diff --git a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/IntegrationTestSuite.java b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/IntegrationTestSuite.java
index 8799a87b4c..160f108d3e 100644
--- a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/IntegrationTestSuite.java
+++ b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/IntegrationTestSuite.java
@@ -88,6 +88,7 @@ public class IntegrationTestSuite
         // suite.addTestSuite( MavenIT0109ReleaseUpdateTest.class );
         // suite.addTestSuite( MavenIT0108SnapshotUpdateTest.class ); -- MNG-3137
 
+        suite.addTestSuite( MavenITmng3877BasedirAlignedModelTest.class );
         suite.addTestSuite( MavenITmng3866PluginConfigInheritanceTest.class );
         suite.addTestSuite( MavenITmng3864PerExecPluginConfigTest.class );
         suite.addTestSuite( MavenITmng3863AutoPluginGroupIdTest.class );
diff --git a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3475BaseAlignedDirTest.java b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3475BaseAlignedDirTest.java
index 27f8320547..2e124a3e9c 100644
--- a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3475BaseAlignedDirTest.java
+++ b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3475BaseAlignedDirTest.java
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ public class MavenITmng3475BaseAlignedDirTest
     }
 
     /**
-     * Verify that project directories are basedir aligned when inspected by plugins.
+     * Verify that project directories are basedir aligned when queried by plugin parameter expressions.
      */
     public void testitMNG3475()
         throws Exception
@@ -56,46 +56,33 @@ public class MavenITmng3475BaseAlignedDirTest
         verifier.verifyErrorFreeLog();
         verifier.resetStreams();
 
-        /*
-         * NOTE: The script source directory is deliberately excluded from the checks due to MNG-3741.
-         */
-
         Properties configProps = verifier.loadProperties( "target/config.properties" );
-        Properties modelProps = verifier.loadProperties( "target/model.properties" );
 
         assertPathEquals( testDir, "target", configProps.getProperty( "mapParam.buildDirectory" ) );
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "target", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.directory" ) );
 
         assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/classes", configProps.getProperty( "mapParam.buildOutputDirectory" ) );
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/classes", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.outputDirectory" ) );
 
         assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/test-classes", configProps.getProperty( "mapParam.buildTestOutputDirectory" ) );
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/test-classes", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.testOutputDirectory" ) );
 
         assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/java", configProps.getProperty( "mapParam.buildSourceDirectory" ) );
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/java", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.sourceDirectory" ) );
 
         assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/test/java", configProps.getProperty( "mapParam.buildTestSourceDirectory" ) );
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/test/java", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.testSourceDirectory" ) );
 
         if ( matchesVersionRange( "[2.1.0-M1,)" ) )
         {
             assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/site", configProps.getProperty( "mapParam.reportingOutputDirectory" ) );
-            assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/site", modelProps.getProperty( "project.reporting.outputDirectory" ) );
         }
 
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/resources", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.resources.0.directory" ) );
-
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/test/resources", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.testResources.0.directory" ) );
-
-        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/filters/it.properties", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.filters.0" ) );
+        /*
+         * NOTE: The script source directory is deliberately excluded from the checks due to MNG-3741.
+         */
     }
 
-    private void assertPathEquals( File basedir, String subdir, String path )
+    private void assertPathEquals( File basedir, String expected, String actual )
     {
-        File actual = new File( path );
-        assertTrue( "path not absolute: " + actual, actual.isAbsolute() );
-        assertEquals( new File( basedir, subdir ), actual );
+        File actualFile = new File( actual );
+        assertTrue( "path not absolute: " + actualFile, actualFile.isAbsolute() );
+        assertEquals( new File( basedir, expected ), actualFile );
     }
 
