Toggle (pronounced tog-uhl)
(1) A pin, bolt or rod placed transversely through a
chain, an eye or loop in a rope etc, as to bind it temporarily to another chain
or rope similarly treated.
(2) In various types of machinery, a toggle joint, or a
device having one.
(3) An ornamental, rod-shaped button for inserting into a
large buttonhole, loop or frog, used especially on sports clothes.
(4) In theatre, a wooden batten across the width of a
flat, for strengthening the frame (Also called the toggle rail).
(5) In engineering and construction, a metal device for
fastening a toggle rail to a frame (also called a toggle iron); a horizontal
piece of wood that is placed on a door, flat, or other wooden structure, but is
not on one of the edges of the structure; an appliance for transmitting force
at right angles to its direction.
(6) To furnish with a toggle or to bind or fasten with a
toggle.
(7) In informal use, to turn, twist, or manipulate a
toggle switch; dial or turn the switch of a device (often in the form “to toggle
between” alternate states).
(8) A type of switch widely used in motor vehicles until
outlawed by safety legislation in the 1960s.
(9) In admiralty jargon, a wooden or metal pin, short
rod, crosspiece or similar, fixed transversely in the eye of a rope or chain to
be secured to any other loop, ring, or bight.
In computer operating systems and applications, an
expression indicating a switch of view, contest, feed, option etc.
(11) In sky-diving, a loop of webbing or a dowel affixed
to the end of the steering & brake lines of a parachute providing a means
of control.
(12) In whaling, as toggling harpoon, a pre-modern
(believed to date from circa 5300 BC) harvesting tool used to impale a whale
when thrown.
1769: The origin of toggle is murky and the best guess of most etymologists is it was in some way linked with "tug". In the sense of a "pin passed through the eye
of a rope, strap, or bolt to hold it in place" the origin is believed to be nautical (though not necessarily from the Royal
Navy) thus the speculation that it’s a frequentative form of “tug” or “to tug” (in
the sense of “to pull”), the evolution influenced by regional (or
class-defined) pronunciations similar to tog. The wall fastener was first sold in 1934
although the toggle bolt had been in use since 1994. The term “toggle switch” was first used in
1938 although such devices had long been in use in the electrical industry and
they were widely used in motor vehicles until outlawed by safety legislation in
the 1960s. In computing, toggle was first
documented in 1979 when it referred to a keyboard combination which alternates
the function between on & off (in the sense of switching between functions
or states as opposed to on & off in the conventional sense). The verb toggle dated from 1836 in the sense
of “make secure with a toggle” and was a direct development from the noun. In computing, the toggle function (“to toggle
back and forth between different actions") was first described in 1982 when
documenting the embryonic implementations of multi-tasking (then TSRs
(terminate & stay resident programs). Use of the mysterious togglability (the quality of being togglable) seems to be restricted to computer OSs (operating systems) to distinguish between that which can be switched between and that which is a stand-alone function which must separately be loaded & terminated.
The noun toggery (clothing; a clothing shop) is unrelated and was from tog. It described (in slang), capes, cloaks & coats and (in New Zealand & Australia), swimwear (as a clipping of "swimming togs"). The origin of tog as various garments was as a shortened form of the earlier togemans & togeman (cloak, loose coat), from the Middle English tog, toge & togue, from the Old French togue, from the Latin toga (cloak, mantle). Togeman(s) was criminal class cant for "cloak or coat" and in the shortened form "tog" it had spread to general use, by the early eighteenth century meaning "coat" and that also underwent mission keep, coming to be used generally of "clothing". As a verb tog (as both "tog" & "tog up") emerged very quickly. The special use of tog in fluid dynamics was as a unit of thermal resistance, being ten times the temperature difference (in °C) between the two surfaces of a material when the flow of heat is equal to one watt per m2. The discipline in the 1940s appropriated the word from its commercial use as a material used in the thermal insulation of clothing. Tog was also (as a clipping), slang for "a photographer". Toggle is a noun & verb, toggled & toggling are verbs, toggler, toggery & togglability are nouns and togglable is an adjective; the noun plural is toggles.
