Jawa Moto facts for kids
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| Founded | 1929 |
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| Founder | František Janeček (1878–1941) |
| Headquarters |
Týnec nad Sázavou
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| Products | Motorcycles, mopeds |
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Number of employees
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100 (as of 2017) |
| Parent | Jihostroj |
JAWA is a famous company that makes motorcycles and mopeds. It was started in Prague, Czechoslovakia, in 1929 by a man named František Janeček. He bought the motorcycle part of another company called Wanderer. The name JAWA comes from combining the first two letters of Janeček and Wanderer.
In the past, especially in the 1950s, JAWA was one of the best motorcycle makers in the world. They sent their popular 350 model to over 120 countries! Some of their most famous bikes were the 350 Pérák and the 350 Californian. These bikes often came in cool black and red colors. After 1990, the company faced some tough times. But in 1997, a new company called JAWA Moto was formed in Týnec nad Sázavou, keeping the JAWA name alive.
In India, the JAWA brand was brought back in 2018 by Classic Legends. This company is owned by Mahindra & Mahindra. They made a deal with the original Czech JAWA Moto company to build and sell JAWA motorcycles in India.
Contents
How JAWA Started and Grew
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The Beginning: 1929
František Janeček started JAWA after working in the weapons industry. Even though he didn't know much about motorcycles, he was good at making things. He decided to use a design from a German company called Wanderer. Wanderer had stopped making motorcycles, so Janeček bought their plans.
The very first JAWA motorcycle came out on October 23, 1929. It had a 500cc engine and was quite powerful. Even though it was expensive, people thought it was a reliable bike.
Growing in the 1930s
During the 1930s, the world had an economic problem, so people needed cheaper motorcycles. In 1932, JAWA introduced the JAWA 175. This bike was lighter and used less fuel. It was a huge hit! In its first year, over 3,000 JAWA 175s were sold. This was much more than the bigger 500cc model had sold in three years. JAWA even offered special test rides where an instructor could ride with you on a bike with two handlebars!
JAWA in the 1940s and 1950s
František Janeček, the founder, passed away. After World War II, JAWA started making motorcycles again, including the JAWA 250 and 350.
In the 1950s, JAWA made many popular bikes. The JAWA 250/350 was a big success. It had a strong engine and good suspension. This model was sent to over 120 countries around the world! They also made smaller bikes like the 50 Pionýr and Jawetta mopeds.
Cool Inventions of the 1960s
In the early 1960s, JAWA came up with a really clever idea: the first automatic clutch for motorcycles! This special clutch was designed for their 250 and 350 models. It was so good that another big company, Honda, copied it for their Honda 50 Cub motorcycle. Because JAWA had patented their invention, Honda had to pay JAWA money for every motorcycle they sold with that clutch!
Here are some other important things that happened for JAWA in the 1960s:
- 1962: JAWA joined with another company, ESO, to make special motorcycles for speedway races.
- 1963: The JAWA factory in Prague closed.
- 1964: A new, bigger factory opened in Týnec nad Sázavou.
- 1964: JAWA made its one millionth motorcycle!
- 1966: They started making the JAWA 350 Californian.
- 1967: They started making the JAWA 90 and JAWA 50 Mustang.
JAWA Through the Years: 1970s to 2010s
JAWA continued to make new models and reach big milestones:
- 1974: They started making the JAWA 350 (type 634).
- 1976: JAWA made its two millionth motorcycle!
- 1984: They started making the JAWA 350 (type 638).
- 1987: JAWA made its three millionth motorcycle!
- 1991: They started making the JAWA 350 (type 640).
- 1997: The new company, JAWA Moto spol. s r. o., was founded.
- 1998: They started making the JAWA 125 Dandy.
- 2004: They started making bigger bikes like the JAWA 650 Classic.
- 2011: They introduced the JAWA 660 Sportard.
- 2017: They started making the Jawa 350 OHC and JAWA 660 Vintage.
Other Cool Things JAWA Made
JAWA Cars
Did you know JAWA also made cars? In 1934, they introduced their first car, the Jawa 700. They made over 1,000 of these cars. They even built a special sports car, the Jawa 750, just for a famous race in Czechoslovakia. Only six of these were ever made!
Later, in 1937, they made the Jawa 600 Minor. This car was very popular, and more than half of them were sent to other countries.
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The Jawa 700 car
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The special Jawa 750 sports car
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The Jawa 600 Minor
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JAWA Mopeds
JAWA also made many mopeds, which are like small motorcycles. In Czechoslovakia, these mopeds were known as the Babetta. JAWA was the first company to put electronic ignition systems on mopeds. This made them easier to start. Moped production stopped in 1999.
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A Jawa 207 moped
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A Babetta 210 moped
JAWA in India
For a long time, an Indian company called Ideal Jawa India Ltd made JAWA motorcycles under a special agreement. They started in 1960 and later changed the brand name to Yezdi. Production stopped in 1996, but these bikes still have many fans in India.
In 2016, Mahindra & Mahindra decided to bring the JAWA brand back to India. In 2018, they launched three new JAWA motorcycles: the Jawa (also called Jawa 300), the Forty-Two, and the Pérák. The Jawa 300 looks like the classic Jawa bikes. The Forty-Two is more modern. The Pérák is a special kind of motorcycle called a "bobber."
These new JAWA bikes were very popular in India. So many people wanted them that the company had to make twice as many motorcycles as they first planned! Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, JAWA sold 50,000 motorcycles in just one year.
JAWA also did something amazing for charity. They auctioned off the first 13 motorcycles they made. All the money raised, which was a lot, went to help educate the children of soldiers who had died serving in the Indian Armed Forces.
JAWA and Racing
JAWA has a long and exciting history in motorcycle racing. They were one of the most active companies from Eastern Europe in motorsports. They competed in world championships and did very well, even with a smaller budget than some other teams.
JAWA was especially strong in speedway racing, dirt-track racing, and ice racing. Many famous speedway champions rode JAWA bikes, including Ivan Mauger, Barry Briggs, and Tony Rickardsson.
JAWA Today
After the end of communism, the company split into two parts: one for regular JAWA motorcycles and another for the special speedway racing bikes. The speedway bikes continued to do well.
Today, JAWA mostly makes bikes like the classic Jawa 350 two-stroke twin. This model is very reliable and has been almost the same since the 1970s. It's very popular in places like Latin America.
They also made larger bikes with 650cc engines, like the JAWA 650 Classic, Style, and Dakar. The Jawa 660 was the next version of these bigger bikes.
Recently, JAWA has also partnered with an Argentine company called RVM to make new touring motorcycles like the RVM Jawa 500. These bikes are sold in Argentina and Europe.
Current JAWA models (as of 2022) include the Jawa 350/640 (which has a two-stroke engine) and the four-stroke engine Jawa 350 OHC, which meets modern environmental standards.
See also
In Spanish: Jawa (motocicletas) para niños
