Daimler Sovereign
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Daimler Sovereign | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Manufacturer | Jaguar Cars |
| Predecessor | Daimler Majestic Major |
| Successor | Jaguar Sovereign |
| Class | Luxury car |
| Body style(s) | 4-door saloon & 2-door coupé |
| Layout | FR layout |
| Transmission(s) | overdrive or automatic options available |
| Wheelbase | 107 in (2718 mm) |
| Length | 188 in (4775 mm) |
| Width | 67 in (1702 mm) |
| Height | 55 in (1397 mm) |
| Curb weight | 3455 lb (1567 kg) (manual without overdrive) |
The Daimler Sovereign was a model of automobile built by British manufacturer Jaguar in Coventry. It was introduced in 1966, and was the first Daimler-badged car to have a Jaguar engine - marking the end for the Edward Turner-designed V8 engines Jaguar had inherited when it took over the Daimler company in 1960.
The first Sovereign was a luxury version of the Jaguar 420 saloon, itself based on the Jaguar S-Type with a revised four-headlight nose reminiscent of the Jaguar Mark X and fitted with the 4.2 litre version of the straight-six XK engine. The main external difference on the Daimler was the traditional fluted radiator grille.
The 420 and S-Type were replaced by the Jaguar XJ6 in September 1968, although the Daimler remained on sale until October 1969, when a new XJ6-based Sovereign was introduced, once again externally virtually identical to the Jaguar other than the grille and badging. This was offered with either the 2.8 litre or the 4.2 litre version of the XK engine. From 1975 the 2.8 litre was replaced by a 3.4 litre version of the same engine.
The Daimler Sovereign name remained in use for the Series II version of the XJ6 (including the coupé variant), but in 1983, during the run of the Series III, the range was re-named with the base model named the Jaguar XJ6, the more luxurious version named the Jaguar Sovereign, and the top-of-the-range simply known as the Daimler, without a model name.
[edit] Daimler Double Six
From 1972 Jaguar's 5.3 litre V12 engine was available in the XJ range, and for the Daimler version a name used by the company from 1926 to 1938 was revived. Unlike the Jaguar, the twelve-cylinder Daimler had the same radiator grill as its six-cylinder sibling, and externally only the badges distinguished them.
Although the Sovereign name was transferred to Jaguar, the Double Six name remained with Daimler throughout Series III production, which continued until 1992.
When Jaguar re-engineered the XJ40 to take a 6.0 litre version of the V12 engine, under the model designation XJ81, a new Double Six was also produced, being manufactured between 1993 and 1994. In the latter year, along with the other XJ models, it was facelifted under the X305 designation and continued to be produced until the V12 engine was dropped in 1997.
[edit] Models
The Daimler Sovereign XJ6 Series 1 has been modelled by Lledo Vanguards in the 2000s.
[edit] External Links
Photo of the original Sovereign on the Jaguar database :
Photos of the three series of Sovereign XJ models on the Daimler home page :
