Diana Princess of Wales had a reputation for liking her own cars, during her all too short life, she owned a number of modern performance and luxury vehicles, motorcars that are now considered ‘classics’, like her Jaguar XJS-C, her Mercedes Benz SL500, and the infamous ‘black’ Ford Escort RS Turbo.

Born, Diana Frances Spencer, July 1, 1961, at Park House, the home that her parents, Edward John Spencer, Viscount Althorp, heir to the 7th Earl Spencer, and her mother, Frances Ruth Burke Roche (daughter of the 4th Baron Fermoy), rented on the Queen’s estate at Sandringham. It was there  as a child Diana’s playmates were the queen’s younger sons, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. She became Lady Diana Spencer when her father succeeded to the earldom in 1975. Diana first met Charles, Prince of Wales in November 1977. She was age 16, and 12 years younger than the Prince. After attending finishing school in Switzerland, Diana returned to England and became a teaching assistant at the fashionable ‘Young England’ Kindergarten school in Pimlico. A then 18-year-old, Diana Spencer was often seen driving a blue Renault 5 at the time.

On 8 October 1980, BL introduced the Austin Mini Metro. Launched to a huge fanfare, it was to replace the long loved Mini Minor. Prince Charles test drove the new Mini Metro out of the British Leyland factory in Longbridge, England, where he took it on a 20 mile trip. Soon after he bought the £3,495, Austin MiniMetro 1.0L, which was dubbed the ‘courting car’, for a then 19-year-old Diana Spencer. She adored her new Metro and now she was linked to Prince Charles, Diana was also the hottest target of the paparazzi. When ever she was popping around town in her beloved Metro, she was followed by countless cameras. Charles proposed to her February 1981. Lady Diana accepted and so began the saga which saw her become one of the foremost celebrities of her day. Sadly the fairytale was not to be, it became a rather unhappy marriage and ended with her tragic death aged just 36, in Paris France on 31, August 1997. 

In 1980, the Austin Mini Metro 1.0 L, was Lady Diana Spencer’s first new motorcar, and she drove it until she sold it in June 1981. The car registration MPB 909W, has had three owners since it left the Royal fleet, and has recorded just 30,000 miles. It sold at auction in the 90s for £6,000. It now belongs to the Coventry Transport Museum. The Austin Metro was a huge seller in Britain, with more than 1 million being sold over a 10-year production run. The only single model to outsell it in Britain throughout the 1980s, was the MK3 Ford Escort. Once such a common sight on British roads, the Austin Mini Metro is now rarely seen, its one of the rarest cars in the country.

October 2020 marked the 40th anniversary of the launch of the Metro,