Vauxhall was one of the marques most associated with Queen Elizabeth II. A total of five Griffin-badged, six-cylinder shooting brakes entered Royal service, including PA and PC Crestas and this 1982 Viceroy that John Worth now owns.

1982 Vauxhall Viceroy Shooting Brake built for HM The Queen

Any Viceroy is rare, as Vauxhall sold only 2,295 examples. It was essentially a British version of the Opel Commodore C, with power from a 2.5-litre straight-six engine. Vauxhall’s HQ at Luton intended it would bridge the gap between the Carlton and the flagship Royale, claiming it was “individual and distinctive”, £8,752 gaining the owner central locking and a  “woodgrain” facia.

Sadly, Motor thought the Viceroy “sound value” a “perfectly pleasant car” but with “no solid advantages over its rivals”. As a result, too many potential buyers opted for the Ford Granada Mk2 or the Rover SD1 2600.

A further sales challenge was that while Opel built a five-door version of its Commodore badged Voyager, Vauxhall only offered a Viceroy saloon and seemed disinclined to afford it too much publicity.

1982 Vauxhall Viceroy Shooting Brake built for HM The Queen

Production ended in 1982, with the launch of the second generation Carlton. Within just a few years, the Viceroy was almost as forgotten as the Talbot Tagora.

However, there was one last hurrah in the form of a one-off made for an exceptional client. Since returning from war service, Queen Elizabeth had used six-cylinder Vauxhall station wagons for her main personal transport, including PA and PC Cresta Estates. The former still resides in the Royal Mews at Sandringham and is the only other known survivor of the five commissioned by the Royal Household.

1982 Vauxhall Viceroy Shooting Brake built for HM The Queen

If a suitable car were not available from the production line at the time of order, Vauxhall would prepare a special model, and the Viceroy Shooting Brake is such a vehicle. German drivers could buy a five-door Commodore Voyager estate from April 1981, but a Vauxhall-badged equivalent was never officially available in the UK.

The late Queen’s Viceroy was prepared at Luton and based on a Carlton Estate. The engine is the fuel-injected Opel unit combined with automatic transmission, and the body is finished in a bespoke Balmoral Green, care of the Duplo coachworks. The footwells still bear traces of the car’s original production Bright Green paintwork.

As far as the equipment is concerned, Vauxhall fitted the one-off Shooting Brake with a towbar and a short-wave radio. In the load bay, a brass fire extinguisher is attached to a box containing a loudspeaker.

1982 Vauxhall Viceroy Shooting Brake built for HM The Queen

Inside, the décor is vinyl and linoleum instead of the saloon’s carpets and velour-trimmed seats. The emphasis is on practicality and simplicity, down to the manual, rather than electric, windows. The Viceroy was intended to carry dogs, pull horseboxes and serve as a general workhorse.

It is understood that Queen Elizabeth used the Viceroy for some 10 years before it was passed to HM The Queen Mother, gaining the registration number WYN 1 S; it now bears 1983 model year registration plates.

Worth first became aware of the Shooting Brake in 1993 and when it finally became available five years ago it was a foregone conclusion that it would join his fleet. He is a long-standing devotee of the marque and owns a Royale Coupé bought new by his father in 1979.

1982 Vauxhall Viceroy Shooting Brake built for HM The Queen

The present Viceroy’s condition results from an extensive three-year refurbishment process by the GM6 Spares Company, and to see it in the metal is to disbelieve that it is now 40 years old. As for performance, Worth describes it as “a practical, powerful and discreet motor car”.

The most notable aspect of the Vauxhall is its subtle appearance and were it not for the badging on the tailgate, this unique machine might be mistaken for a Carlton Estate.

But, most importantly, the Shooting Brake reflected the ethos of its first owner – a car designed to perform its duty at all times without fail.

Thanks to: John Worth, Andrew Duerden and Derek Thomson

Queen Elizabeth in Vauxhall Cresta estate car at Windsor Castle circa 1980 – Tim Graham Photo Library

Source: UK’s rarest cars: unique 1982 Vauxhall estate made for Queen Elizabeth II (telegraph.co.uk)


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