 }
diff --git a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3877BasedirAlignedModelTest.java b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3877BasedirAlignedModelTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..383f169965
--- /dev/null
+++ b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/it/MavenITmng3877BasedirAlignedModelTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+package org.apache.maven.it;
+
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+import org.apache.maven.it.Verifier;
+import org.apache.maven.it.util.ResourceExtractor;
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.util.Properties;
+
+/**
+ * This is a test set for <a href="http://jira.codehaus.org/browse/MNG-3877">MNG-3877</a>.
+ * 
+ * @author Benjamin Bentmann
+ * @version $Id$
+ */
+public class MavenITmng3877BasedirAlignedModelTest
+    extends AbstractMavenIntegrationTestCase
+{
+
+    public MavenITmng3877BasedirAlignedModelTest()
+    {
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Verify that project directories are basedir aligned when inspected by plugins via the MavenProject instance.
+     */
+    public void testitMNG3877()
+        throws Exception
+    {
+        File testDir = ResourceExtractor.simpleExtractResources( getClass(), "/mng-3877" );
+
+        Verifier verifier = new Verifier( testDir.getAbsolutePath() );
+        verifier.setAutoclean( false );
+        verifier.deleteDirectory( "target" );
+        verifier.executeGoal( "validate" );
+        verifier.verifyErrorFreeLog();
+        verifier.resetStreams();
+
+        Properties modelProps = verifier.loadProperties( "target/model.properties" );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "target", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.directory" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/classes", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.outputDirectory" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/test-classes", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.testOutputDirectory" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/java", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.sourceDirectory" ) );
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/java", modelProps.getProperty( "project.compileSourceRoots.0" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/test/java", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.testSourceDirectory" ) );
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/test/java", modelProps.getProperty( "project.testCompileSourceRoots.0" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/resources", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.resources.0.directory" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/test/resources", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.testResources.0.directory" ) );
+
+        assertPathEquals( testDir, "src/main/filters/it.properties", modelProps.getProperty( "project.build.filters.0" ) );
+
+        /*
+         * NOTE: The script source directory is deliberately excluded from the checks due to MNG-3741.
+         */
+
+        // FIXME: MNG-3877
+        if ( matchesVersionRange( "(4,)" ) )
+        {
+            assertPathEquals( testDir, "target/site", modelProps.getProperty( "project.reporting.outputDirectory" ) );
+        }
+    }
+
+    private void assertPathEquals( File basedir, String expected, String actual )
+    {
+        File actualFile = new File( actual );
+        assertTrue( "path not absolute: " + actualFile, actualFile.isAbsolute() );
+        assertEquals( new File( basedir, expected ), actualFile );
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3475/pom.xml b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3475/pom.xml
index c4c09955ef..f273dc34a8 100644
--- a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3475/pom.xml
+++ b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3475/pom.xml
@@ -29,16 +29,23 @@ under the License.
 
   <name>Maven Integration Test :: MNG-3475</name> 
   <description>
-    Verify that project directories are basedir aligned when inspected by plugins.
+    Verify that project directories are basedir aligned when queried by plugin parameter expressions.
   </description>
 
