An Audi loaned to Princess Diana is coming to an auction this weekend at Coy’s Auction in the glorious setting of Blenheim Palace—birthplace of Winston Churchill. Maybe there will even be a Bulldog wearing a Union-Flag waiting at the entrance to greet guests.
The car in question is a 1994 Audi Cabriolet that was loaned to Diana by an Audi dealership and was previously featured in various newspaper and magazine articles. The car is expected to fetch around $50,000. A quick eBay browse shows that a few equivalent examples—without the whole royal thing—have gone for around $3,000. Is the Diana connection really worth paying 15-plus times as much?
Among the other automotive delights on offer is a glorious 1926 Bugatti Type 37 once owned by Malcolm Campbell which comes with some pretty impressive racing heritage. This is expected to make somewhere around $500,000 to $750,000. Though that's an eye-watering number, it somehow seems pretty good value compared to the aforementioned Audi.
Just in case you were wondering what my personal favorite of Princess Diana’s cars is (and let’s face it as a British car enthusiast I have to have my list of favorite Royal automobiles), it’s the glorious Series 1 Escort RS Turbo. Gifted to Princess Diana by Ford, it's one of only two road-going Series 1 RSTs that didn't get painted white—the other going to another Royal, Prince Michael.
Time for a cup of tea, yes?