Prince Philip’s custom Land Rover to be sold at auction

A car that belonged to the late Duke of Edinburgh is set to be sold at auction.

The Land Rover Defender that was built specifically on instructions from Prince Philip will go under the hammer on Saturday, 25th February.

The vehicle was only recently sold in a June 2022 auction, fetching £44,000, and is currently being resold by auction house Silverstone Auction in the context of their Race Retro auction.

The guide price this time has been set between £50,000 and £70,000, for a completely custom vehicle, which includes one of the rarest paint colours in the Jaguar Land Rover line, called Keswick Green. 

The car is said to be in “gleaming condition”, and features black cloth interiors, heated seats and a mere 15,623 miles on the clock, or approximately 25,142 kilometres. 

Also included with the purchase will be a file about the history of the car, which also features the letters that were exchanged between George Hassall, the Director of Royal and Diplomatic Affairs for Jaguar Land Rover, and David Key, Prince Philip’s Head Chauffeur. 

The only thing that will be different compared to the times in which the car was in Prince Philip’s possession will be the licence plate – back then, it is believed that the car was assigned the licence place OXR 2. 

This will be just one among several vehicles with royal connections that will feature in this auction. Some other examples include a 1942 Ford GPW Jeep that was used by King George VI during a wartime visit to RAF Chelveston, in Northamptonshire. 

It is well known that Prince Philip had a passion for Land Rovers, as he used their Freelander model in green for many years. He was so fond of the brand that he even collaborated with them in designing a specially modified version of a Defender, that was ultimately used in his April 2021 funeral to carry his coffin.