Standard Steel RR&BS still going for £30k... for now

While watching an episode of Columbo with my wife recently, she remarked that the villain’s Bentley S2 looked really cool. Mrs is a good judge of such things; indeed every year John Blatchley’s perfectly proportioned shape ages with increasing grace.

The trade is now pitching nice Silver Clouds and S-series Bentleys at £65k with exceptional examples heading for £100,000. But you can still find well-kept or restored cars at less than £35k. Historics’ July sale saw a lovely Sage Green S2 with 89K and £13,000 worth of recent bills make just £28,000. An Oxford private seller has a silver ’62 Cloud with 47,000 miles for £27,950 and at a recent Silverstone auction the very same ’61 S2 that my wife and I saw in that episode of Columbo made £24,950, repatriated from LA, resprayed, retrimmed and recommissioned. What are the chances of that? I prefer the V8s for their extra heft but the sixes are silky smooth. Remember that they all need power steering (optional on early Bentleys). Only buy proper cars with perfect bodies and fine leather and wood. History makes a huge difference to values so a solid sheaf of invoices going back several decades is extra desirable. Brisk and reliable enough for motorway work, these old Standard Steels are huge lumps of classic value in today’s market. You’ll need a sizable garage and a couple of grand put aside each year to keep the old girl mint, like an old manor house. But find a good one and there’s no more impressive way of arriving down the crunchy gravelled drive of a country hotel.