The Jaguar E-Type (XKE) and the toggle switch
1964 Jaguar E-Type S1 OTS (Open Two Seater, as the factory at the time described the roadster body-style.
Jaguar’s
E-Type (sometimes in North America (NA) informally called XK-E or XKE) deputed in
1961 at the now defunct Geneva Motor Show and it created quite a stir, at once
recognized as one of the more seductive shapes ever rendered in metal, a view
with which many today agree still. The
impact it made is undisputed but in industry folklore what is contested is
whether Enzo Ferrari (1898-1988), attending the show, called it “the most beautiful car in the world”. The origin of the tale is a recollection by Norman
Dewis (1920–2019) who between 1952-1985 was a Jaguar test driver, the website
Hemmings reporting him saying of that moment in Geneva: “I always remember Enzo Ferrari coming up to
me. He walked around the car. He said,
‘Norman, it’s the most beautiful car I’ve ever seen. But there is one mistake on the car. It hasn’t got a Ferrari badge.’’
1966 Jaguar E-Type OTS. The cockpit of the "toggle switch E-Types" was one of the classic looks of the analogue era, Unlike the Jaguar saloons in production at the time, from the start, the E-Type's dashboard had a padded top-rail.
Il Commendatore seems never to have confirmed
or denied expressing the sentiment and there’s no mention of it in Le mie gioie terribili (published in
English as “My terrible joys: the Enzo Ferrari memoirs” (“My Terrible Joys”
must be one of the finest titles for a memoir)). So, in the absence of a denial the story
stands and the E-Type clearly made an impression because after concluding the sleek
shape was likely to confer great aerodynamic advantage, signor Ferrari returned
to Modena and ordered the development of the 250 GTO, the three dozen-odd built
now among the highest-priced collectables.
It’s not unknown for a statement of perhaps dubious provenance to gain
an aura of authenticity if the subject decides it reflects well on them. In the 1961 Australian general election, as
the counting concluded, the government and opposition had won equal numbers
with a single seat still to be called; on that one seat rested the fate of the
election. That one seat was held by the
conservative Jim Killen (1925–2007) and ultimately he prevailed, ironically
because of the “leakage” of a handful of preferences from the Communist Party
candidate. Elated, Killen told the press
he’d received a congratulatory phone call from Robert Menzies (1894–1978;
prime-minister of Australia 1939-1941 & 1949-1966) who’d said “Killen, you’re magnificent”. The quip had come from Killen’s imagination
and later, ruefully, he would reveal that at the first post-election meeting of
Liberal Party members, Menzies “didn’t even offer me a drink.” Still, Menzies never disowned the comment and
one of his press secretaries confirmed he’d been happy for it circulate.
1961 Jaguar E-Type S1 roadster with toggle switches and aluminum trim panels.
Ergonomically, while an aesthetic delight, the layout was not wholly successful though toggle switches are thought more sexy than the later rockers (although, sardonically, in the E-Type community they are sometimes described a "suicide switches") which were adopted to comply with US safety regulations. There are two different stamping patterns for the aluminum trim pieces and the one used on the very early cars is much prized; it has never been available as a re-production. In 1963, as a running change (the factory bulletin indicating it was done to reduce glare), the panel's covering was changed to black vinyl. The use of aluminum facia plates in a Jaguar was untypical and the designers later recalled it was done just to provide that "race car look" rather as some of today's manufacturers and tuning houses will use carbon fibre (real and fake). The factory certainly was aware of the significance of the ambiance in cockpit design. The earlier XK120 (1948-1954) had been available as a FCH (fixed head coupé), DHC (drop head coupé (ie a cabriolet)) and OTS but while the first two received the traditional burl walnut veneer, the "sportier" OTS's facia was covered in leather & leathercloth. The latter was thought a more modern look which increasingly was used on the successor XK140 (1954-1957) & XK150 (1957-1961) with only the saloons using timber exclusively (which remained an option for the XK150).
Custom timber veneer fittings by
Madera Concepts for Jaguar E-type in burl walnut (left) and
Carpathian elm (right).
Unlike the XK150, the timber fittings were never a factory option but some owners found the look irresistible and commissioned specialists to create the pieces. Although the total area is not large, some disassembly and reassembly is required and with a few curves around which the veneer must be made to curl, it's a job which demands expertise. The fine craftsmen at Madera Concepts in California report having done sets in both burled walnut and Carpathian elm, the results looking exactly as one imagines the factory might have produced had there ever been a Daimler version of the E-Type. Of course, however much those commissioning the work might be delighted, the originality police are unlikely much to be impressed. Views change and by 1985 timber had re-appeared in the cockpit of the E-Type’s nominal replacement (the XJ-S (1975-1996 and in 1991 named XJS during Jaguar's time as subsidiary of Ford) so walnut in the one-off “notchback” Daimler XJ-S prototype was not a novelty.
