Many conspiracy theorists wonder what the deal is between the royal family and Range Rover. For decades now, the royal family seems to have access to a steady stream of Range Rovers, many of them upgraded to the nth degree with luxury features and security features. The younger royals have taken up Range Rovers as well – it seems like William and Kate are always using Range Rovers, and their security personnel seem to have a fleet of “Rangies” too. Kate’s Range Rover even made it into the pages of British Vogue! And following the births of both of his children, Prince William was photographed (by the world’s press) using a Range Rover to bring home his newborn babies. You can’t pay for that kind of advertising! Or can you? Many suspect that the royals either get freebies (in exchange for free publicity) or Rangies at severely decreased prices. Well, now the conspiracy theorists have confirmation of something they’ve long suspected: William and Kate are getting their Range Rovers for free. And William is selling his. For charity!
A top of the range 4×4 used by Prince William to transport his son George home from hospital following his birth three years ago has gone on sale on Auto Trader. But Ranger Rover enthusiasts will have to dig deep for the privilege of owning the vehicle which has been put on the market at almost double its value.
The Range Rover SE Vogue 4.4 V8, which costs of £71,295 to buy from the manufacturer, was given to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge for their own personal use by Land Rover’s VIP Department. It was made famous when Prince William turned up to St Mary’s hospital to pick up his precious cargo and future heir Prince George along with his wife the Duchess of Cambridge. And while sources at online sales firm Auto Trader say the car has been stripped of all extra security measures put in place by the Royal detail its asking price is £150,000.
Proceeds from the sale are to be given to charities including Sun Screen IT which operates in Africa and the Military Mental Health Charity, Stand Down. The car comes packed with accessories including ABS, full range of airbags plus a range of electronic driver aids such as stability control and emergency brake assist.
Prince William is following in the footsteps of his grandmother The Queen who sanctioned the sale of her two-year-old Bentley Mulsanne in April after two years of use.
Auto Trader’s Editor-in-Chief, Jon Quirk, said: “The Range Rover has long been considered the ultimate statement in luxury transport, and its go-anywhere ability makes it a fine royal conveyance. However, with two children and a royal reputation to uphold, Prince William may now have to consider the new Bentley Bentayga as his next family chariot – a brand that also proves very popular with his grandmother.”
Despite the sale of the car Prince William will not struggle to find a mode of transport. According to reports he has an enviable collection of cars totalling more than £1m in value and is also known to love motorbikes. The Duke of Cambridge is said to own a Bentley Flying Spur, a Jaguar XJ and an Audi A8 at his disposal.
However the Prince is said to be a fan of the Flying Spur thanks to its features which include wi-fi internet, back seat TV screens, a champagne bottle cooler, hand-crafted walnut wood interior and leather seats with heat and massage capabilities.
The fact that William is selling an SUV that was given to him for free seems… crass. Considering it’s for charity, I guess it’s not SO bad, even though it seems like William will probably go to Range Rover and demand a new model for free now. And now we’ve gotten a confirmation that the Cambridges in particular are getting their luxury vehicles for free. And we’ve also gotten confirmation of something I never knew: that William has accumulated £1 million worth of luxury cars and motorbikes. Maybe that’s also an explanation for how William spends his days, when he’s not slogging through a few shifts a week at the EAAA, or doing a handful of events a month. He’s out joyriding in one of his many luxury vehicles, or he’s reading car magazines, plotting his next purchase. I wonder if Charles is underwriting William’s car habit, or is William getting all of these cars for free?
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I guess he thinks this is how the other half lives since he’s so dead set on being “normal”.
Nah, I think it’s just superfluous. Who needs a Range Rover when you have a helicopter at your disposal?
The other day W&K said George was “spoilt” as if it was a bad and/or unexpected thing. If one is ridiculous enough to accumlate “£1 million worth of luxury cars and motorbikes” whether discounted or free, I’m going to assume their children will be spoiled too.
Right? There’s something very tacky about his statement about George getting too many birthday gifts.
It’s one of those statements that is an obviously fake attempt at “normalcy”.
That because the Buckets are crass. Remember the badly re wrapped baby basket she was given that was ‘gifted’ to a charity for auction. U know the one that no one bought/ bid for.
Am embarrassed that the 2 represent me to the world.
I’m sure the citizens of the world don’t make the connection. Rest easy!