   <build>
-    <filters>
-      <filter>src/main/filters/it.properties</filter>
-    </filters>
+    <!--
+    NOTE: Deliberately re-specify default paths to decouple from super POM and interpolation. Proper handling of
+    *relative* paths is the whole point of this test.
+    -->
+    <sourceDirectory>src/main/java</sourceDirectory>
+    <testSourceDirectory>src/test/java</testSourceDirectory>
+    <scriptSourceDirectory>src/main/scripts</scriptSourceDirectory>
+    <directory>target</directory>
+    <outputDirectory>target/classes</outputDirectory>
+    <testOutputDirectory>target/test-classes</testOutputDirectory>
+
     <plugins>
       <plugin>
-        <!-- This checks the project directories retrieved via plugin configuration -->
         <groupId>org.apache.maven.its.plugins</groupId>
         <artifactId>maven-it-plugin-configuration</artifactId>
         <version>2.1-SNAPSHOT</version>
@@ -64,36 +71,14 @@ under the License.
           </execution>
         </executions>
       </plugin>
-      <plugin>
-        <!-- This checks the project directories as retrieved via pure MavenProjet API -->
-        <groupId>org.apache.maven.its.plugins</groupId>
-        <artifactId>maven-it-plugin-expression</artifactId>
-        <version>2.1-SNAPSHOT</version>
-        <configuration>
-          <outputFile>target/model.properties</outputFile>
-          <expressions>
-            <expression>project/build/directory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/outputDirectory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/testOutputDirectory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/sourceDirectory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/testSourceDirectory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/scriptSourceDirectory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/resources/0/directory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/testResources/0/directory</expression>
-            <expression>project/build/filters/0</expression>
-            <expression>project/reporting/outputDirectory</expression>
-          </expressions>
-        </configuration>
-        <executions>
-          <execution>
-            <id>effective-model</id>
-            <phase>validate</phase>
-            <goals>
-              <goal>eval</goal>
-            </goals>
-          </execution>
-        </executions>
-      </plugin>
     </plugins>
   </build>
+
+  <reporting>
+    <!--
+    NOTE: Deliberately re-specify default paths to decouple from super POM and interpolation. Proper handling of
+    *relative* paths is the whole point of this test.
+    -->
+    <outputDirectory>target/site</outputDirectory>
+  </reporting>
 </project>
diff --git a/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3877/pom.xml b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3877/pom.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..3fa3d9ab75
--- /dev/null
+++ b/its/core-it-suite/src/test/resources/mng-3877/pom.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,103 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+
+<!--
+Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+distributed with this work for additional information
+regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+"License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+
+    http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+
+Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+"AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+specific language governing permissions and limitations
+under the License.
+-->
+
+<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/maven-v4_0_0.xsd">
+  <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
+
+  <groupId>org.apache.maven.its.mng3877</groupId>
+  <artifactId>mng3877</artifactId>
+  <version>1.0</version>
+  <packaging>pom</packaging>
+
+  <name>Maven Integration Test :: MNG-3877</name> 
+  <description>
+    Verify that project directories are basedir aligned when inspected by plugins.
+  </description>
+
+  <build>
+    <!--
+    NOTE: Deliberately re-specify default paths to decouple from super POM and interpolation. Proper handling of
+    *relative* paths is the whole point of this test.
+    -->
+    <sourceDirectory>src/main/java</sourceDirectory>
+    <testSourceDirectory>src/test/java</testSourceDirectory>
+    <scriptSourceDirectory>src/main/scripts</scriptSourceDirectory>
+    <resources>
+      <resource>
+        <directory>src/main/resources</directory>
+      </resource>
+    </resources>
+    <testResources>
+      <testResource>
+        <directory>src/test/resources</directory>
+      </testResource>
+    </testResources>
+    <directory>target</directory>
+    <outputDirectory>target/classes</outputDirectory>
+    <testOutputDirectory>target/test-classes</testOutputDirectory>
+    <filters>
+      <filter>src/main/filters/it.properties</filter>
+    </filters>
+
+    <plugins>
+      <plugin>
+        <groupId>org.apache.maven.its.plugins</groupId>
+        <artifactId>maven-it-plugin-expression</artifactId>
+        <version>2.1-SNAPSHOT</version>
+        <configuration>
+          <outputFile>target/model.properties</outputFile>
+          <expressions>
+            <expression>project/build/directory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/outputDirectory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/testOutputDirectory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/sourceDirectory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/testSourceDirectory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/scriptSourceDirectory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/resources/0/directory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/testResources/0/directory</expression>
+            <expression>project/build/filters/0</expression>
+            <expression>project/reporting/outputDirectory</expression>
+            <expression>project/compileSourceRoots</expression>
+            <expression>project/testCompileSourceRoots</expression>
+            <expression>project/scriptSourceRoots</expression>
+          </expressions>
+        </configuration>
+        <executions>
+          <execution>
+            <id>effective-model</id>
+            <phase>validate</phase>
+            <goals>
+              <goal>eval</goal>
+            </goals>
+          </execution>
+        </executions>
+      </plugin>
+    </plugins>
+  </build>
+
+  <reporting>
+    <!--
+    NOTE: Deliberately re-specify default paths to decouple from super POM and interpolation. Proper handling of
+    *relative* paths is the whole point of this test.
+    -->
+    <outputDirectory>target/site</outputDirectory>
+  </reporting>
+</project>