Erected soft-top on 1969 E-Type S2.
Jaguar devoted time and resources to testing the E-Type but one thing which slipped through the pre-production process (as well what must have been indifference to the glare from the dashboard) was a buffeting the OTS's fabric soft-top suffered at certain speeds. It seems an obvious thing not to notice but, like the HST's (Hubble Space Telescope) mis-shaped mirror, it was just one of those things. With the E-Type's release date locked-in, it was too late to redesign the components and it was a hint at the machine's intrinsic unsuitability for mass-production. The factory had not expected demand to exist in anything close to what instantly emerged (they'd expected to sell at most a few thousand but not some 72,000 over 14 years; the world was however seduced and to this day the E-Type remains the definitive Jaguar). The consensus among the cognoscenti seems to be if Jaguar had anticipated what a huge seller the E-Type would become they might have (1) devoted a few more months to the development and (2) on the production line spent maybe another £40 per car, meaning many of the E-Type's inherent problems might have been solved and adding £40 to the price would likely not much have affected demand. 
The fix.
Jaguar's Q&D (quick and dirty) solution for the buffeting was to weigh-down the affected area with a chain of lead-shot, sewed into the fabric in effectively the same way weighted hems are used in fashion. Just over a half inch (14 mm) in diameter, the lead-shot bag was wrapped in a sisal cord with two 12 inch (300 mm) draw-cords to permit it easily to be pulled through the pocket in the top. It was such a rush-job Jaguar never allocated a part-number and it’s only ever been part of hood cloth assembly (#BD20582 for the Series 1; 159.854 for the Series 2). Both the S1 (1961-1968) and S2 (1968-1971) E-Types had the lead-shot bag, even though the soft-top’s frame was re-designed for the later cars (the S1 with three bows, the S2 two and the clamps securing the mechanism to the windscreen header rail were strengthened) and for the S2, the size of the shot-bag was reduced slightly to accommodate a change in placement, now beneath the centre strap between the bows. Interestingly, despite presumably having at least slightly different aerodynamic properties, there seems to have been no difference in the buffeting suffered by the early cars with mohair fabric and the later which used Everflex (a tough, high quality synthetic used by
Rolls-Royce during it's unfortunate "vinyl roof
phase" in the 1970s (Rolls-Royce never used the word "vinyl", always insisting it was "
an Evereflex covering"). For the S3 E-Type (1971-1974), the soft-top was again re-designed, this time in a way which rendered the lead-shot chains unnecessary.
On the E-Type, the toggle switches were fitted only to the S1 & S1.25 cars built between 1961-1967 and they're admired both
for the "vintage" appearance and their delightful tactility, the centrally-located array controlling functions such as lighting and the windscreen wipers. Even by the slight standards of 1960s ergonomics the arrangement wasn’t ideal but, sitting beneath the gauges,
it was an elegant and impressive layout the factory would retain for more than a decade, the E-type using the arrangement until production ended in
1974 and it endured on the low-volume Daimler DS420 limousine until 1992. However, while the layout for a while survived, the toggle switches did not, the hard-edged protuberances deemed dangerous by the US NHSB (National Highway Safety Bureau (which in 1970 became the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) under the newly created DOT (Department of Transportation), established by an act of Congress on 15 October, 1966 and beginning operation on 1 April, 1967) which,
since the publication of Ralph Nader’s (b 1934) book Unsafe at any Speed (1965) had begun to write legislation which stipulated
standards for automobile safety, this in parallel with the growing body of law designed
to reduce toxic exhaust emissions. The world into which the E-Type had been born was in its twilight.
1973 Jaguar E-Type S3 roadster with rocker switches.
On the later roadsters, the far-right rocker switch was un-labeled because it was functional only on the
coupés, activating the rear-window demister; on the XJ sedans (which used the same switch apparatus), it swapped the flow between the dual gas (petrol) tanks. When the S2 XJ was released in 1973, the whole dashboard was revised, greatly improving the ergonomics but lacking the visual appeal of a look dating from 1959 when the Mark II saloon (1959-1969) was released although the most extravagant implemental was on the Mark X (1961-1966) which used a full width assembly in timber veneer. While impressive, airbags were decades away from mass use and seatbelts were uncommon so when the model was revised and released as the 420G (1966-1970), the top rail received a padded vinyl covering (with a central clock). It didn't look as good but may have reduced the severity of a few head injuries.