The Queen regularly sells her cars. She recently sold the Bently used during her jubilee for £200,000, well above e £70,000 value, and the proceeds did not go to a charity.
I think of One Direction as your representatives to the world!
I’m not sure what he could do that would be in better taste- straight up donate them? It seems that he could raise more for charity this way. I can’t fault him for this.
Maybe not have so many cars in the first place? Does range rover sponsor these charities?
I agree with you. They’re not keeping the money for themselves and it’s going to charity. And who knows, maybe they consulted with the charities before they did it and this is what was agreed upon.
Are we sure the money is actually going to charity, though? Or is this another situation like the whole sketchy “Willie’s EAAA salary will be donated to charity, only we’re not going to tell you which charity” thing?
Personally the doubled price, especially since all the extra features were stripped from the car prior to the sale, makes me think not all of that money will be heading to charity. And I’ll be disgusted if that car sells for anywhere near what they are asking. Do we seriously live in a world that thinks a vehicle has intrinsic value because once, for a couple of hours maybe, it carried a particular infant?
Celeb perks. With a brand name like that, it is worth a lot.
This is why they show up for all Land Rover events ! Including the heavy patronage of sailing. and the best part is that Range Rover and Jaguar is owned by TATA an Indian company !!!!!
‘Rangies’?
Where does that come from?
Being surrounded by up their own arse British people for 90% of my life, I have never heard that one before.
Is it an American thing?
American here. Never heard hat one either
Pretty sure WE (the tax payers) are underwriting WIllie’s little car habit.
I thought the royal family “couldn’t be bought”. We always knew the truth. Fergie isn’t the only one using the name for gain. But good to know they’re confirming on top of the Sovereign Grant plus additional tax payer’s money going to security and refurbishments … on top of the money taken from poorer individuals … the royals get freebies from major corporations. I’m also sure they never lobby on behalf of these companies in exchange. Sure.
I don’t like the royals particularly but see nothing wrong with this, what’s the other option? Leave it to rot? Give the actual car to charity? Sure they’d rather have the cash.
Not taking free stuff you don’t need is an option, as is privately donating to charity using your personal funds.
This!
+1
Let them eat cake.
Oh, selling something given to you for charity. Sar. cas. tic. clap.
Now, I’d love to talk about Harry flipping burgers, being adorable, and then what he said about grief and losing a parent. I lurrve him.
This!!! All the honks for Harry 😀
The Bentley was gifted by Charles using Duchy money. It’s supposed to be used for official purposes. Like the Heli. 😉
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2524301/Kate-Prince-Williams-250k-bulletproof-Bentley-speed-200mph.html
Btw, speaking of the heli, did anyone notice a throwaway line in the accounts that said all heli travel by WK, whether it’s for private or public reasons has now been reclassified as public duty so that taxpayers have to pick up the cost?
Are you serious?! How is the public not fuming at the money being spent on them, on all of them?
The accounts dropped during Brexit. Great day (set of days) for burying this particular news since the public was occupied elsewhere.
Excellent catch! So now every time they flit off on the helicopter, whether for work or play, the taxpayer pay? Have you submitted that finding to RepublicUK? Which accounts? Duchy?
Why yes, I did notice that a bit ago. I can’t remember where I originally heard it briefly referenced in. Might have been photos of George given how these people roll. LOL, *eye twitch* Here ya’ go for a breakdown https://www.royal.uk/sites/default/files/media/royal_travel_appendix_2015-16.pdf The fun part is the “Various journeys” that cost less than £10,000, (and £5,000-8,000 is the estimation for the average round trip… only £5-8K). Last year, those 221 bitty journeys were lumped together to the tune of £569,483. It’s classic obfuscation from the BRF, where you’re not really sure what you’re looking at, where the money is going, whose paying that bill, why things have been divided and tallied up like this, what’s been left off, etc.,
And true to form after their long day’s work of taking in a boat race and a shoehorned photo-op with some kids, The Heir of The Heir and The Hair hopped on a heli and f*cked off back to Amner. Now, that (1851 Trust) is NOT Bill’s charity. He had no reason for being there. (And if they weren’t constantly tying in Ainslie with her visits I don’t think “1851” would see much of Kate’s support either.) So the excuse that the royals need the choppers to get to multiple engagements in a day doesn’t apply here. And if the kids are the reason Will and Kate can’t work more, they should also be cited as the reason Bill and Kate shouldn’t do so many joint engagements. I mean, there would be no hurry to get home to the kids if Bill had just stayed home! I’m astonished The Firm got this one over. So Bill possibly flying back back and forth for a picnic, to polo, to horse trails, might show up on the tax payers bill and they’d be within their right to do so. I’m guessing the “various journeys” will double this year. But I’m assuming they went back to Amner the other day. We don’t know. You know, it’s security and such. (Another reason we don’t know what those various journeys are.) And transparency is not The Firm’s “thang”. But, since Bill and Bucket (who’s made a grand four appearances this month) have nothing scheduled and we’ll likely see very little of them until September, and won’t see them “consistently” until October, I just assume they have no reason to stay in London. *eye twitch intensifies*
I’m still not finding it. I found the part in the Sovereign Grant report about residence to residence travel for some of them. Hey W&K fans, if the heir-to-the-heir and spouse aren’t “senior royals” expected to work for their perks, why do only six people (including W&K) qualify for this perk?
