Johor Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar has won the new 'F1' number plate after bidding RM836,660 for the vehicle registration number.

The announcement was made by the Transport Ministry's vehicle licensing division today, according to Utusan Malaysia.

However, the bid fell short of the Road Transport Department's expectation that the 'F1' plate would fetch up to RM1 million.

The report said the 'F2' number plate was auctioned off at RM514,800 while the 'F3' and 'F4' number plates received a bid of RM344,300 and RM250,000 respectively.

The 'F' number plate is a new series of vehicle registration numbers rolled out for Putrajaya.

It coincided with the new series of registration numbers starting with 'V' for Kuala Lumpur.

The Johor sultan had previously won the WWW1 registration number with a bid of RM520,000 in 2012.

He later unveiled the car plate number on his orange custom-made Proton hatchback.

The previous purchase had generated controversy after former Perak menteri besar Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin criticised the monarch's purchase, stating that the money could have been better spent elsewhere.

However, Johor crown prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim defended his father, stating that the royal family had not taken any money from the government.