Prince William showed even royals can change a tyre as he fitted a car with an eco-tyre made by one of the finalists from his Earthshot Prize and was dubbed a "professional" for his efforts.
The royal got to grips with the 17-inch alloy wheel fitted with a tyre made by ENSO, a start-up shortlisted last year in the Clean Our Air category of the prince's global environmental competition.
William quipped that he had changed tyres "loads of times" – but not, as he admitted with a grin, "with quite so much pressure.”
The fledgling business, based near Brentford, west London, has just announced a three-year partnership with Uber.
William gave sales technician Andrew Bernard a hand in fitting the wheel of an electric Kia Niro car that is popular with Uber drivers.
He commented he had changed a few wheels before and seemed adept at handling the power drill to screw on the wheel nuts, prompting Mr Bernard to joke: "You got some spare time, come and work for us."
The company's founder Gunnlaugur Erlendsson said of his efforts: "He was like a professional."
Mr Erlendsson spoke about plans to open a tyre factory in the US and the funding they secured after the Earthshot prize-giving ceremony hosted in Singapore in 2023.
He credited Earthshot with giving the start-up a "catalytic effect", not only in terms of exposure but also in accelerating its expansion plans.
He said: "So all these things bring together the capital, the solution and the scale to make things happen quickly because we're running out of time to deal with these problems on this planet - we can't wait forever.
"In a nutshell, Prince William is effectively the cheerleader for the planet, where he's cheering us on to make these things work, deliver and impact at scale."
Tyres emit six million tonnes of pollution around the world each year, with their constant friction on the roads releasing harmful invisible micro-pollutants, which increase the risk of heart disease, asthma and other conditions.
ENSO has created a more efficient, low emission tyre for electric vehicles which reduces particle pollution by 35 per cent and is calibrated to improve durability.
Uber has also become a founding partner of William's Earthshot Prize, which aims to recognise and scale up solutions to "repair" the planet, and will nominate climate solution start-ups for the annual award.
Almost 30% of Uber miles in London are now fully electric, Uber said as it hailed the city as its worldwide "capital of electrification".
Jill Hazelbaker, Uber chief marketing officer, said: "We're thrilled to work with ENSO to help them grow while making it easier for Uber drivers to go electric around the world."
Uber, which operates in over 10,000 cities worldwide, will meet up to 50 per cent of the costs for drivers switching to ENSO tyres. London is leading the charge in the company's global electrification push.
The Earthshot Prize was founded by Prince William in 2020.
Offering £1 million to five winners annually, the prize aims to repair and regenerate the planet.
