Ford Escort once owned by Princess of Wales fetches £52,640 at auction

A Ford Escort which was given to Diana, Princess of Wales by the Prince of Wales as an engagement present has sold for £52,640 at auction, after the current owner kept the car’s origins a secret for 20 years.Interview with: Lewis Rabett, of Reeman Dansie Auctions.The vehicle was sold on Tuesday in an online auction by Reeman Dansie, of Colchester, Essex, to a telephone bidder for £52,640.

The hammer price was £47,000, exceeding the pre-auction estimate of £30,000 to £40,000.Lady Diana Spencer received the 1981 silver 1.6L Ghia saloon from Charles two months before they were married.

She often drove it to watch the prince play polo, and the bonnet features a silver frog – a copy of the original mascot which was given to the princess by her sister Sarah and which Diana kept when she sold the car.