In 1968,
the new wave of legislation came mostly from the DOT so applied almost
exclusively to vehicles sold in the US but such was the importance of that
market it made little sense for Jaguar to continue to produce a separate line
with toggle switches for sale in the rest of the word (RoW) so the decision
was taken to standardize on the flatter rocker switches with their safer, rounded edges. At much the same time, other changes were
made to ensure the E-Type on sale in 1968 would conform also to other new
rules, the most obvious being the replacement of the lovely covered headlights, replaced by units in a scalloped housing, mounted slightly higher (there was also a minimum headlight-height stipulation). Given the extent of change, it was decided to designate the updated cars as the S2 (Series
2). Despite the perceptions
of some (fuelled by internet posts and re-posts), by 1967, Jaguar, while not
a mass-production operation along the lines of a computerized Detroit assembly
line, had long since ceased to be a cottage industry and as a change was made
in a model’s specification, except for specified batches, it was applied to
all production after a certain date. Although the factory’s records document this, urban myths continue to
circulate, stimulated by so-called “unicorns” such as the handful of 3.8 litre Mark 2
saloons built after 1967 when the line was rationalized (as the 240 & 340)
and restricted to the 2.4 & 3.4 litre XK-Six; those 3.8s were official “special
orders” and not ad-hoc aberrations. However, nothing in the era has resulted in
as much misinformation as the specification of what came (unofficially) to be
called the S1.25 & S1.5 E-Types, the most common myth being that
before S2 production began, some cars left the factory with a sometimes
unpredictable mix of S1 & S2 parts, this haphazardness accounted for by the
expedient of “using up stock”. In the
industry, (even in computerized Detroit) the practice was not unknown but
there’s no evidence of the practice among 1967 E-Types. What seems especially to attract speculation is the
phenomenon of “overlap”, a word describing a Jaguar found to include some “later” or
“earlier” features than the build date and VIN (vehicle identification number) suggest should be fitted. It's part of the charm of the breed and was usually the result of the recorded “build date” reflecting when a car passed the
final quality control checks; apparent discrepancies did happen if a car with an earlier chassis number had been returned for rectification of some fault, thus picking up what appears to be an
“out-of-sequence” date.
1967 Jaguar
E-Type S1 OTS (left) and 1976 Jensen Interceptor III (J Series) Convertible
(right).
With the
end of E-Type production, no Jaguar subsequently used the classic dashboard
layout although it did endure on the Daimler DS40 limousine, built on the platform
of the old Mark X. Although over 4,000 DS420s
(including two built by Vanden Plas as
landaulets) were built (plus an
additional 900-odd supplied as “commercial chassis” to coachbuilders who would
fabricate custom aft-sections, configured mostly as
hearses), the model was
never sold in the US, the costs of the engineering required to make it
compliant with the NHTSA’s ever-evolving rules to high to make the low-volume
model viable. Jensen however adopted the
layout for the
Interceptor (1966-1976) when in 1969 the Mark II was released
although it too was compelled to replace the toggle switches with rockers and
they went above and beyond the regulator’s dictates, installing them in a
recessed, padded housing. Even on the
Interceptor Mark III (1971-1976), although there were a number of detail
changes to the dashboard over the life of the model
(there
were “G”, “H” & ”J” series, “I” skipped to avoid confusion with the numeric
“1” (one), a convention followed by many including bra manufacturers and Boeing
when updating the B-52H Stratofortress), the Jaguaresque layout (an
array of gauges in the centre with a line of toggles below) remained to the
end. Again, the ergonomics were not
state of the art but, like the Jaguars, the Interceptor had other charms.
2006 Spyker C8 Laviolette Widebody: Dashboard layout with four-spoke “
propeller” steering wheel (left) and toggle switches with
nerf-bars (right).
Pleasingly, although thought
extinct on the road, the toggle switches did make a comeback with several small-scale
manufacturers unable to resist the look.
The way that look was kept while remaining compliant with the rules was
to add rounded nerf-bars on each side of the switch, a trick borrowed from
racing cars where the fittings were used to ensure a driver didn’t inadvertently
“
flick to wrong one”, always a risk
because of the thick
gloves usually worn in competition. Spyker, a boutique operation from the
Netherlands, began operation in 1999, the name coming from a Dutch coach-builder
that between 1880-1926 would branch out from horse-drawn carriages to
automobiles and even aircraft. Since
2000, between various local difficulties (including bouts of bankruptcy),
Spyker has produced a number of high-performance models and while the mechanical
specification has always been impressive, what has also drawn attention are the
exquisitely finished interiors, the intricacies (typified by the nerf-bars
around the toggle switches) a delight for those who fetishize such things. Unfortunately the four-spoke “propeller”
steering wheel (a style last seen in volume on the Jaguar XK150 (1957-1961) was
eventually judged just too potentially lethal to be granted an exemption from
compliance and was replaced with something more accommodating from the
Lamborghini parts-bin.
