Jawa 42 Mileage: All You Need To Know

I get regular comments from my readers wanting to know my Jawa 42 mileage.

They write to me on Instagram, my YouTube channel and sometimes email me too.

While most of the time I reply to those queries asking about the mileage of Jawa bikes, sometimes I don’t.

I mean if you keep getting the same question — despite already having 3 videos and 2 blog posts on the same topic — what else would you do? Read this blog on Jawa 42 and you will see that I have already spoken about it in great detail. I have spoken about it in many videos too (scroll down to see them).

But attempting the answer again and letting you all know about my Jawa 42 mileage, I am writing this blog. Another blog because this blog is solely dedicated to the topic.

In this blog, I will talk about my experience in a bit more detail.

So continue reading to know my Jawa 42 mileage before the first service, after the first service and now.

I will be sharing related videos too (some of which are regular FAQ videos while others are real tests) for your reference.

PS: I now (in 2024) own a Yezdi Adventure and have still kept my 42 with me 🙂

Jawa 42 Mileage – Owner Review

I got my bike in April 2019 and have clocked almost 20,000 km so far. I have moreover got all 4 services done.

At this moment, my bike is doing fairly well, in terms of performance as well as per litre mileage.

Before 1st Service

I remember when I did the first test, before the first service of the bike, my Jawa 42 mileage stood somewhere around 30kmpl. And this was when I rode on the highways.

Here’s a YouTube video I made about it…

If I compare that figure with that of today, there’s a big difference.

I think the per litre mileage of Jawa bikes improves as you clock more kilometres. I have seen many people saying that they have seen a positive change, especially after the first service.

So don’t get impatient if you are not getting a good result. There are high chance that the number will increase.

Here’s what I said in the description box of the video I have shared above “I got a mileage of 33 km per litre. But as you know, the Jawa 42 mileage is going to improve with time (particularly after the first service). So stay tuned, as I will do a comparison video of the before and after the first service mileage soon.” And that’s exactly what has happened.

After First Service

After I got my motorcycle’s first service done, I did another test and the figure indeed improved.

I did a Frequently Asked Question video where I spoke about the revised and improved Jawa 42 mileage of over 40 km per litre.

Here’s the video…

Going forward, I did many more tests, especially during my Delhi to Munisyari ride.

Since it was my first ever real touring I wanted to see how the bike performs in every sense as we ride it in the mountains.

For almost 20 days I travelled from Delhi to Munsiyari (covering almost 2000 km). But as I finished the ride and started my journey back home I did another test to check the Jawa 42 mileage after touring.

The figure stood at over 40 km per litre again.

Between Other Rides

After my first touring experience, I did many more rides.

Three of the major rides I have done so far are…

1. Sach Pass ride
2. Shinkula Pass ride
3. Delhi to Bangalore all India ride

I have done many videos – both touring and review – during this time, out of which many were on Jawa 42 mileage.

During my tours as well, I kept reviewing the motorcycle. For example, this video where I fell in Zanskar and it proved to be a reliable friend…

Anyway, returning to the topic in hand let’s see what I am getting right now.

At this moment, I am getting something around 40 km per litre. This is after having all 4 services done and having a total of 20,000 kms done.

I know many people are not getting this figure but if you will ride economically, getting a 40 kmpl from your bike isn’t impossible. I know many owners who are getting a similar figure.

If you want to have a good Jawa 42 mileage, remember the following few things…

• Avoid aggressive acceleration and braking.
• Keeping it between 45-55 kmph in cities.
• Not going above 80 kmph on highways.
• Extra premium petrol if possible.

Also, see these Jawa 42 pictures and some recommended Jawa 42 accessories that I have been personally using.

Here’s the last video I did on the topic while returning from my all India Delhi to Bangalore to Kerala ride.

Other than the mileage, the video shows my Hyderabad to Delhi ride. So if you want to see just the mileage bit, please skip it to minutes 8:40.

The last Jawa 42 mileage test, at nearly 20,000km and I am getting a figure of over 40 km per litre.

Update: November 2020

After returning from yet 1-month adventure ride across Uttarakhand, that took me to Pindari Glacier Trek and the newly built Kailash Mansarovar Road, my Jawa 42 average is about 38 km per liter. I have clocked over 22,232 km at the time of writing this update.

My motorcycle has moreover done 4 services (three free and one paid service).

Most of my rides are quite adventurous. Speaking of this ride for example (that took me to Kailash Mansarovar and Pindari Valley) I was offroading for over one week, with an average speed of about 20 km per hour (say, second, or third gear at max). And after such harsh riding conditions and constant gear-shift if the my Jawa bike mileage remains at over 35 kmpl it is quite a surprise.

In order to get a good mileage, I suggest you should

• Avoid aggressive acceleration and braking. Ride very gently.
• Try to keep the top speed (on highways) at less than 80kmph. In cities, keep it around 50kmh.

These two tricks have done magic for me!

That’s me, what about you? Let me know in the comments below! You may also be interested in checking out the official Jawa motorcycles website for more information about the bikes other than the Jawa 42 mileage.