Team-BHP - Mahindra is bringing Jawa back. EDIT: Launched @ Rs 1.55 lakh

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Instead, what M2W is doing, is cutting down on its commuter segment investments (no more Centuro/Pantero misadventures) and moving towards a niche market. It's starting off with 'Classic Legends' -- an arm that has acquired BSA Motorcycles and bought the license to sell Jawa motorcycles in India.

There will be an all-new line-up for Jawa, developed from the ground up, and the bikes will be produced at Mahindra's facility in Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh. We're at least two years away from seeing the first new Jawa (think 2019), but Mahindra says the focus will be on recreating the magic of the Jawa design and sound, though the latter will be difficult, considering two-stroke motors will not return. *sniffle*

Source - http://www.topgear.com/india/bike-ne...back/itemid-50

Its not the wrong segment Mr Goenka, just that...
1. You're unable to compete with the Japs
2. You cannot expect every motorcycle owner to be as much patience as the early owner of Bolero & Scorps, what worked in one segment will not always work in all segments

I say...
1. Make an above average product
2. Give highest importance to service centers, even if it has to come at the cost of pathetic showroom

Trust me, you'll capture sizeable chunk in the two wheeler segment.

Google says Ideal Jawa is defunct in the year 2005. While i like the idea of resurrecting old brands, Mahindra will have to make sure they do a good job. The days of nostalgia is over. So me buying a Jawa for nostalgic sake is too low compared to buying an awesome Jawa. Hope they get it right.

Mahindra seem to want to improve their two wheeler business. There's an untapped market- cruiser segment between 300-500 cc, where RE is having a field time.

And no better way to get a share of that pie by having classic brand names. :D

If Mahindra uses new technology and designs retro looking cruisers, they can make a reliable and modern motorcycles. (Let's not debate about reliability of Enfields, that's a topic for a different thread)

From what I read in this forum and elswhere, the Mahindra Mojo is somewhat a modern day Jawa / Yezdi.

Good ride, almost as comfy as the Bullet, lots of power- all like Yezdis and Jawas.

And especially the braking. :D

So it would be befitting if Mahindra sells the Mojo as a Jawa.

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Originally Posted by Yeldo (Post 4081749)

So it would be befitting if Mahindra sells the Mojo as a Jawa.

Right, and they would probably call it Mawa or Jojo.

But looks like they've bought those companies so that they can take the retro design and fill it with modern tech. Something akin to what Triumph does and what RE hopes to do. Triumph's bikes still retain that retro look which filling in tech like traction control, ride by wire, etc. REs, well, have fuel injection.

I just wish they come up with multi-cylinder engines and at least ABS in those gorgeous BSA bodies.

I too am a little confused on how BSA and Jawa is related in the first place. Also I am not sure how much market is there for classics these days apart from the "real" restored classics. A new Jawa is well, a new Jawa and not a classic. If they come with the same designs as the 70's/80's, I dont think they will be able to do that well because the market has moved towards better and aggressive designs but I could be wrong. Market these days is mostly governed by Commuter and sports bikes though HD is trying to open up the cruiser segment as well. Let's see what happens

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Originally Posted by centaur (Post 4081959)

I too am a little confused on how BSA and Jawa is related in the first place. Also I am not sure how much market is there for classics these days apart from the "real" restored classics. A new Jawa is well, a new Jawa and not a classic. If they come with the same designs as the 70's/80's, I dont think they will be able to do that well because the market has moved towards better and aggressive designs but I could be wrong. Market these days is mostly governed by Commuter and sports bikes though HD is tryign to open up the cruiser segment as well. Lets see what happens

BSA and JAWA are not related in anyway. But as the opening post says Mahindra has simply bought the rights to both brand names. They dont want to use the BSA brand in India as it is synonymous with the cycle brand (wonder how Hero manages it) and so they'd brand them as JAWA for India and a few asian countries whereas it will use the BSA brand for UK,US and EU.

Hope Mahindra can do justice to both brands and not sink them deeper under ground by churning half-arsed products.

While the ideal/strategy looks good on paper, I just don't expect Mahindra to execute it without hiccups.

Giving a tough competition to RE will involve a lot more than using classic brands names. People buy REs because they come from the same old company that has been making these motorcycles the old-fashioned way for a long time. Fans/loyalists of Jawa (or BSA) are limited in number and even they won't just blindly buy a rebadged Mojo for the sake of owning a "Jawa." Just my thought.

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Originally Posted by tharian (Post 4081628)

How are BSA and Jawa connected?
I thought Jawa as a company is still running and is not sold.

Please enlighten.

Jawa has shut shop. They had a plant near Mysore. IIRC there was a thread on team bhp about the factory.

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Originally Posted by tharian (Post 4081628)

How are BSA and Jawa connected?
I thought Jawa as a company is still running and is not sold.

Please enlighten.

The article says that Mahindra has bought the license to sell Jawa motorbikes in India. The Czech Jawa is still alive and kicking, and churning out 2-stroke 350s even today.

I'm unsure how I feel about this announcement though. It seems like Jawa CZ won't be doing much here, and the vehicles will be purely Mahindra badged as Jawa. Nonetheless, interested to see how it will turn out. The Yezdi Roadking was the first vehicle I owned (and regrettably sold off) and I first learned to ride bikes on my cousin's Roadking. Hope they do the Jawa brand justice.

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Originally Posted by girimajiananth (Post 4082094)

Jawa has shut shop. They had a plant near Mysore. IIRC there was a thread on team bhp about the factory.

That was Ideal Jawa which was the Indian collaboration which shut shop.

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Originally Posted by The_Mad_Hatter (Post 4082098)

The article says that Mahindra has bought the license to sell Jawa motorbikes in India. The Czech Jawa is still alive and kicking, and churning out 2-stroke 350s even today.

I missed Jawa in the article.

I feel the name should be left alone. The name brings back memories to few of us and bringing it back will not only disappoint the old timers since obviously the bikes would no were be like the erstwhile Jawa's , neither will it strike a chord with the later generations .

I really don't understand the idea behind this.