Queen Elizabeth II’s handmade Bentley that ferried her around on countless royal duties has gone up for auction.
The 2016 Bentley Mulsanne, adapted to suit everything from the Queen’s personal taste to the size of her handbag, is expected to fetch up to £400,000 when it goes under the hammer at Broad Arrow next month.
With an extended wheelbase, which gave Her Majesty more space to stretch her legs, this car is the only of its kind ever to enter private ownership after serving the late Queen.
After its registration in October 2016, the Mulsanne was photographed carrying Elizabeth on numerous occasions – including at the funeral of Countess Mountbatten of Burma, first cousin to Prince Philip and a blood relation of the Queen.
Several elements were specially commissioned for Her Majesty, including a custom tray that was sized to fit her Launer London handbag, and replaced the front centre armrests.
This was removed when the car was decommissioned, however, along with an inlaid Royal Coat of Arms, at the request of the Royal Mews.
Still present are the bespoke fittings in the rear cabin, which include twine and Cumbrian green leather, rich burr walnut veneers, and deep lambswool carpeting in the footwells.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Bentley Mulsanne Extended Wheelbase has gone up for auction
The Queen taking her seat in the car in June 2019 after attending the 80th birthday party of former motor racing driver Sir Jackie Stewart at the Royal Automobile Club in London
The Mulsanne is powered by a 6.8-liter V8 engine – though rarely topped 9mph while on royal engagements
The front centre armrests were replaced during royal service with a custom tray sized to fit the Queen’s Launer London handbag – though they have now been restored
While it rarely travelled faster than nine miles an hour during royal engagements, the Bentley was powered by a 6.8-liter V8 engine – no doubt a source of pleasure for Her Majesty, who was a well-documented motoring enthusiast.
Indeed, one of the occasions on which she was pictured with the Mulsanne was on the way out of the Royal Automobile Club in Pall Mall, where she had attended the birthday party of her longtime friend, former racing driver Sir Jackie Stewart.
Ahead of the car’s sale, Freddie Woodd, car specialist at Broad Arrow Auctions, told the Daily Mail: ‘It is a privilege to be bringing such a significant piece of motoring history to auction.
‘Her Majesty had impeccable taste, and this magnificent Long Wheelbase Bentley is testament to that.
‘Used by HM on numerous official engagements, it was last spotted in May 2019 on a visit to Windsor Castle, just as speculation was mounting that Meghan had given birth to her first child, Prince Archie.
‘The chance for a member of the public to own a car so intimately connected with the Royal Family is extraordinary.
‘Opportunities like this simply do not come along twice — this is a truly unique, and surely unrepeatable, chance to own a Bentley quite literally fit for a Queen.’
The Mulsanne has an extended wheelbase – which allowed Her Majesty more room to stretch her legs
The rear cabin interior was bespoke, featuring twine and Cumbrian green leather, rich burr walnut veneers, and deep lambswool carpeting
The Queen would in the rear passenger seat for royal engagements
Elizabeth used the car for a number of royal engagements between 2016 and 2019
Other engagements serviced by the car, registered with numberplate DG66 OKM throughout its Royal use, include British Champions Day and the Centenary of Government Communications Headquarters.
Its active royal service came to an end after a newer sister Mulsanne was delivered to the Queen in 2019, and this one returned to Bentley’s Crewe headquarters until her death in September 2022.
The Mulsanne was then acquired by a private collection in March 2024, where it has continued to be maintained by esteemed Bentley dealership Jack Barclay. To date, it has just 6,000 miles on the clock.
It went on in 2024 to win the Bentley Drivers Club Trophy at the Concours of Elegance, Hampton Court Palace, as well as the Bentley Drivers Club Summer Concours Class Award and the HR Owen Trophy.
The auction is online and running from October 5 to 14.
