.

Only 201 of the 751cc A70 twins were made in the summer of 1971. They were built to homologate the model for American racing, but plans to build 3000 a season were frustrated by BSA's financial crisis in the autumn of 1971. Don't set your heart on owning one - we only know of a couple in the UK.