The four isomeric difluoro‐2,11‐dithia[3.3]paracyclophanes, 3F2, with one fluorine substituent per aromatic ring were prepared as a 1:1:1:1 mixture. They were converted into the bissulphones, which were pyrolysed to yield the ar,ar′‐difluoro[2.2]paracyclophanes, 2F2, as a mixture of pseudogeminal, pseudoortho‐, pseudometa‐ and pseudopara‐isomers in a ratio of 1:2:3:2. The 1H, 13C and 19F NMR spectra of the mixture of starting materials, 3F2, and of the mixture of products, 2F2, were analyzed by the use of two‐dimensional shift correlations (1H,1H‐COSY, 13C,1H‐ and 19F,1H‐HETCOR) and by comparing the experimental 1H and 13C chemical shifts with those predicted by assuming additivity of substituent chemical shifts (SCS). The SCS values were derived from the spectra of the monofluoro compounds, 2F and 3F. Large through‐space 19F,19F coupling constants were observed for the pseudogeminal isomers of 2F2 (13.7 Hz) and 3F2 (7.2 Hz). Smaller J(F,F) values were found for the pseudoortho‐ (0.6 Hz) and, surprisingly, for the pseudopara‐isomer (2.8 Hz) of 2F2. The latter coupling is probably transmitted through the π‐electron system(s) of the [2.2]paracyclophane deck. A number of through‐space J(F,C) and J(F,H) couplings were also observed. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.