Princess Diana's unique Ford Escort sells at auction

Classic car specialist Arwel Richards said there was 'fierce bidding' for the car

The 1985 Ford Escort RS Turbo previously owned by Diana, Princess of Wales. PA

A car used by Diana, Princess of Wales has sold for £650,000 ($766,000) at auction.

The one-of-a-kind black Ford Escort RS Turbo, driven by Diana from August 23, 1985, to May 1, 1988, sold to a UK buyer at the Silverstone Auctions sale on Saturday.

In June 2021, another Ford Escort used by Diana sold at auction for £52,000.

The Escort was sold in the days leading up to the 25th anniversary of her death in a car crash in Paris in 1997.

Arwel Richards, classic car specialist at Silverstone Auctions, said it was “an incredible result” with “fierce bidding” and a packed room.

“The car exceeded all expectations,” he said. It was a “top 10 world record for its type”.

Ten-year-old Lady Diana Spencer during a summer holiday in Itchenor, West Sussex, in 1971. Here 'The National' takes a look back through Princess Diana's life in pictures. Getty

Lady Diana Spencer, 19 at the time, responds to the press while getting into a car in London, in 1980. Getty

The Prince and Princess of Wales on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on their wedding day, on July 29, 1981. Getty

Princess Diana smiling as she prepares to embrace a woman in the crowd, on the streets of Carmarthen, Wales, in 1981. Getty

Princess Diana and Prince Charles with their son, Prince William, in December 1983. Getty Images

Princess Diana wearing the Spencer family tiara at state dinner in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, in 1983. PA

Princess Diana And Prince Charles watch an official event during their first royal Australian tour in 1983. Getty

Princess Diana and Prince Charles with newborn Prince Harry, leave St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London, in 1984. Getty

Princess Diana meets members of the public during a visit to a community centre in north London in 1985. Getty

Princess Diana arrives at a dinner during a visit to Australia in 1985. AFP

Princess Diana sits on a step at her home, Highgrove House, in Doughton, Gloucestershire, in 1986. Getty

Prince Charles and Princess Diana and their sons, Princes William and Harry, on a cycle ride around the island of Tresco, Italy, in 1989. AP

Princess Diana stoops down to pick up a walking stick after a woman she dropped it over the crowd barrier, during a walkabout in Hong Kong in 1989. Reuters

Princess Diana waves on her way to visit US first lady Barbara Bush at the White House in Washington, in 1990. AFP

Princess Diana and her sons onboard the 'Maid of Mist' ship as they take a close look at the Niagara Falls, Canada, in 1991. PA

Princess Diana poses alone at the Taj Mahal during her visit to India in 1992. Getty

Princess Diana holds the hands of Mother Teresa during their first meeting at the Missionary Sisters of Charity residence in Rome, Italy, in 1992. Reuters

Princess Diana with her sons outside St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, in 1992. PA

Princess Diana listens to a young boy during her visit to a home for children in Paris, France, in 1992. AFP

Princes William and Harry applaud alongside their mother, Princess Diana, during a Five Nations rugby match between Wales and France in 1992. AFP

Princess Diana speaks to Nepali children while touring a Red Cross project in the Himalayan foothills in 1993. AFP

Princess Diana, Prince Harry and Prince William carrying their skis during a skiing holiday in Lech am Arlberg, Austria, in 1994. Getty

Princess Diana, Prince Harry, Prince William and Prince Charles outside Manor House, on Prince William's first day at Eton College in 1995. Getty

Martin Bashir speaking to Princess Diana in Kensington Palace during the infamous 'Panorama' interview that was aired by the BBC in 1995. Getty

Prince Charles, Princess Diana and their children watch the march past on the mall as part of the commemorations of VJ Day in London in 1995. AFP

Princess Diana meets with John Collins, a 51-year-old lung cancer patient, while visiting Chicago's Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Hospice in 1996. AFP

Princess Diana during a visit to Leicester, to formally open The Richard Attenborough Centre for Disability and Arts, in May 1997. Getty

Princess Diana, wearing protective body armour, visits a minefield being cleared by the charity, Halo, in Huambo, Angola, in 1997. Getty

South African President Nelson Mandela and Princess Diana speak with the press after meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, in 1997. AFP

Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Earl Spencer, and Prince William watch as the coffin of Princess Diana is carried into Westminster Abbey, London, in September 1997. AFP

Floral tributes for Princess Diana in front of Kensington Palace in London, in 1997. AFP

Prince William places a bunch of flowers with the hundreds tributes already laid outside his mother's official residence at Kensington Palace, in 1997. AFP

Prince William and Prince Harry unveil a statue they commissioned of their mother, at Kensington Palace in 2021, on what would have been her 60th birthday. PA

“The selling price of £650,000 plus 12.5 per cent buyer's premium shows that a unique Ford can sell for supercar money,” Mr Richards said. Including the buyer's premium, the buyer paid £730,000 in total.

Diana was photographed with the RS Turbo Series 1 outside the boutique shops of Chelsea and the restaurants of Kensington.

But she preferred to drive her own car and had a member of the Royalty Protection Command (SO14) in the passenger seat.

The car is believed to be unique as the first and only black RS Turbo Series 1, as agreed by S014 and the Ford PR department for reasons of discretion, instead of the only-white manufactured model.

The Ford factory's special vehicle engineering department was tasked to supply the car and it fitted a regular five-slat front grille to assist in the makeover.

There was also a secondary rear-view mirror for the protection officer with a radio in the glove box, with the cable still visible. The car has just 24,961 miles on the clock.