1997 Bentley Turbo RT - 27 Year Ownership

Highlights

• Turbocharged 6.75-litre V8, producing 400hp and 590lb ft of torque

• Immaculately presented inside and out 

• One of the final Bentleys of the pre-VAG era

• Fastidiously cared for by second owner since 1999

• Comprehensive service history

Overview

Ask any casual petrolhead about the history of Bentley and they’ll likely give you a similar response. “Woolf Barnato, Bentley Boys, Le Mans. Something, something, something. Volkswagen, Conti GT, Bentayga.”

That’s largely thanks to the fact that, while the Crewe company produced many a magnificent motorcar throughout the course of the 20th century, it spent a very large proportion of that time doing so in the silver shadow of its erstwhile owner, Rolls-Royce. 

This was so much the case that, by the end of the 1970s, Bentleys accounted for just 5% of the two companies’ combined sales. New owners Vickers knew that to restore the company to its former glory, a change needed to be made. 

Beginning with the Mulsanne Turbo in 1982 and via the Turbo R (for Roadholding) three years after that, Bentley went back to its roots. Poise and panache were supplemented with generous helpings of power and performance, distancing the brand from the laidback luxury of Rolls-Royce and reinjecting the spirit of its youth. The plan was so successful that by the early ‘90s Bentley sales matched Rolls-Royce’s one for one.

The car you see before you represents the culmination of that glorious revival. Built from 1997 to 1998, in the final months before the company was acquired by VAG, the Turbo RT is arguably the pinnacle of 20th century Bentley in the post-war era. 

Powered by a turbocharged 6.75-litre V8, delivering 400hp and 590lb ft of torque to the rear wheels via a four-speed automatic transmission, it boasts a healthy increase on the already generous 384hp and 553lb ft of the ‘standard’ Turbo R. Thanks to a Formula 1-derived Zytek engine management system, that’s good enough to dispatch 0-60mph in just 5.8 seconds and propel the RT on to an electronically limited top speed of around 150mph. All while retaining the comfort, sophistication and carpet pile of a stately home. 

This one’s been maintained as fastidiously as the National Trust’s finest to match, presented in a stunning combination of Red Pearl Mica with Parchment Hide interior, there’s never been a more sophisticated way to make a scene. 

History and documentation

• First registered 12/11/1997

• Two-owner vehicle, acquired by current keeper in 1999

• £375 road tax

• Maintenance history including services at: 14,000 miles (Sep 1999), repair to rear bumper scratch at 14,179 miles (Nov 1999), 15,161 miles (Mar 2000), 16,186 miles (Sep 2000), 16,858 miles  (Apr 2001), 18,118 miles (Mar 2002), 21,807 miles (May 2003), 25,996 miles  (Nov 2004), 27,257 miles (Jun 2006), 29,570 miles (Aug 2008), 31,025 miles (Mar 2010), 32,487 miles (Apr 2012), 33,722 miles (May 2014), 35,021 miles (May 2016), 35,280 miles (May 2017), 35,582 miles (May 2018), 35,742 miles (Jun 2019), 35,958 miles (Jul 2020), 36,050 miles (Jun 2021), 36,115 miles (Jun 2022), 36,362 miles (Jul 2023), 36,430 miles (May 2024)

• Collection of invoices, documents and old MOT certificates

• The car will be sold with a new MOT

• HPI Clear

Interior

• Immaculately presented cabin featuring leather interior in Parchment Hide with St. James Red piping and Cherry Red lambswool carpets 

• Walnut dashboard and centre console 

• Chrome trim

• Electrically-adjustable heated front seats

• Electric windows

• Air conditioning 

• Cassette stereo system

• Built-in car phone (of course)

• Bentley branded charger

• Two umbrellas mounted in boot

• Odometer shows 36,560 miles

Exterior

• Stunning Red Pearl Mica paintwork

• Red Bentley badges

• Seller notes slightly deeper paint reading on two panels, indicating potential paintwork prior to ownership

• 17-inch, five-spoke sports alloys with red Bentley centre caps

• Turbo RT-exclusive mesh grille

• Chrome trim

• Undercarriage appears in good condition

• Car cover included

Mechanical

• Turbocharged 6.75-litre V8, producing 400hp and 590lb ft of torque

• Four-speed automatic transmission

• Rear-wheel drive

• Cruise control

• Avon Turbospeed tyres

• Extensive maintenance history with combination of main dealers and Bentley/Rolls Royce specialist garages

Summary

Paperwork and bills totalling almost £50,000 in maintenance and servicing may present a frightening figure, until you realise that sum equals just over £1,700 for each year of this grande dame’s life. Owning a Bentley is never going to be cheap, but many of the Turbo R’s foibles had been worked out by the time the RT entered production, and this excellently cared for example should be about as safe a bet as you could hope to make.

Just 252 examples of the Turbo RT were produced between 1997 and 1998; with only 46 of those cars seemingly remaining on the road, it’s a rarer thing still these days. But prices don’t reflect that scarcity, yet, making it a relatively affordable way into the worlds of classic, luxury or performance motoring.

Whether as cars to drive or be driven in, there are Bentleys, and then there are Bentleys. And this is most certainly the latter.