The new King of England drives an Aston Martin running on wine and cheese
Charles III will be crowned King this weekend. He will be driven from London’s Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace in a golden coach which dates back to 1760. The 10,000-pound gilded carriage will be pulled by eight Windsor Grey horses and travel at a walking pace.
Charles is, however, well-known for being an enthusiast of a different kind of horsepower, and his collection of cars is believed to be worth close to $20 million. The new King has inherited two official state Bentleys—each custom built at a reported cost of $12.5M for his mother’s Golden Jubilee in 2002. Based on the Arnage, the cars were stretched, had their rooflines raised and were fully armor-plated. Not unlike the U.S. President’s Beast, the Bentleys also have puncture-resistant tires, blue flashing lights, and a cabin that can be hermetically sealed in the event of a gas attack.
The King’s personal preference is for Aston Martin, though. He owns a 1994 V8 Vantage Volante, and a 1969 MK ii DB6 Volante which he was given by his parents as a 21st birthday gift. Charles’ love of these gas-guzzling British sports cars is somewhat at odds with his views on protecting the planet, so in 2008 he had the DB6 converted to run on E85 bio-ethanol produced on his Duchy of Cornwall estate.
At the Cop26 summit in 2021, Charles explained that the Aston uses fuel created from “surplus English white wine and whey from the cheese process.” While arguably carbon-neutral and able to ease the King’s conscience, gulping down the equivalent of four bottles of wine every mile, doesn’t sound terribly efficient.
Perhaps the new King will go further and electrify his Astons. British specialist Lunaz offers a conversion for the DB6 and with the Crown Jewels now in his possession he could easily afford the $1 million price tag.
The picture of the Bentley on the grass with the tiny Charles head inside really shows just how large of a car it really is. The whole idea of a royal family, their immense wealth, and how they play into politics over there just seems so strange to me.
Nothing could be less relevent in the 21st century than Britains royal family.
Nice cars bought with unearned wealth.
Agreed.
The idea of royals being superior in some way is utter nonsense. Royals clearly are not superior. Yet many are by awed these non-productive parasites.
I love the line about the queen’s visit to the US from the first Naked Gun movie:
“No matter how silly the idea of having a queen might be to us as Americans, we must be gracious and considerate hosts.”
From time immemorial, there have been those who have set themselves up to rule over others, and this is true today in Britain. We are no different in our approach to royals, we just call them by a different name.
I am not a Leftist, and the Royals don’t bother me. I guess they do bother many, though.
Leave us alone, you have Disney we have the Royals, may also be why we are not allowed guns and we are told they earn us a lot of Dollars
Pretty boring cars for a boring man. Not interested.
When Will and his new bride left their wedding in Charles’ Aston Martin, the emergency brake was set but Will never knew and never released it. Their little drive destroyed the car’s breaks.
Brakes, please, not breaks, which is entirely a different matter.
I read when Chuck visits friends he sends out a truck and a team ahead of time who redecorated his host’s bedroom with all his own furnishings while staying over. He also has his toothbrush set out with exactly an inch of toothpaste every morning. Nothing different than I do all the time.
Well, I like the little hood ornament on the DB6 – quaint touch. And the Volante is a passably attractive car.
Other than that, not much to be impressed with, IMO.