Kate Middleton - the duchess digs VW
Well, isn't the world enraptured by nobility? Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, loved her 2001 Volkswagen Golf. It was $17,500 US dollars back when she bought it new, and she kept meticulous records on the maintenance and repairs done in a little logbook.
It was the car she was driving when she met the dashing Prince William, and drove throughout 2007. Unfortunately, when her relationship with William hit a bad patch, the memories were too much for her to bear - rumors suggest she wanted to get rid of everything that painfully reminded her of Prince William and their lost love. This purging of memories included her 2001 VW Golf.
She turned it over to her brother James, who drove it for a couple of years, only to sell it for $2,300 to Al Brazil of Motor Carriage Co., who in turn gave it to his son. Al, in a stroke of capitalistic genius, took the car back and put it up for sale on EBay as KATE MIDDLETON'S VW GOLF last May.
It wasn't long before the bidding shot up to $48,100 pounds, roughly $78,706 US dollars. Additionally, he found a pair of cufflinks in the car, and was considering throwing them into the offer, but his conscience got the better of him and he returned them, free of charge, to the Middleton family.
Those meticulous service and logbook records we mentioned Kate kept? They show she put 60,000 miles on the car, had a couple of fender benders (a broken headlight and a side mirror were replaced) and a disagreement with the state about a parking fine in 2007, just before she surrendered the car to her brother.
"It's amazing to think I only paid about 1,400 pounds [almost $2300 USD] for the car and now it's worth far more than that," said Al Brazil to the Daily Mail. Editor's Note: Strangely, while we were told the car sold, we can't find exactly who bought it. Either the buyer wishes to remain anonymous, or it hasn't hit its reserve, yet. More details as we get them.
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