www.bahrainthismonth.com 51 May 2023 This passion continues until this day. Whilst it was no secret that Queen Elizabeth II’s greatest love was horses, she shared almost as much affection for electrical transport too. She was an enthusiastic motorist, particularly when ferrying visiting dignitaries across the moors of Balmoral in her Land Rover. She was an army ambulance driver in WWII and was also more than familiar with what goes on under the bonnet, having trained as a mechanic aged 18. Right up until her death and throughout her 70-year reign, the Queen was seen behind the wheel almost as much as she was in the back seat. Shortly after her accession in 1952, the royal warrant was stripped from Daimler and given to Rolls-Royce. No one knows the exact reasons why, but the most likely reason is a Rolls-Royce factory visit undertaken by the Queen and Prince Philip, where the latter became particularly enamoured with a new experimental vehicle that was being created. It was duly delivered to the couple a year later and instantly became their preferred vehicle for royal obligations. Despite the wealth of choice available to Her Majesty throughout her reign, it’s often said her favourite car was a 1961 Vauxhall Cresta PA Friary Estate. It had particular quirks to suit her outdoorsy lifestyle, with bespoke modifications including fishing rod holders built into the roof, a dog guard for her corgis and a gun rack, as well as custom Imperial Green paintwork. It remains in the royal garage at Sandringham today, the same estate where she could often be seen driving a young Prince Charles around. This same Charles is the biggest petrolhead in the family… or should that be biofuelhead? The climate-conscious king has retrofitted many of the Royal Family’s cars to run on environmentally-friendly fuels almost as a passion project. With more than 100 cars said to be in his private collection, it’s impossible to list them all and indeed half of them undoubtedly remain top secret. However, he does have some absolute crackers tucked away. Take for example his 1970 Aston Martin DB6 MkII Volante, given to him as a gift by his mother for his 21 st birthday. In 2008, as much as he loved driving this vintage sports car, he wanted to do so guilt-free. Fortunately, he was approached by engineers at Aston Martin who claimed they could make it run on white wine and a cheese by-product called whey thrown into the mix, named E85. Despite concerns it would ruin the car, Charles discovered it ran better than ever and once exclaimed that his car “smells delicious as you’re driving along.” That’s not the only epic snippet of trivia about this beautiful beast. HRH hired Thruxton circuit and the services of two-time Formula One world champion Graham Hill to help him get to grips with the 148mph machine and the monarch also stuck a fake red ‘eject’ button on the dashboard, a la James Bond, designed to make his passengers nervous. Another of King Charles’ favourites is a 1989 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante, actually given as a gift from Bahrain’s late Emir, Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, to which he added a manual gearbox and Balmoral Green paintwork, making it much the same as the one James Bond drove in 1987’s The Living Daylights. Of course, you’re unlikely to see the King driving around London in these. In fact, these days he almost exclusively uses an all-electric Jaguar I-Pace bought in 2019, thanks to its emission-free running helping to reduce air pollution in the capital. Electric vehicles will no doubt be the way forward for the green-thinking monarchy, especially with Charles at the helm, but let’s hope he brings out some of the rare vintage for truly special occasions. motoring
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