A Look At Queen Elizabeth’s Car Collection As She Was A Known Car Enthusiast

People around the world are still mourning the death of Queen Elizabeth, who died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle on Thursday. While her memories still live on in the hearts of millions, the Queen will also remembered for owning a large collection of cars.

The British monarch was mostly chauffeured, but sometimes she liked to drive, reported Drive Spark.

Bentley State Limousine

The vehicle that the Queen was often seen traveling in was a Bentley State Limousine, according to paultan.org. Just two units of the State vehicle, especially commissioned by Bentley, were built and presented to the monarch to celebrate her first 50 years on the British throne. The car served to transport the royal to a location safely.

It is said to be valued at around 10 million pounds ($1,16,15,070). The State Limousine’s glass and bodywork had been strengthened to protect its occupants. The cabin was made blast-resistant and it can be sealed air-tight in the case of a chemical or gas attack.

The tyres of the vehicle were reinforced with Kevlar to ensure it can continue driving at speed in an emergency. According to Bentley, the rear seat position was determined by using a model of exactly the same height as the monarch. Handbag storage was also designed around the dimensions of the Queen’s favorite bags.

Rolls-Royce Phantom IV State Landaulet

The Rolls-Royce Phantom IV State Landaulet has been in service since 1955 and was returned to Rolls-Royce this year. It is considered to be one of the rarest cars in the world. Only 18 units of these car models were built by Rolls-Royce. All these models were exclusively sold to the heads of the state. On the inside, the car model for the Queen had dark blue and grey upholstery. On the outside, the car was painted in claret and black.

Land Rover

Land Rovers were reportedly the Queen's favorite car for quite some time. Whenever she was behind the wheel, it was most likely to be a Land Rover. She was so fond of them that she had around 30 of them in her garage. She had most of them, right from the Land Rover Series 1 to the latest Land Rover Defender. The 2022 Land Rover Defender 110 TD5 was one of her favorite vehicles, and she had been most photographed driving this SUV.

Land Rover honors Queen

Before becoming the Queen, she was a truck driver in the Auxiliary Territorial Service during World War II, reported Fox Business. In healthier times, she was known to get behind the wheel of her Land Rover SUVs and go for a drive in one of the royal properties.

Following her death, the British automaker paid a tribute to her. It said in a tweet that the passing of the Queen had left "everybody at Jaguar Land Rover deeply saddened, and our thoughts and condolences are with the Royal Family at this time."

To mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee in June this year, Land Rover even gifted her a new vehicle. But it wasn't for her to drive. The company donated one of its Defender 130 SUVs to the monarch for her to give to the British Red Cross. She was one of its patrons.

At the funeral of the Queen's husband Prince Phillip last year, his coffin was taken to St. George's Chapel on a Land Rover. He had helped design it.

Queen Elizabeth was known for many things that showed her identity, and her hats, handbags and horses helped to express herself. But her love for cars was also part of the list, and so the Queen will also be remembered for her being a car enthusiast.