Engineering as art: Gear-shift mechanism, 2006 Spyker C8 Laviolette Widebody (left) and 2007 Spyker C8 Laviolette
Targa with, softer, gentler steering wheel (right).
What did however
survive was the wonderfully crafted shift mechanism for the rear-mounted ZF transaxle
and although the exposed shafts of stainless steel might seem an affectation, it's pure
functionalism; being a direct mechanical linkage, they provide precise gear-shifting, always a challenge with such a layout (the Porsche 914 (1969-1976) community coined
“broomstick
in a jar of mayonnaise” to describe the experience of the earlier "tail-shift" models, the post 1972 "side-shift" build a great improvement from "bad" the "satisfactory"). The shape of the shifter’s
knob reflects the modern
practice, dating from analysed data derived in the late 1960s from the Swedish
government's mandatory post mortems (autopsies) of road-accident fatalities
(under Swedish law, such corpses were for 48 hours the property of the
state). What the pathologists' findings
revealed was lives could be saved if engineers could devise as a shift lever
handle too large to penetrate the eye socket.
One of the first knobs to reflect this design imperative appeared in
1971 on the Mercedes-Benz
350 SL (R107, 1971-1989) although, there being an element
of the
macabre in the research, the origin of the shape wasn't something the
factory choose widely to publicize. The small
innovation was a classic example of what's called “passive safety”. Spyker’s engineering is thorough and although pure-steel from transaxle to knob, heat-soak along the shaft is said to be
minor so there was no need to resort to a timber knob as Porsche did in the late
1960s on some of its race cars; to this day the urban myth persists that Porsche
used balsawood to reduce weight by a few grams.
The pure lines of the S1 E-Type (top) were diluted, front and rear, by the need to comply with US safety legislation, the later S2's head & taillights more clunky. The collector market slang for the later headlight treatment is "sugar scoop".
The process
by which S1 evolved into S2 was in a sense transitional which is why the designations
S1.25 & S1.5 became accepted in the jargon. Not used by the factory, the terms are said to have been “invented” by JCNA (Jaguar Clubs of North America), the S1.25 run beginning
on 11 January 1967 after production resumed following the Christmas holiday while
the first 1.5s were built mid-year. Although within the collector community much is made of the defining differences between the
“pure” S1 and the “transitional” S1.25 & S1.5, that “purity” is nuanced
because like many others, the E-Type was subject to constant product
development with changes appearing from time to time and "S1" is a concept rather than a static specification. Early in the model run, there were some
obvious changes such as (1) the modification to the “flat floors” to provide
more leg-room, (2) the integration of the hood (bonnet) louvers into the
pressing, (3) the external hood (really a “clamshell”) release (there were two types) being replaced
by an internal mechanism, (4) internal trim changes including the dashboard
materials, console and seats, (5) the replacement of the Moss gearbox with
an all-synchromesh unit and (6) the 4.2 litre engine replacing the original
3.8. Beyond those well-known landmarks,
between 1965 and early 1967 there was also a wealth of barely detectable
(except to experts of which there are quite a few) cosmetic changes and mechanical
updates including: (1) the glass windshield washer bottle being replaced by a plastic container (March 1965), (2) the addition of an alternator shield (October
1965), (3) an enclosed brake and clutch pedal box (October 1965), (4) a hazard
warning (4-way) flasher included for US market cars (November 1965), (5) sun-visors added
to the OTS (February 1966), (6) instrument lighting changed from blue to
green (March 1966), (7) the rubber boot at the base of the gear lever being replaced
by a black Ambla gaiter (October 1966), (8) detail changes to the gearbox cover
and prop shift tunnel finisher (October 1966), (9) the material used for the
under-dash panels switched from Rexine-skinned aluminum to fiberboard (October
1966) and (10) a Girling clutch master cylinder replaced the Dunlop unit (December
1966). One quirky part of the evolution was that although, from their introduction in 1966, the 2+2 cars included a door for the glove-box, one wasn't fitted to the OTS & FHC until the S1.5 run.
