CAR OF 1985 BENTLEY TURBO R

As you’ll have read in this issue’s Buying Guide (see page 42), Bentley decided to tackle poor Mulsanne sales by bolting a whopping great Garret turbocharger to its 6.75-litre V8 engine and by 1985 it had morphed into the far more capable Turbo R (‘R’ standing for ‘Roadholding’). It enjoyed numerous improvements over the years and remained in production until 1998.

The last cars mustered 400bhp from the big V8, enough for a 0-60mph dash in fewer than seven seconds and a top speed of around 150mph – impressive figures for something this big and luxurious even today. Few motoring experiences feel quite as surreal as planting your right foot into the Wilton carpets and seeing the nose rise as you reel in the horizon with relentless ease and dizzying speed.

It’s difficult to avoid the old ‘gentleman’s club’ clichés, but the acres of top-quality timber and hide really do provide a sense of wellbeing like nothing else. And it’s all terribly effortless thanks to electric operation of just about everything that the driver interacts with. Just don’t buy a wrong ‘un…