The VIN on my LHD Mk2 is P181389BW, made in April 1967 However instead of being stamped on the body near the bonnet catch, it appears to be marked by hand using an electric pencil or some such device. The marking is very faint and I had to strip the paint and emery the metal for it to appear.
I have checked with another owner of a similar car and the VIN on hers is not visible - she hasn’t stripped the paint to look for it.
So my question is whether this is normal for these later cars. Could any owners of 1967 Mk 2’s please let me know whether your VIN’s are stamped into the metal as I know the earlier ones are.
This has become a concern because here in Massachusetts the vehicle inspection procedure now requires a photo be taken showing the VIN on the body (as opposed to the data plate).
BESM,
The vin on my 1967 MkII/340 is 180641 BW. and is stamped near the bonnet catch, mine also looks like they used one of those vibrating etching tools. Also all the data is on a stamped brass name plate on the fire wall. I would be happy to send photos if you send me your email address.
Richard O oliphantrp@gmail.com
I have a 1967 Mark 2 as well. By your VIN number I’m guessing your car is a 3.4 litre model. My car rolled off the assembly line on March 31st 1967, 111 cars before yours! Here in California the registration includes the prefix J67 before the P181 number. On my car, separate from the date plate which is mounted on the inner driver side inner fender below the fuse box, there is a small plate near the bonnet catch which says ‘MADE IN ENGLAND’ . Next to it, someone had etched in by hand the VIN number. After I had the car painted, the VIN number near the bonnet catch was no longer visible. Now, here’s something very interesting. My car was sold new in Southern California in August 1967 as a ‘340’ model even though it has a Mark 2 3.4 VIN, thick bumpers, smooth cam covers, vinyl interior, no occasional tables, and a 340 badge on the trunk lid. Back in 1991, I sent Jaguar a letter asking for clarification on this, they confirmed the car is really a Mark 2 3.4, and they could not explain the 340 designation. Where was your car sold new? What is the color combination on it? On your car power steering, does it have the Marles Varamatic version? You can tell if you look under the car, if there is a cooler mounted under the front of the engine beneath the lower pulley, then you do. Less than 800 cars left the factory with this option. I’m very curious to hear your reply.
Mel R.
Thanks for the info on your car. Mine is like yours except I have reclining
seats and picnic tables but these latter are I bet from another car. My
car also had a J67 tag applied which was apparently done for California
Registration purposes when it was sold new. I do not have the original
sale date. My car was white originally with a vinyl black interior.
I confirm the “Made in England” tag is on my car…
After reading much correspondence on this subject I think the truth is that
yes, the cars were built as Mark 2’s consistent with the VIN sequence. I
have a copy of a Heritage Certificate (not mine) that shows them as Mk 2’s
attached…
However Jaguar North America wanted to call them 340’s for reasons which
are speculative but I think based on the need to have a new model number
for what were then old-technology cars.
My VIN is definitely etched by hand as is yours and a repaint will cover
it. Perhaps the cars were painted first and then the VIN etched.
I looked at a 1961 car and the numbers were very neatly stamped and these
could easily be read after repainting.
Also my car did not have a MK2 badge on the right rear of the trunk lid
and there was absolutely no trace of the two holes necessary to mount such
a badge. So I think they were ordered and came over here “badgeless” in
this regard. One may speculate that when 340 production started in fall
1967 some badges were obtained and put on some cars by dealers.
At this point I must mention that mine is a bit of a mongrel. It has a
non-original 3.4L engine coupled to a 420 4 speed transmission and compact
overdrive. This is a wonderful combination because I have ended up with a
very tall top gear giving 28mph/1000RPM.
The power steering is from a SIII XJ6 and it has Wilwood brakes on the
front. The steering works very nicely , like a modern car. I do not have
an oil cooler
I hope this all answers your questions - of course it may also raise more!
I reply to power steering question, at one period in its life it did. Many
problems so it was removed and converted to manual steering. For many years
I drove it that way, it was worse than driving a truck. A few years back I
converted to rack and pinion kit from XK UnLimited California . It is very
nice now.
Richard
Oregon USA
Interesting… my car had a 340 boot lid badge, but no 3.4 engine size badge. When I had the car repainted some years ago I had the body shop install 3.4 and MK2 badges on the appropriate spots. Thirteen years ago I obtained a pair of reclining seats with occasional tables, at which point I had the entire interior redone in red leather (it had been originally done in red vinyl. I also got a hold of a pair of visors with chrome trim on them, as later Mark 2’s were missing the trim. Then I had the visors and headliner retrimmed. Your certificate at least mentions that many Mark 2 3.4 cars were badged as 340’s. Your 4 speed transmission with overdrive is probably the same type as the one fitted to my car from the factory. Very few Mark 2’s were fitted with the all synchromesh with compact overdrive units. You were lucky you found one from a 420. Thank you for answering my questions…
Lots of owners have done this. As my unit only leaks power steering fluid slowly, I’ve elected to keep the original unit in my car. Thanks for letting me know.