Jaguar E-Type: S1 with covered headlight (left), S1.25 with early "sugar scoop" (centre) and S2 with later "sugar scoop" (right).
After the lovely headlight covers were legislated to extinction by the DOT bureaucrats, the replacement (uncovered) apparatus came to be called the “sugar scoop”, a term earlier used for the Volkswagens & Porsches sold in the NA market which had to be fitted with sealed-beam headlights because of protectionist rules designed for the benefit of US manufacturers. The use of “sugar scoop” for the E-Type was appropriate because the visual link with the utensil was much more obvious than on the Volkswagens & Porsches. There were three different designs of sugar scoops, one for the 1.25 & 1.5, one for the S2 and one for the S3.
UUA 368 is an Australian-registered 1968 (S2) Jaguar E-Type available for hire at a daily rate of Aus$990.00 (including 200 km (124 miles)); the hire company dubbed her (the car) "Penelope" (unfortunately, the company does not expand on how the names were chosen). Not all jurisdictions allow the registration plate to be painted on the hood, a practice made famous in 1961 by photographs of 9600 HP, a pre-production E-Type used as one of the factory’s original press-cars. It was 9600 HP which The Autocar magazine took to Belgium, successfully verifying the then astonishing claim of a top speed of 150 mph (241 km/h) although, years later, it was revealed there had been a few subtle tweaks and an E-Type off the showroom floor wouldn’t quite have hit the magic number, no matter how long and straight the road. Painting the registration on the hood avoided disfiguring the lovely lines with a plate (no flat surfaces on the front of an E-Type) and many followed the lead, some places allowing it, some not. A S2 E-Type, UUA 368 has the one of the more elevated of the sugar scoops but, being delivered in Australia, it retains the triple SU carburettors by then denied to customers in NA so response will be lively, especially above 100 mph (160 km/h).
A US market
1977 Porsche 911 (1964-1989), fitted with the front bumper assembly of a later
911 (964 (1989-1994)): The original “sugar
scoops” are seen on the left and the replacement Hella H4 lights are to the
right (in RoW cars both H2 & H4 units were fitted). The (non-figurative) sugar scoop (centre) is Japanese, circa
1970s. Sugar scoops are used to scoop
sugar from a “sugar scuttle” whereas if one’s sugar is in a “sugar bowl”, a “sugar
spoon” is used. The difference between a
“sugar spoon” and a “tea spoon” is the former has a deeper and usually more
rounded bowl and most are supplied as part of a “tea set” or “tea service”,
often with the same decorative elements.
1966 Jaguar E-Type FHC: undeniably, the headlight covers were a sexy shape.
Despite
that myriad of modifications, all E-Types prior to the S2 are S1s but the running changes can be of significance to restorers if
the object is exactly to emulate the state in which a vehicle rolled off the
production line; in events such as a concours d'élegancé, judges can deduct
points for even minor infractions. Things
became more distinct when on 11 January 1967 the first E-Type destined for the
US market was built without the covered headlights and this marked the
beginning of the run of what would come to be known as the 1.25 although it
wouldn’t be until mid-year the open headlights became a universal
fitting. Unlike some cars where changes can be determined from the sequential VINs, the only way accurately to determine whether a 1967 E-Type built between January and July was fitted with covered or uncovered headlights work out the market for which it was built, those for NA using the uncovered fittings. That's because an analysis of successive VINs will reveal on a given day there might have been a mix of cars going down the production line with different headlight assemblies. Curiously, there were some 1968 E-Types built for Canada which included the triple SUs and while these included the interior changes mandated by US federal law, the door mirror on the driver’s side wasn't fitted and the tail and side lights were a different specification. From 1969, Canada aligned its regulations with those of the US so from that point on, the NA specification was standardized but the history of S1 production does illustrate why things be so challenging for restorers wishing exactly to replicate what the factory did.
Between
August-October 1967, the 1.5 run was built with twin Zenith-Stromberg
carburetors (in a specification designed to reduce emissions) replacing the triple SUs (on NA cars), the substitution of ribbed camshaft
covers, a higher mounting of the headlights (to meet minimum height
requirements) and the adoption of rocker switches; at this point, the teardrop tail lights remained,
the other most obvious external marker of the S2 being the chunky lights below the
rear bumper bar. In the usual manner, updates continued, such as twin
cooling fans (a good idea) and 1000-odd run of the so-called "R2" cars, almost all of which were registered as 1971 models although many left the factory in 1970. The R2 S2 E-Types gained a pair of "leaper" badges on the flanks, just behind the front wheel arches. Unlike the steel leapers centrally mounted on the hoods of other models, the badges required two part numbers, one each for the left & right. It seemed a pointless addition and just an addition of more clutter, as they were on the S1 (1968-1973) & S2 (1973-1979) XJs.
