1950 Jaguar Mark V Drophead Coupe
edited by David Barth, 10 January 2009.
Courtesy The Forney Museum of Transportation at 4303 Brighton Blvd., Denver,
Colorado. Photos were taken in January 2009.
The world-renowned Jaguar nameplate originated with William Lyons and the SS Company in Britain. Formerly known as the
Swallow Coach Building Company in the late 1920s, the company changed from manufacturing special bodies to building
complete automobiles by 1931.
Some observers thought the bodies to be excessively flamboyant. However, their curved front fenders that blended into the
running boards and the rounded rear fenders attracted attention on both sides of the Atlantic.
The name "Mark V" was chosen because the design that William Lyons was happiest with is the fifth prototype of the
independent front suspension developed by Jaguar. It may also be due to the rivalry between Jaguar and Bentley's Mark
VI.
The Mark V was available in the Drophead Coupe or Saloon model. It is the first Jaguar car to be fitted with 16-inch
pressed steel wheels, body-colored hubcaps, and rear wing splash pan/rear wheel cover. No engine heat exhaust louvers
are fitted to the sides of the hood. The Drophead Coupe, often referred to as the Cabriolet by enthusiasts, has a
three-position fabric head: closed, partially open, and fully open.
