With the upcoming Coronation of King Charles this Bank Holiday weekend, we thought it was the perfect opportunity to take a closer look at some of the vehicles our new king has owned and what his current favourite car is.
It is clear that the love for a British car runs deep within the royal family's veins. In this blog, we'll explore four of the King's most notable cars, three being from Aston Martin, and how they reflect not only some of his core values, but also the best of British motoring.
King Charles was gifted the Aston Martin DB6 by Queen Elisabeth on his 21st birthday and has now owned it for over 50 years, during which he made a whole host of eco-friendly modifications.
These included a special carburettor, a device to recover waste heat, and a secondary fuel system that used a cleaner-burning gas. In fact, The King has admitted that the car can actually be run on surplus English white wine produced at a winery near his Highgrove Estate, as well as whey from the cheese making process.
We wonder if this was inspired by all the waste food he would see at the countless dinner parties he has attended?
- Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante
Gifted to him in 1986 by the Emir of Bahrain, The King's Aston Martin V8 Volante was one of his favourite cars, albeit he did make a couple of alterations once he received the gift.
By adding a rear spoiler, altering the suspension and painting it Balmoral Green, the king toned down the car's original looks for a more restrained one fit for royalty.
And it proved a hit with other Aston Martin customers with the car manufacturer taking orders for their Volante to look similar to the King's. He covered nearly 46,000 miles in the Vantage before selling it on and donating all of the profits to his Prince's Trust charity.
- Aston Martin Virage Volante
The Aston Martin Virage Volante was loaned to King Charles back in the early nineties by Aston Martin.
This car was customised to meet The King's unique requirements, with him insisting that the car was to have a standard body, but with an upgraded 6.3 litre engine fitted.
There were a few royal extras which he was also treated to, with a custom police radio fitted for security purposes, as well as a sugar cube holder in central armrest for him to treat his horses to.
Much was made of Queen Elisabeth II's affinity with her Land Rover Defender, and the king's current car is from the same company, although it is a lot less heavy on the diesel. In fact, it has no diesel in it at all!
The Jaguar I-PACE, purchased back in 2018, matches his environmentalist beliefs as it is the British car company's only electric SUV. As with all his cars, a couple of adjustments were required to give it that royal touch, one being that it is finished in 'Loire Blue' and is currently the only I-PACE to be in that colour.
The King regularly uses this car in many of his day-to-day engagements across London, with it conveniently complying with the capital city's Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ).
For a similarly regal experience of your own, why not visit our Classic Car Driving Experiences and Road Tours pages today? Not only do we have many driving days available in vintage Aston Martin and Jaguars at UK wide venues, but we've also just added several new tours of London on board vintage Routemaster buses that will let you explore London - and see our new King's home at Buckingham Palace - amongst many other sights.
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