There aren't many cars out there where the word "legendary" absolutely applies to describe them. It's especially rare when that tag can be applied to a sleeper car. But, the car we're about to discuss now definitely fits both of those descriptions. It's a car that's beloved to this day, by multiple groups of people. It was also beloved during its heyday by some of the most unsavory characters you could run into... The 1960s Produced Some Of The World's First Sleeper Cars Via: Mecum AuctionsThese days, you can find sleeper cars absolutely everywhere. Whether it's a brand new electric sedan or SUV with supercar levels of power and acceleration, or something from the '90s that's ended up becoming a modern classic, there are a lot of choices out there. That wasn't the case in the earlier days of the automobile, though. High-performance engines didn't typically get dropped into otherwise ordinary cars. It wasn't until the 1960s came around, really, when sleeper cars really started showing up. Sometimes, they were the result of American automakers letting you put ridiculous engines in mid-sized or full-sized cars designed primarily for comfort. Other times, it was thanks to European manufacturers creating a car for the upper classes that had big power, but delivered in a smooth and genteel way.When people find out the capabilities of these sleeper cars, there are a couple of reactions that can happen. One is that they realize that they've stumbled upon a near-perfect one-car solution, being able to have great performance along with comfort and practicality. Other times, people realize that they can be used for more nefarious purposes... Several Vehicles Have Ended Up Gaining A Criminal Reputation StellantisBecause of the capabilities that some cars (and sleeper cars in particular) have demonstrated, they've ended up gaining a reputation for being used as getaway cars. The getaway cars of choice for criminals have varied over the years, and also varied depending on what country the criminals are operating in. Some of the getaway cars we know about the most were used by British criminals. One of these, quite infamously, was the Vauxhall Lotus Carlton. This car had almost as much power and was almost as fast as some supercars of its day, while being able to carry a lot of stolen goods. That meant that the police couldn't keep up with it, and campaigned to have it banned from sale in the UK as a result!Going beyond cars, the original version of the Ford Transit van was also often used as a getaway vehicle. While it wasn't anywhere near as fast as the Lotus Carlton, it could match the speed of regular cars of its day while being able to carry a lot more inside.Out of all the vehicles that were favorites of British criminals and gangsters, there's one that has a greater reputation for this more than any other. It's a luxurious sedan from one of the world's most iconic and prestigious brands. While it was primarily designed to be luxurious, it did have a variant that was fast enough to rival proper sports cars. It could also outrun most British police cars of its day, to the point where police departments ended up buying their own just to keep up! The Jaguar Mark 2 3.8 Is A Luxurious Sleeper Sedan That Became One Of The Most Legendary Getaway Cars Of All Time The Jaguar Mark 2 has to be one of the most iconic British sedans of all time. It's hard for it not to be, considering how gorgeous it looks! It looks like how a proper British classic car should look in every single way. It's also sumptuously comfortable, even by today's standards. But, don't let those genteel first impressions fool you. The 3.8-liter version of this car was secretly a performance monster. Powered by the 3.8-liter iteration of the XK inline-6 engine, this car produced 220 brake horsepower and 240 pound-feet of torque. While that sounds tame by today's standards, back then it genuinely was headline-grabbing. Thanks to that power, it could reportedly go from 0-60 mph in 7.8 seconds. It could also manage to reach at top speed of 125 mph. Again, those figures don't sound amazing by today's standards. But, in the context of the era that this car first appeared in, it must have seemed like this was the top of the tree in terms of performance.With that combination of sports car performance with luxury sedan comfort and practicality, it's almost not that surprising that the Mark 2 3.8 became a favourite for various kinds of criminal activity. It was connected with robberies all over Britain, typically carried out by organized gangs. One of the main proponents of the Jaguar Mark 2 for crime was Roy "The Weasel" James, a notorious getaway driver who was connected with several high-profile crimes (including The Great Train Robbery). Interestingly, he preferred the 3.4-liter versions over the 3.8!With how much the Jaguar Mark 2 was used for crime, it's also not too surprising that the Police bought their own examples during the model's heyday. The police Mark 2s were typically used for highway patrol, where their performance had a real advantage. Thanks to that, Britain had a rare instance of the same car being used to carry out duties on both sides of the law. Its Reputation Parlayed Into On-Screen Fame That getaway car reputation was so culturally significant that you didn't just see it in real life. The Jaguar Mark 2 played the villain so well that it became a common car of choice for criminals in movies and TV shows. This included the classic British TV series The Sweeney (where police-spec Mark 2s also appeared), and the movies Robbery and Buster. These on-screen appearances only helped to solidify the Jaguar Mark 2's reputation as being a gangster's car. While that's maybe not the reputation Jaguar hoped it would have, some enthusiasts in later years definitely would have been drawn to the gangster aesthetic this car was a part of. The Jaguar Mark 2 Is Still A Somewhat Affordable Classic Calreyn88, via Wikimedia CommonsThe Jaguar Mark 2 might be a legendary car these days, thanks to its gorgeous looks and infamous reputation. But, that hasn't quite translated into sky-high used values yet. It's still a relatively affordable option for classic car enthusiasts, with average used values at around $25,446 across all its different versions. If you want a 3.8 that's in the absolute best possible condition you could ask for, you could end up paying as much as $63,000. Still, that's not as much as some other legendary 1960s classics go for these days!Sources: Bring A Trailer, Classic.com, Jaguar