Majestic Vehicles

There are a lot of perks that come with being the British royal family—wealth, status, prestige, and access to one heck of a car collection. Here are some of the vehicles that the royal family just has “lying around”.

1900 Daimler Mail Phaeton

He purchased the first known royal car in 1900 when he was still Prince of Wales. It was a six-horsepower Daimler Mail Phaeton. Technically, this car is no longer an active part of the family’s collection, but it is the car that started it all.

1929 Daimler Double-Six 30 Brougham

“Brougham” is a term that indicates that the car was used for private use. It therefore did not have an additional middle row of seats. This particular car was purchased when the King was convalescing, creating a need for new cars.

1955 Rolls-Royce Phantom IV State Landaulet

They have owned dozens of Rolls-Royce Phantom IVs and Vs. Among these was the Queen’s rare 1955 State Landaulet. It had exclusive specifications that only 18 other vehicles were produced with. It was returned to Rolls-Royce in 2002.

1961 Rolls-Royce Phantom V

No longer in use, the Queen Mother purchased a Rolls-Royce Phantom V to use as her number one official car in 1962. This model was selected as, only a year earlier, the family had purchased two similar limousines for the Queen.

The Queen Mother used her Rolls-Royce Phantom V until she passed in 2002. Likewise, the two Limousines were used by the Queen as state cars until the early 2000s. At least one is now kept in Sandringham.

1961 Vauxhall Cresta PA Friary Estate

The late Queen had this car built to her custom specifications, which included fishing rod holders on the roof, a dog guard for her corgis, and a gun rack for hunting. It is still in Sandringham’s garage.

2002 Bentley State Limousine

Over the years, the royal family’s loyalties to certain car manufacturers have changed. It started with Dailmer, then moved to Rolls-Royce, and in the most recent century has fallen to Bentley.

The 2002 Bentley State Limousine was gifted to the Queen to mark her 50th year on the throne. It was specially designed for the comfort of the Queen and her ladies-in-waiting, while also giving onlookers a clear view of anyone riding in it.

1954 Lagonda 3-Liter Drophead Coupe

This was the car that put the Aston Martin Lagonda on the royal family’s radar, and with good reason. This custom high-end car had all the bells and whistles that anyone could look for, particularly the royal family.

It had a radio telephone allowing Prince Philip to call his children from the car long before cellphones were in conversation. It also had an extra-large vanity mirror to allow the Queen to always check her hat.

1961 Alvis TD21 Series II Drophead Coupe

The 1961 Alvis TD21 Series II Drophead Coupe was another one of Prince Philip's cars. It caught his attention on a visit to a London motor show. Even without the upgrades the Duke of Edinburgh paid for, it was already an elite vehicle.

1961 Alvis TD21 Series Drophead Coupe

This car was described by Autocar as “one of the most enchanting cars imaginable”. Philip paid for an upgraded five-speed ZF gearbox, a taller windscreen, and an electric-powered folding roof.

2021 Land Rover TD5 Defender 130 Hearse

When you are a man with the sort of status that Prince Philip had, as well as a clear respect for cars, it is only natural that you design the car that will take you on your final journey. This is exactly what Philip did with this 2021 Land Rover.

Philip spent 16 years working on this vehicle and it all came together on the day of his passing, when it was featured in his funeral procession. Land Rover gave the family three just in case there were any mechanical issues.

1980 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith II LWB

Just because Princess Margaret could have been considered the metaphorical “spare” did not mean that she didn’t have access to the same perks as her sister and family. This classic red Silver Wraith II remained with her far longer than most things in her life.

While this was one of Princess Margaret’s cars, she wasn’t above loaning it out when the situation called for it. She was known to have loaned it to her sister, to the Princess of Wales, and even to Ronald and Nancy Reagan when they visited.

1969 Aston Martin DB6 Volante Series II

This particular car has been with the current king for a long time. Queen Elizabeth II gifted it to her son for his 21st birthday. Despite having already had other cars previously, they hired professional race car driver Graham Hill to teach the then-21-year-old heir to handle the power of his new gift.