“The Sovereign Grant meets the cost of official journeys undertaken by or in support of The Queen and other Members of the Royal Family. Travel by The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall and The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge between residences is categorised as official.”
I live very close to Kensington Palace and I see that helicopter flit in and out ALL the time!
They just exude common sense, don’t they?
I guess now he’ll have a good excuse for using the helicopter. (Sarcasm)
Kate used to drive a slick Audi when she was single.
She demanded the royal family discount on the lease, even before William was willing to publicly admit they were seeing each other.
That Audi was one she famously negotiated using royal discount rates even though she was only a GF, and any wedding was still in the distant future.
*shakes head* and people say Mrs Prince Harry will be Fergie 2.0. Thats the kind of gauche behaviour Fergie has become known for
Phaksi: it gets better. She also received free clothing and other goodies, all predicated on her position as royal GF. Issa was the most visible brand on the free clothing train. At one point, she wore so much Issa that i genuinely thought she either had stocks in the company or was besties with the owners. Nope, straight up free clothing endorsement.
She’s not worn as much Beulah London as she’s worn Issa, and those owners are in the royal circle. Perhaps BL insist on payment as opposed to gifting the clothing.
It wouldn’t surprise me if it turned out that Pippa had a similar deal with Tabitha Webb. She wears their clothing to lots of high profile events.
Fun fact: Camilla Fayed bought Issa post-royal engagement and that’s the only reason Kate is unlikely to be seen in Issa again.
I think she’s only worn it twice since. Once during the engagement announcement (product placement and thank you to Issa?), and once during the Canada tour.
LAK, how come William cant see the Middletons for what they are after all these years? Is he that stupid, or is it wilful blindness?
Also, something I have been pondering. If William had carried on Stringing Kate along up to now with no proposal in sight, do you think she would have carried on being waity or would she have thrown in the towel and moved on?
@Phaksi – it was rumoured that after the 2007 break up that her father asked what his intentions where and he told Mike that he was going to marry her, when Chuck asked he hold his father that he wasn’t intending to. Either way – give how she schemed to get him back on many occasions she was never going to walk away. Both she and her family benefitted far too much from the association.
There has been speculation over the years that he only married her as not only was she last girlfriend standing and willing to put up with the BS but to stick it to his father and family. Its blatantly obvs that she is not up for Royal life – a mix of doesn’t want to and can’t. He married someone like him – who is only interested in the status, privilege and wealth being part of the RF gives.
William is his generations Prince Andrew.
Plus are we sure the money will go direct to charity or go via his ‘foundation’, the same one that his salary supposedly goes to.
@Phaksi: That’s a great question! I wonder if she would have given up just a few years ago when it became obvious it wouldn’t happen. Or, perhaps, she may have wanted to throw in the towel, but her family would have other plans.
Honestly (and I doubt I am alone in thinking this), it would have probably been better to marry a more minor member of royalty or someone who came from new money.
@Phaksi, does Kate and the royals still get free clothing’s, jewelry, shoes, ect…?
She got a necklace (something that celebrated George’s birth) that was sent to Pippa first and then gifted to Kate. Kind of indirect gifting.
Green Girl, Id forgotten about Carol with an E, she would never let her meal ticket go. Also, despite him being a knob, Kate adores William.
Betti, Ive read about that conversation with Charles in Katie Nicholl’s book. The book also claimed Will promised they would get married when they made up after the 2007 breakup. I guess that gave her incentive to hold on and keep on waitying.
