Jaguar Car Club of Victoria

The first cars were simply called SS1. The year was 1931. Standard Swallow was as close as anyone had come - all possibilities seemed to have been refuted by Sir William Lyons. Not long before his death the grey Lofty England was unable to shed any light on the origin of the name.From these earliest days Sir Williams Lyons had as a goal to produce a car that did not look mass produced and wasn't expensive a car with individual styling and capable of sporting performance.

A Henly advertisement in the national motoring press at the end of July 1931 announced that "the extremely successful Standard Swallow 4 seater saloon was to be continued - a Big Nine Saloon 250 pounds".

Side-valve engines continued to be used throughout the pre-war period however the new models introduced in 1934 had, to quote 'Motor' magazine "an entirely new SS2 model with ohv engine, synchromesh gearbox and underslung frame. Roomy and handsome coachwork."

The Airline of 1935, although short-lived, added yet a further dimension to the range. September 1935 saw an entirely new range of cars presented and offered a new overhead-valve engine that provided an exceptional performance.