Project Bentley Turbo R

After getting the Bentley Turbo R home following its alternator belt wobbly and having fitted some decent tyres, we give it a proper once- over.

Our mega-gamble goes up on the lift for the full inspection we really should have given it before shelling out the cash.

Last month saw us throwing caution to the winds and going against all the buying advice we’ve ever received or given by buying a Bentley Turbo R sight unseen online during a national lockdown. As I reported last time, a snapped alternator belt spoiled the party on the Bentley’s first day with us, but with that sorted out and the timeworn 4x4 tyres ditched in favour of a set of the correct Avons, the car was pressed into service.

Like most relatively complex cars of the era, these Bentleys really don’t like being left idle, and indeed one piece of advice we received recently from a prominent figure in the Rolls/ Bentley parts industry is that for every £1 spent on fuel, you’ll probably save £2 on maintenance. Accordingly, I’ve been trying to use the car at least every couple of days, to the delight of my 17-year old son and his friends who have been enjoying the attention on the school run.

Despite regular use though, one recurring problem was the battery losing its charge, seemingly at random. Since a new battery had been fitted alongside the replacement alternator belt, we knew we could rule out the battery itself and the problem seemed entirely intermittent: sometimes the car would still start after almost a week of inactivity, yet other times it would lose its charge overnight.

One clue presented itself when driving at night and I noticed a chink of light from the ill-fitting glovebox door. Clearly the wood panels have been removed previously and don’t line up properly, which not only explained the chink of light, but also why the plunger wasn’t switching off the internal light properly. A quick adjustment plus the addition of a replacement rubber buffer solved that little problem.

Or so I thought! A few days later the car wouldn’t start once more, and since the 6.8-litre V8 requires jump leads and a spare battery dragging out of the garage rather than a little jump start pack, it was becoming more than a minor irritation. To add to the mystery, the Spirit-based cars like this have a built-in battery isolator in the boot which should in theory cut off all electrical consumers, but clearly in this case