With less than a month for the official unveil of the new Jawa motorcycle, images of the prototype undergoing testing have emerged online. Although the body panels have been heavily camouflaged, we can see that the new motorcycle has numerous retro-styling elements inspired by the original Jawa. The bike features a round headlight with dispersion style lens (similar to the Royal Enfield 650 twins), a curvy tank, a long and flat tan seat and spoke wheels.
The new motor with period-style faux fins and twin exhaust mufflers gel well with the overall retro theme of the motorcycle. While it isn’t visible, we suspect that the new Jawa will feature an analogue instrument console. Other old-school design details include round mirrors, round indicators and period-style telescopic fork that is reminiscent of the ones on the Royal Enfield Classic 350.
Talking about the powerplant, the company had shared some details earlier this month. The new Jawa will be powered by a 293cc, single-cylinder, liquid-cooled motor that features dual overhead camshafts. The engine is said to have been developed in Italy, as well as India, and will produce 27hp and 28Nm of peak torque and be mated to a 6-speed gearbox. According to the company, the new engine has been developed from scratch and we believe it shares only the very basic architecture with the Mojo’s existing 300cc mill. The motor will be BS-VI ready.
The Jawa's frame is also an all-new unit and is completely different from the one seen on the Mahindra Mojo. The chassis is suspended on telescopic fork and twin shock absorbers at the back with a gas -harged canister at the bottom. Braking hardware consists of a conventional single disc brake that looks smaller than the unit on the Mojo. A drum brake at the rear confirms that this bike will have a single-channel ABS unit.
Further simplicity comes in a box-section swingarm and a basic grab rail. The spoke wheels appear to be wrapped with tubed MRF tyres. The overall appearance of the new motorcycle is retro and it’s certain that many design cues from the original Jawa will be carried forward. For instance, the bulging panel on the left side probably houses the battery.
This use of old-school components not only works in replicating the visual appeal of the original Jawa, but also hints that the new motorcycle will be priced quite competitively. For reference, the Royal Enfield Classic 350 currently costs Rs 1.48 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai), and this price will go up slightly when ABS becomes mandatory.
We will have to wait until November 15 for pricing and other details.
Azaman Chothia
Vishal Venugopal