In the years since receiving the gift, King Charles has made many adjustments to this classic car. These include a red “eject” button on the car’s dashboard and biofuel modifications to make it more environmentally friendly.

1989 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante

It must be nice to continuously receive such beautiful and expensive cars as gifts. This time, England’s current monarch was gifted this Vantage by the Emir of Bahrain. However, he had some notes.

Supposedly, Charles did not enjoy how “beefy” the vehicle looked. Therefore, he got Aston Martin to remove the features that mark this model out as a Vantage. He did keep the engine and added a manual gearbox. It is very similar to James Bond’s car in The Living Daylights.

1994 Aston Martin Virage Volante

Alright, so King Charles wasn’t gifted this green beauty this time—he merely leased it from Newport Pagnell for 15 years. Leased or purchased, it was his car of choice through the mid-90s.

Even if this was a “lease”, the then-Prince had a few custom features built in. These included increasing the vehicle’s power, adding in a police radio and additional mirror for security, and a special jar to keep sugar cubes for his pony.

1970 Reliant Scimitar GTE

If you are not a royalist, you likely don’t know much about Princess Anne, Elizabeth II's only daughter. However, she is the world's most famous fan of the Scimitar. She has owned nine over the years. Her first was a Christmas and 20th birthday gift.

Those in the know, know that Reliant was best known for producing the Robin, a three-wheeler. However, the Scimitar proved that the company could make a reliable sports car, and the Princess respected that 0-60 mph in around 8.5 seconds kind of power.

1987 Jaguar XJ-SC

It is now well-known that Princess Diana suffered emotionally in the latter years of her marriage. However, having the ability to order a top-of-the-line V12-powered sports car can go a long way to give you a pick-me-up.

This powerful sports car was originally meant to be a two-seater. However, Diana was always a mother first. She had a back seat put in for her sons and had it custom-made to ensure the young princes couldn’t strike their heads on the roof by accident.

1991 Mercedes-Benz 500 SL

This car was only in the royal family’s collection for a brief time. As Princess Diana’s marriage fell apart, scandal swirled around her. While now fairly minor, at the time, leasing a car that wasn’t British was on that scandal list in 1991.

At the time, this Mercedes-Benz was one of the sleekest cars you could get. Princess Diana loved it. However, the pressure from the government and trade unions resulted in her having to return it to Mercedes only a year later.

1994 Audi 80 Cabriolet

If there was any advantage to the end of her marriage to Prince Charles, it was that Diana was now free to make decisions without worrying about the views of the royal family. So, in 1994, she got herself another foreign car, this time an Audi 80 Cabriolet.

2017 Audi RS6

By the 2000s, it seemed that the location of the manufacturer didn’t matter so much. Both of the princes as well as King Charles have all embraced buying Audis in the last couple of decades. None of the cars driven by the Windsors have been as powerful as Prince Harry’s Daytona Grey RS6 Avant.

This car boasted a powerful V8 engine that produced 552 bhp. It could also reach 0 to 62 mph in about 3 seconds. If that wasn’t enough, before he sold it, Harry had the speed limiter removed. Should he have wished, he could’ve hit 174 mph.

2011 Ducati 1198S Evo Corse SE

When you’re the crown prince of a nation like England, what better way to drive around incognito than fully concealed by a crash helmet? Prince William got his bike license at the age of 19 and has owned a host of bikes from many brands ever since.

The evidence suggests that the Ducati 1198 is his favorite brand of bike. While William may love bikes, his wife has been reported to be less of a fan. Supposedly, she told him to tone it down now that he is a father of three.

2021 Audi RS E-Tron GT

We’re not sure if the Audi RS E-Tron GT counts as “toning it down”, but at the very least, this powerful vehicle ensures that the driver is safely enclosed within it. It’s also all-electric, as the “E-Tron” classification suggests.