A Ford Escort that was once owned by Diana, Princess of Wales has been sold at auction to a museum in Chile for £52,640.

Lady Diana Spencer was given the silver 1.6L Ghia saloon by the Prince of Wales as an engagement present in May 1981, two months before they were married in July 1981.

She often drove it to watch Charles play polo, and the bonnet features a silver frog – a copy of the original mascot which was given to the princess by her sister Sarah and which Diana kept when she sold the car.

The princess stopped using the vehicle soon after giving birth to Prince William in 1982, and it was later bought for £6,000 by an antiques dealer.

It had belonged to a royal fan since around 2000, who drove it only sparingly without disclosing its history to her friends.

The vehicle was sold on Tuesday in an online auction by Reeman Dansie, of Colchester, Essex, to a telephone bidder for £52,640, including VAT and the buyer’s premium.

The hammer price was £47,000, exceeding the pre-auction estimate of £30,000 to £40,000.

Lewis Rabett, of Reeman Dansie Auctions in Colchester, Essex, said the winning bid came from a museum in the South American country of Chile and the car will be shipped there.

“The interest has been considerable pre-auction,” he said.

“Ending up in South America is testament to the level of interest globally that there’s been in the car.

“It’s also testament to Diana and her enduring legacy.”

The car still carries its original registration, WEV 297W, as well as its original paint and upholstery, and has 83,000 miles on the clock.

Diana, Princess of Wales was hugely popular in Chile and in 2010 the Museo de la Moda in Santiago paid £192,000 for one of her first official gowns.

The museum said at the time that it was willing to pay the princely sum because it was an important piece of fashion history.

The strapless, silk taffeta dress’s revealing cut and striking black colour caused a minor scandal when the then Lady Diana Spencer was pictured wearing it to a charity event in 1981.

But while some thought it too daring, it helped turn the 19-year-old royal bride-to-be into an overnight fashion icon.