Talk:Jam sandwich (police car)

Latest comment: 2 months ago by Hullian111 in topic Saying the unsayable

Real Sandwiches edit

I think an entry on jam sandwiches themselves is more appropriate in a dictionary, and there is already an entry at wiktionary:jam sandwich. They are not particularly notable and most people understand them thoroughly. The information the section provided was either clear from the title or advice, which is inappropriate because Wikipedia is not an instruction manual; the content was also original research. On the other hand, the slang term referring to police cars is a notable part of British culture (appearing frequently on several shows) and merits detailed explanation, which an encyclopedia entry can better provide. Superm401 - Talk 23:12, 5 February 2006 (UTC)Reply

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposal. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

The result of the debate was no move Part Deux 19:33, 16 December 2006 (UTC)Reply

Requested move edit

Jam sandwichJam sandwich (slang) — This is the more correct name for the article. Jam sandwich should be changed to be a DAB page pointing to this article and to Sandwich ArmadilloProcess 05:04, 11 December 2006 (UTC)Reply

Survey edit

Add  * '''Support'''  or  * '''Oppose'''  on a new line followed by a brief explanation, then sign your opinion using ~~~~.
  • Oppose, I find it highly unlikely that those interested in the actual sandwich would search for Jam sandwich, and a dab page would be useless if there is no article on jam sandwiches specifically. A disambiguation notice at the top of the current article would suffice if it's really needed. Voretustalk 17:31, 11 December 2006 (UTC)Reply
  • Oppose per Voretus. Also, per WP:BOLD, I went ahead and added a simple disambiguation header. --Serge 17:59, 11 December 2006 (UTC)Reply
  • Oppose - the dab header is sufficient. -- Beardo 04:32, 13 December 2006 (UTC)Reply

Discussion edit

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The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on this talk page. No further edits should be made to this section.

Markings still in use? edit

The article claims that the classic 'jam sandwich' markings are still in extensive use in the UK. I have my doubts about this, as it's a long time (maybe a decade) since I've seen them. The term really applies to the late 70s/early 80s Rover SD1 traffic car which was used by most forces at that time. The article illustration is of a much later car, though admittedly it does have the distinctive markings. --80.176.142.11 (talk) 18:11, 30 August 2009 (UTC)Reply

Still used by The Met--Degen Earthfast (talk) 03:45, 7 January 2010 (UTC)Reply


Still used, but the cars are invariably silver these days and not white. (BigTurnip (talk) 13:44, 19 July 2011 (UTC))Reply
Not used in our rural area, where white cars had blue-and-yellow battenburg markings for the last two decades now, and have been silver for a long time as well. I'd go so far as to say that this is a widely obsolescent colloquialism, not to say actually obsolete for the current generation of young adults. This article probably represents a good example of demographic bias; the editors who created and update this article are likely of an age to remember the usage being widespread (not that long ago), but the younger internet user who isn't familiar with the term (because common usage changes among different generations) doesn't care enough to even be aware of this article or contest its validity as a common-use or notable slang term.
(Maybe Wikipedia should avoid slang terms altogether?) 2A00:23C7:3119:AD01:4951:AF03:3C77:5C80 (talk) 16:57, 16 November 2022 (UTC)Reply

Record-breaking auction price edit

An ex-police Rover SD1 being sold at auction for a record price for that model (although actual price not specified in the article) is interesting, but does it really have any connection to this article (which is about a near-archaic British colloquialism, not the Rover SD1)? 2A00:23C7:3119:AD01:4951:AF03:3C77:5C80 (talk) 16:51, 16 November 2022 (UTC)Reply

Saying the unsayable edit

Gonna come right out and say it: nobody uses this term anymore. The police 'jam sandwich' is a thing of the past, which is only remembered by your dad or your uncle. The average Briton under the age of 25-30 has probably never heard this term being used in the context of this article. Does this article deserve its place on Wikipedia? 2A00:23C7:3119:AD01:4951:AF03:3C77:5C80 (talk) 17:01, 16 November 2022 (UTC)Reply

I know this is an old IP query that nobody has bothered to reply to, but while I don't think the article deserves deletion simply because "it doesn't exist anymore", I think an interesting discussion might be whether this actually falls under the 'slang' header. The link to slang is a bit more tenuous and maybe reserved to Wikitionary, and this article might be better off like Battenburg markings in describing livery rather than the term. Hullian111 (talk) 16:53, 8 February 2024 (UTC)Reply