Kitty, royal watchers here and on blogs say if they arent getting freebies, they are getting stuff heavily discounted
@PHASKI, Does Kate know William doesn’t want to be King? Are they actually in love?
Kate did not negotiate the discount on the Audi. The discounted Audi was offered to her for advertising purposes as the girlfriend of Prince William.
She shouldve had the grace to turn it down.
No, she marched in there and demanded the royal discount herself.
Tacky as fu*k! If he wanted some cash he couldve sold the car through a third party, therefore keeping his name out of it.
HIS name can sell that car for double the price. Why someone would buy a used car for that price?? And I think that he will (ahahahah) find someone willing (hihihihii they come naturally) to pay for his ex car just for the namesake.
Lol the Cambridges are so tone-deaf. Either they completely ignore #PoorJason or he really sucks at his job… :p
Is he so dense or so sheltered he sees this all as normal and justified? Can he even wake up at this point?
Both.
Hmmm i think we can’t understand how sheltered these people are. I have a first cousin, she is 26 now, she is so spoiled you can’t even imagine and she is not royal (even though her mother and her stepfather have money and power). IF she wants something there is no way she is not getting that. We were at our grandmother funeral and she came with two cars, four bodyguards and someone went and bought a big bouquet of white roses . Also she went shopping that morning and bought two changes of clothes for the funeral (I mean complete with shoes, shirt, skirt, tights etc etc) and she didn’t pay. Someone was going later to pay the bill. Oh and someone was calling her constantly to ask her what she needed. It took me a while to realize that it was probably a handler of some kind and she isn’t in the public eye.
Now whatever we think about the royals they are public figures and they have a huge trained staff to take care of them. We know that presidents and prime ministers don’t carry money for as long they are holding the position, they don’t go shopping etc etc imagine your whole life not doing those things. I mean, William probably learned the word “normal” only recently and probably to him means “I can do whatever the f…k i want and people have to praise me”.
Did it say 100% of proceeds going to charity or are they doing the Kardashian 10% to charity, 90% in their pocket.
I really don’t see a problem with him selling it if 100% is going to charity. What else is he going to do with it if it’s not being driven anymore? It would just sit in their garage rotting so might as well do something good with it.
Charity or not, just give the car back to Range Rover – these two are so incredibly gauche…
It is a bit tacky to sell a free gift. I’m sure the royals could buy their own cars without accepting freebies. If he has no further use for the car then it should have been given back to the car company.
They shouldn’t get freebies, but at least the money will go to charity…
British Royal Family doesn’t accept free clothing but they do accept free cars.
And Kate and Willy continue to evolve their personal definition of what private means. It won’t be long before that slippery slip has fully evolved and they will deem everything they do is private. They will have a staff photogopher and no media will ever be allowed access. Their annual financial reports will be distilled down to one sentence which they will release via KP Twitter. ‘The Duke and Duchess are keen to report that 2021 income net of expenses for the Duchy of Cornwall was £____.’
Willy truly is the Dicktator Duke.
So they accept free cars, but not clothing?
I found an article which claims that Will sold the car “for an undisclosed fee” and it’s the new owner, Nathaniel Comer, founder of charitable company Sun Screen IT, who will sell it for charity. Will, apparently, accepted, sold, and kept all the proceeds from the freebie.
I don’t know about George being spoiled — I don’t think toddlers really can be — but I do think his parents are a selfish, petulant pair.
Here’s the link, if I can post it: http://royalcentral.co.uk/uk/cambridges/the-range-rover-that-picked-prince-george-up-after-his-birth-is-going-up-for-auction-62613.
Hope that works. I’m something of a technoklutz.
Wow William is greedy. He does not take after his mother.
Latest web rumor, KM has taken the Duke of Westminster’s private jet to France. I wonder if we’ll get any confirmation on this from local sources?
Just saw that. Nota do you think they are staying at Viscount Linleys chateau again (maybe not after nude balcony-gate) or elsewhere?
Now in multiple outlets that the four of them went on vacation to the South of France. If they’re staying at Linley’s they’re asking to be photographed again.
My guess would be a posh private resort. They need to remember. Public areas of hotels in France are considered public and they are legally allowed to be photographed there.
France is often strict about beach access remaining public in many cases. If they show up on a public beach odds are the photographs are legal. I think Princess Caroline eventually lost her case against French photographers (her court victory was overturned iirc).