Eleven-grand Bentley Flying Spur | Spotted

When Bentley launched the Continental Flying Spur in 2005, it was the four-door version of the GT formula that had already rewritten the brand’s fortunes. Same 6.0-litre W12 twin-turbo, same permanent all-wheel drive, same Crewe-meets-Wolfsburg engineering beneath the chrome matrix grille. At well north of a hundred grand, they sat in a world of S-Classes and long-wheelbase 7 Series, though the Bentley had something neither rival could touch: theatre. 

Twenty years and 103,261 miles later, the theatre, two parts W12, one part hand-stitched splendour, is still there. The asking price, though, has taken a different trajectory. When we featured a slightly more tired-looking example as a Brave Pill back in 2019, its £16,995 asking price marked it out at the time as the cheapest in the nation. Now, a car with admittedly more miles on the clock – but with a valid MOT and in handsome spec – will set you back less than £12k. A significant saving over a Dacia Sandero. 

Is the mileage a concern? Obviously it dictates the asking price – one with half the recorded distance will set you back closer to £15k – but the engine was built for long distances, as was the car around it. Granted, the W12 is magnificent in the same way that a large, complicated piece of Victorian machinery is magnificent – i.e. impressive in operation, terrifying when something goes wrong. But you’d hope the big-ticket items have been addressed already (paying close attention to the ‘good’ history claimed by the vendor is obviously essential). 

Nevertheless, just two owners is encouraging. It suggests the car has not been passed around like an unwanted Christmas present, accumulating deferred maintenance at every change of hands. And if the fundamentals are solid, you’re getting the sort of cost-per-cylinder ratio that makes man maths such a diverting field. As a left-field family runaround, capable of seating four adult-sized passengers in supreme comfort, it is hard to argue with the payoff. 

Of course, on the opposite end of the scale, we’re talking about a car that weighs the thick end of two and a half tonnes, drinks petrol with the enthusiasm of a rugby team at a wake, and is possibly not done depreciating (though you do wonder how low a modern Bentley can go – the far more numerous Continental GT has stayed, for the most part, resolutely above £10k). But clearly no one is going to pretend this is a sensible purchase. Cars with twelve cylinders rarely are. 

Thankfully, very few PHers need a lesson on the enduring appeal of a supremely powerful old barge that can be bought for (comparatively speaking) pennies. Go into it with your eyes wide open and perhaps a few bob in the contingency fund, and you come out of it with a wonderful, sonorous way to get from A to B, one that virtually qualifies you as an eccentric member of the aristocracy, and makes driving to France feel like popping to Waitrose. Tempted?

Engine: 5,998cc, twin-turbo W12
Transmission: 6-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 560@6,100rpm
Torque (lb ft): 479@1,600-6,100rpm
First registered: 2006
Recorded mileage: 103,261
Price new: £133,200
Yours for: £11,500