ROYAL RELIC
Queen Elizabeth’s luxury Land Rover that carried the Obamas sold to billionaire – who was ‘delighted’ by hidden feature
The car features a sticker hidden beneath the bonnet which left the buyer excited
QUEEN Elizabeth's luxury Land Rover which famously carried Barack and Michelle Obama has been nabbed by a billionaire buyer.
Yohan Poonawalla, 52, forked out a whopping £224,850 on the regal motor.
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Poonawalla is dubbed India's 'Vaccine Prince' for his role as chief executive of pharmaceutical manufacturer SII.
The billionaire was drawn to the eye-catching carrier when he noticed the vehicle had retained its number plate in service when the late Duke of Edinburgh drove Barack and Michelle Obama in 2016.
A sticker of the royal coat of arms slapped on the windscreen also sent the businessman's tongue wagging.
“This was an ultra-rare opportunity I couldn’t let go, simply because there are not many cars in the world that can claim the distinction of transporting not one but two heads of states and their spouses at once, and that too within the environs of one of the most historic palaces in the world, Windsor Castle," Poonawalla told The Times.
Mohammed Luqman Ali Khan, who who looks after Poonawalla's exotic motor fleet, said the vehicle embodied a “special relationship” between Britain and America.
He said: “For the American president and the first lady to choose to travel in a British automotive icon such as Range Rover with the Queen, and with the duke at the wheel is unprecedented.
“This car is a motoring relic of the much-celebrated ‘Anglo-American special relationship’.”
Land Rover, which lent the Range Rover to the Queen, removed the vehicle's siren before selling the car into private ownership but the sticker is a reminder of royal involvement.
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The pristine motor covered less than 3,000 miles over two years of dedicated royal service.
It's even possible that the Queen may have worked on it herself, having trained as a mechanic during the Second World War.
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The car was registered in 2016 and snapped up by the late monarch's husband Prince Philip, before being sold back through the Land Rover dealership network.
The car would have previously been equipped with a hidden police siren and covert emergency lighting, as well as side steps and grab handles to help Her Majesty hop in and out with ease.
These were, however, removed once it left the Royal Household, though a warning sticker remains in the engine bay as a nod to its old life.
And in the opposite direction, the rear entertainment screens that were removed when the car was bought by the royals have since been reinstalled.
The same Range Rover was previously sold in 2019 and has added nearly £100,000 to its value since then.
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