1971 S2 Jaguar E-Type (centre) from the "R2" run of 1000-odd with the leaper badges on the flanks.
So much did the clutter created by bigger bumpers, protuberant headlight assemblies, badges and side-marker lights detract from the lovely, sleek lines of the Series 1 cars, bolting a luggage rack to the trunk (boot) probably seemed no longer the disfigurement it would once have been. The left-hand (left) and right-hand (right) badges, being directional, were different part numbers (BD35865 & BD35866 respectively) and those used on E-Types were silver on black. There were also variants used on the XJs which were gold on black and some had the leaping feline at a slight slope, both matters of note for those wishing to restore to the exacting "factory original" standard.
So, without a flow chart, it can be hard to follow and, because of some overlaps in the production process, the
S1-to-S1.25-to-S1.5 transition wasn’t entirely lineal but none of this is
mysterious because the JFSBs have documented and explained these “inconsistencies”. Still, there are enough quirks to enrage some and delight others. For example, there were a
certain 32 specific NA market vehicles fitted with the headlight covers which
were built with serial numbers later than the first of the open headlight cars. Not all E-Types built for NA in
1967 thus had the open headlights and a not insignificant number of those 1.25
spec vehicles have been retro-fitted with the covers. Such is the appeal of the covered headlights
that although the E-Type market is monitored by the originality police (the
“matching numbers” crowd with their extraordinary knowledge of things like
“correct” hose clamps or screw heads), there is some untypical
forgiveness for “back-dating” headlights to the sleeker look and they're not
unknown even on the later, and much different, S3 cars. Also, although US market S2 cars were from very early in the build fitted with the side-marker light assemblies, it wasn't until late in 1969 bulbs and wiring were fitted (the relevant law taking effect on 1 January 1970); prior to that they'd functioned merely as “side-reflectors”, meaning latter day purchasers need to inspect non-illuminating examples to work out if they're defective or just reflectors. Opinion seems divided on the matter of fitting the triple SU carburetor assembly to cars delivered with the twin Zenith-Strombergs and many have been converted. It's not difficult to make a 1.25 visually indistinguishable from a S1 and to do the same to a 1.5 is a matter just of more parts, time and money, the ethics of both ventures being transparency; once modifications are disclosed to a potential purchaser, it's up to them to decide if originality is critical. Armed with lists of VINs, JFSBs and encyclopaedic knowledge, the JCNA's originality police will not be fooled.
The lure of the headlight covers: 1973 E-Type S3 with headlight covers subsequently added (left) and with the standard "sugar scoops" (left).
These are US market cars with the additional "dagmars" appended to the bumperettes. Even by 1973, thin whitewall tyres were still a popular option on US Jaguars and they remained available until the last were sold in 1975 but the wide whitewalls often supplied in the early 1960s had long fallen from favor. Although
the judges in the JCNA confederation are
usually uncompromising, they make a rare
exception in not deducting points from late-build E-Types (the so-called 1.25
& 1.5) which have been fitted with the headlight covers. The covers never appeared on the S3 E-Types but their unexpected presence clearly doesn't dissuade buyers because the S3 pictured above
(left) in February, 2021 sold at auction for US$230,000. It was an exceptionally low-mileage example
(8000-odd miles (13,000 km)) but even given that it represented an impressive
premium for what was a "modified" vehicle. The S3 cars also had a number of year-to-year variations but compared with the constantly evolving S1 the specification tended to the static. One quirk was that as well as offering the new 5.3 litre (326 cubic inch) V12, it had been intended also to make available a version with the 4.2 litre XK-Six with brochures and promotional materials printed before the decision was taken only to fit the V12. However, four six cylinder pre-production prototypes were built and one is known to survive; curiously, despite the rarity (indeed, it may genuinely be a unique, historic E-Type footnote), at auction it achieved a price little different from a 1971 V12 model in equivalent condition.
Jaguar E-Type production breakdown, 1961-1974.
