1966 WHITE TORNADO 250 BY TOM WHITE
CLASSIC IRON
The White Motorcycle com- pany didn’t stay in business very long, nor did it sell very
many motorcycles back in the ’60s.
Located on Broadway Street in Santa
Ana, California, White Motorcycles
private-labeled the Hungarian-built
Pannonia 250 to the U.S. market as
the White Tornado.
The Tornado had a stamped-steel
hanger frame. A spin-on aluminum
air-filter canister attached to the right
side of the stamped frame, and the
hollow frame was used as the air-
box. The chrome and black gas tank
was held on by a leather strap. The
swingarm was pressed steel but was
actually comprised of separate pieces
bolted together. Most intriguingly, the
handlebars had tubular braces that
bolted directly to the top of the fork
legs. This setup made it impossible
to adjust the bars in any direction at
all. Sticking with this theme, the cast-
steel footpegs bolted to the frame but
did not fold. However, they could be
adjusted fore and aft on a sliding bar.
The Hungarian Csepel Steel Works
company produced a series of motorcycles under communist control from
1951 to 1975. These brands included
Danuvia, Tunde, Panni, Pannonia and
White. The White was the only brand
to break out of the Iron Curtain and
be imported to the United States. The
247cc White Tornado had a 68mm x
68mm bore-and-stroke engine that
produced 28 horsepower via a five-speed transmission. The 1966 White
Tornado 250 was available in both
dirt-track and motocross versions and
hit the scales at 246 pounds (dry). In
1966 the White Tornado retailed for
$695 and the White 125 Super Sport
sold for $395. ❏
