Arnage purchase help please
Discussion
hi guys any advice would be very much appreciated,hoping to purchase a arnage t around a 2003 vintage is there anything i should be looking for,the vehicle i have in mind has only covered 15k and has had bentley history untill a few years ago.I know how to spot poor bodywork etc but have never had any experience with this model.
thx simon
thx simon
Much has been written about this on PH already, and there is a buyers guide as well. In a nutshell, Arnages prior to 2006 are prone to head gasket problems and also have a habit of chewing up their tappets. You need to make sure that these problems have (a) already been remedied or (b) put a substantial amount of money (£10,000 ?)aside in case the tappet problem appears. It has been suggested that it is cheaper to replace the engine than have the tappets fixed. Needless to say, there are those that will say that they have run their Arnage for many years without a problem, and that disasters are rare. Nevertheless, if the grief of a major repair is too much to bear, I'd not touch a 2003 car without proof that all was well with it. Note that I wrote Proof, not reassurance.
Tread carefully,
David.
Tread carefully,
David.
We have owned 6 Arnage's now ranging from 2001 up to a final edition in 2009. It's interesting how everyone's first choice is a T in my experience the R is a much nicer drive and is far more comfortable on a long journey, these are hand built cars costing well over 200k in there final incarnation and as such when things fail they are in line with the failure of a 200k car then a 30k car. I would never touch a car with such low mileage as they were built to be used and a higher mileage car that has been used often will be more reliable and have had things sorted then a low mileage garage queen. Forget what everyone tells you they do go wrong, out of the 6 cars we owned over a 10 year period of which some of them were brand new cars that spent months off the road having things fixed. As others have said 2006 onwards things got a lot better, and if you've not driven one yet then please do so as they are a very old fashioned drive, with lots of old technology, and as such not to everyones taste, for me I like things like that and even today they have a great sense of occasion and massive road presence.
Thx for your replies,i understand what your saying,the car i was looking at has fallen out of bed as the dealer has come back and said sorry the client we were selling for has now said he wants 5k more what a joke they have had car for monthes allready so have walked away.I would buy a 2007 on if funds allowed, but with allready owning quite a few cars the wife would not be happy in me having another expensive garage queen as one poster put he he.I was lucky enough to have the use of a mulsanne speed last weekend, and we really enjoyed wafting around like royalty, which was why we thought ok lets have an arnage as i think its such a lovely looking car compared with mulsanne in my opinion of course.So will keep looking and may go for a higher mileage newer car.
Firstly I have no affiliation with this company, but I know the car as we owned it when it was 6 months old, we run it for about 18 months and I know it has been with the last owner since we had it, so over 10 years. It has got a very interesting provenance as Bentley was the first owner, its also a very early R and had a very interesting history in Bentleys ownership as it was the launch car for the updated R range launched officially in 2002. The car concerned was used for all of the brochure photographs for the 2002 model year and was used down in South Africa on the Garden Route for all of the pictures in the brochure, I still have 2 prints hanging in my study of the car down in South Africa. I also know that it has a impeccable history. So might be worth a look if you want something interesting with a bit of provenance.
http://hanwells.net/bentley-select/bentley-arnage/...
http://hanwells.net/bentley-select/bentley-arnage/...
Quick update guys,well cant wait have bought an arnage final series 2009 in tungsten with beluga very low miles and alot more than i wanted to spend but the car is like new and i managed to get a 2 year bentley warranty inc in price for peace of mind.Cant pick car up untill end of next week but really looking forward to the 300+ mile drive home,will post pics when home and thanks to everyone for there help.
cheers simon
cheers simon
Ok drove to leeds and collected the car and i must say what a lovely car,ive not seen such quality in a car since my vanquish days,the car is as new and drives as such.This is going to be a keeper as im sure in years to come its going to be a real investment, well thats what im telling the other half.I have driven no other car thats feels so grand and has real road presence.Managed to get 250 miles before filling up which i didnt think was too bad as fuel tank capacity not huge.Love all the attention to detail and im ashamed to admit its better put together than my gt speed,not a squeak from anywhere and is so quiet.Will now concentrate in enjoying it when i can and giving it a home it deserves.
cheers for all the help and comments simon
cheers for all the help and comments simon
Lucky man! Having owned a Turbo R, I have to say I soooo miss having a Bentley. There is nothing nicer than the way they waft along, serenity reigns inside, and I think they are achingly cool.
Driving through soho on a wet Friday night, Amy Winehouse on the stereo, just looking out of the window at everyone dodging the rain, while the V8 soothingly purrs it's way to your dinner date.
Possibly the coolest cars ever.
Driving through soho on a wet Friday night, Amy Winehouse on the stereo, just looking out of the window at everyone dodging the rain, while the V8 soothingly purrs it's way to your dinner date.
Possibly the coolest cars ever.
f430hunter said:
Quick update guys,well cant wait have bought an arnage final series 2009 in tungsten with beluga very low miles and alot more than i wanted to spend but the car is like new and i managed to get a 2 year bentley warranty inc in price for peace of mind.Cant pick car up untill end of next week but really looking forward to the 300+ mile drive home,will post pics when home and thanks to everyone for there help.
cheers simon
Well done f430hunter, I didn't have the benefit of a 300 mile journey home in my 2003 Arnage T, it was more like 50 miles. Nonetheless, I will always remember the thrill of getting behind the wheel and setting off for home which took in part of the M11 allowing me too experience the umph provided by the twin turbo chargers! It is good to hear that you managed to find the car you wanted and that it is benefitting from the perfect colour combination,... but then I am biased.cheers simon
First little hickup today car came up with service required when turning it off,hell it was only fully serviced 4 weeks ago,so onto youtube and found the reset procedure all gone now,but im sure this car will give me a few niggles over the years but its all worth it when you start it up and drive the beast.
f430hunter said:
hope you like it guys...
Like ? I LOVE it !!!That is an outstanding color for the most beautiful sedan/saloon ever made. You can't do much better than owning a 6spd Arnage and yours is stunning. Enjoy.
And don't worry about the little stuff going wrong. I do not think you'll have much to worry about. I am the second owner of a 2008 Arnage.
Have had it since 2013 and the car has been trouble free for me and the first owner.
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