[Freedom and Fear are at War!!] 65B JAGUAR 3.8 LITRE SALOON
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Manal
Oct-03-01

When is a 65B Jag 3.8 not a 3.8??
I have just bought what I thought was a 65B Jaguar 3.8 Litre (maroon, green glass, opening bonnet, black wheels) in a nice D box saying 'Jaguar 3.8 Litre Sedan' on the end flaps. When I turned the model over, however, the silver base has 'Jaguar 3.4 Litre' on it. Is this model then a 3.4 litre? I thought they were earlier, with grey wheels. Or did the 3.4 and 3.8 share the same base, and could get switched in the factory? I was also expecting a black base. What have I got?

Bobber
Oct-03-01

One of the oddities of the 65B (produced from 1962 to 1967) was that all catalogs and packaging described the model as a Jag 3.8 Sedan yet the baseplate description had 'Jaguar 3.4 Liter'. I've never heard or read why Lesney did this so it must still remain a mystery. The appearance of the real Mark 2 was identical irrespective whether fitted with the 3.4 or the 3.8 engine. The initial release of the 65B used the same front face as the 65A box with the 'A LESNEY' scroll design but the end flap stated 'Jaguar Sedan - New Model'. Then came the 'D' and 'E' style boxes with full color illustration with raised hood and end flaps with 'Jaguar 3.8 Sedan'.

Used with permission, courtesy of Mark Curtis