While the loss of the
toggle switches, teardrop taillights and headlight covers caused many to lament that the world was shifting from elegance ungainliness, some other changes also induced pangs of regret. The switch from triple to dual carburetors was
necessitated by the emission control regulations; the claimed HP (horsepower) dropped from 265 to 246 and while not many took the original rating too
seriously, there was a drop in performance, especially in the upper speed
ranges. One often less noticed change
mandated by the DOT was the replacement of the “eared” knock-off hubs for the
wire wheels (the E-Types only ever using a two-eared version although
third-party items with three ears are available) with a more “pedestrian
friendly” type which, bewilderingly, are now referred to as the “non-eared”,
“curly”, “octagonal”, “smooth”, “federal” “safety” and
“continental” knock offs. Take your
pick. Buyers could also take their pick
of whether their “improved” wire wheels (now incorporating a forged centre hub)
were painted in matte silver or chromed although the JFSB did caution that
because of the altered configuration of the spokes, the wheels were not interchangeable
with the earlier type except as a complete set (ie five per car). Available from 1 January, 1968 (the effective
date for many of DOT’s new rules), this was Jaguar’s last update of the wire
wheels which, in a variety of forms, the company had been using since being founded
in 1922 as the Swallow Sidecar Company.
Never offered on the biggest and heaviest of the post-war cars (the Mark
VII, VIII, IX and X/420G) or the new XJ range, they were last used on the “overlap”
Daimler saloons (250 & Sovereign) in 1969 although they remained an option for
the E-Type until the last was built in 1974.
Wire wheels and associated components for the E-Type by
Martin Robey; note the two designs of spinner saver (eared & non-eared).
Although a handful of small-scale producers (the last hold-outs from the days of cottage industries) continued to offer wire
wheels, their final appearance on the option lists of the UK industry’s volume
models came in 1980 when the last of MG's Midgets and MGBs were sold. The term "knock-off" sometimes confuses because in slang it can mean a "fake or reproduction item" but in the context of wheels the original meaning described the centre-locking hubs (known also as "spinners") which were tightened or loosened by being "knocked" on the ears with the (often lead-faced) mallet (sometimes described as a hammer) included in the tool kit. In racing, pit crews would strike the ears directly but tool-kits usually included a (typically timber) "spinner saver" to minimise damage to both hub and mallet; when non-eared hubs appeared, the shape of the spinner saver was also changed. So the term can confuse: The famous Italian manufacturer Borrani produced many wheels with centre-lock hubs so the phrase "Borrani knock-offs" is standard industry jargon and by convention "knock off Borranis" is used of replica locking nuts (also called "spinners"), the presence of which can be a concern because they might be of lower quality, not manufactured to the safety and performance standards of the genuine product.
Norway’s
Motorhistorisk Klubb Drammen
(Historic Car Club of Drammen) from Buskerud county reported on an exhibition hosted on
2 July, 2014 by the Norsk motorhistorisk museu (Norwegian Motor Historic Museum)
in the village of Brund, the event honoring Lindsay Lohan’s (b 1986) 28th birthday. The red S2 Jaguar E-Type had received a recent restoration but a detailed examination would have to be undertaken to determine the degree to which it remains in its original specification. Given the visible clues and its presence in Norway, this may have been a RoW (which the triple SU carburetors would suggest though they are a popular swap on twin-carb models) car but there’s a lively two-way trans-Atlantic trade in E-Types (many now expertly restored in Poland)
so it may originally have been sold in the US or Canada.
The “Shaguar”
used in the three Austin Powers movies
(1997, 1999 & 2002).
The Shaguar was a 1967 S1.5 E-Type which featured
the combination of teardrop taillights, twin carburetors, sugar scoop headlights, a glove-box door, rocker switches and, being right-hand drive (RHD), it wasn't built for NA. When the auction house published the photographs, the vibrant on-line originality police did their analysis and concluded it was built in December 1967 as a 1968 model but was in far from original condition (beyond the obvious paint and Shaguar badge). The dashboard included the earlier manual choke and the heater and vent controls appeared to be missing and while the side & turn lights were NA specification, the taillights were those used on RoW cars. The tachometer was the one one fitted to S2 models and it was suspected this may have been swapped when the later, non-original engine with the twin Zenith-Stromberg carburetors was installed. Over the decades, many E-Types have for one reason and another drifted far from their original build and usually this limits their appeal to collectors but at Mecum Auctions in January 2025, the Shaguar realized US$880,000 (including 10% buyers premium), several times the typical sale price of a non-original S1.5 RoW E-Type in the same condition, its history as a cinema prop clearly an attraction.
