Details:

A new arrival to Oldtimer Australia is this distinguished Australian delivered, factory right hand drive first generation Bentley Azure.

Presented in the most stunning colour of Wild Berry (paint code 954001) this car was built in September 1995. The Australian compliance plate is dated 10/95. It is understood that there were only 7 Bentley Azures delivered new to Australia, making this an exceptionally rare car in this country.

The car was sold through Bentley dealer York motors in Sydney to its first owner, which is understood to have been Australian entrepreneur Rene Rivkin.

The service books first entry is from the 11th of December 1995. That service was executed by York Motors and at that time the odometer read 1,081km.

During the next 10 years the car was used sporadically. Rivkens world was turned upside down in April 2003. Following a long running investigation by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) he was found guilty of insider trading, He was also battling a number of health issues. Rivkin was forced to scale down his once grand Mediterranean lifestyle and in May 2004 this Bentley Azure sold by Sydney based auction house Bonhams and Goodman to the current owner. At that time the odometer read approximately 15,000km.

The car received its next service from Rolls-Royce and Bentley specialists, Gold Coast Auto Centre, on the 8th December 2005. At that time the odometer read 15,252km. Over the next 5 years the car continued to be used sporadically but serviced annually by Gold Coast Auto Centre. In July 2010 they serviced the car and at that time the odometer read 27,368km. After that the Bentley was used less and less. The next recorded service was executed in February 2016 at 31,864km and following that on the 31st October 2019 at 35,058km. The car was last serviced in April 2022 and at that time the odometer read 35,427km.

At time of photographing this beautiful Bentley, the odometer read 36,192km.

There is no doubt that a Bentley Azure has an incredible and somewhat commanding presence. The colour combination of Wild Berry with a Magnolia interior make this car even more impressive!

When we took the car out for a test drive and photographs, the weather gods were smiling. The Wild Berry paintwork just sparkled under the sunshine of the most beautiful Brisbane winters day.

Incredibly, this Bentley Azure is about to celebrate its 30trh birthday. The overall condition and presentation really belies that this is a 30 year old car. The paint is still in an excellent condition with a strong depth of colour and a deep gloss finish. Its hard to fault. You have to look hard to find any imperfections. The front spoiler sits very low to the ground and it looks to have had the odd encounter with a speed bump. The damage looks superficial and could be easily repaired.

All the panel gaps are good and there is no evidence of any accident damage.

The front windscreen and the side windows are in excellent condition with no sign of any scratches or cracks. The same can be said for the external trim, including all the lights and lenses on the car, which are similarly well presented.

The soft top is in excellent condition. It works well and there is no sign of wear or discoloration. The rear window has recently been repaired and it is clear.

Open the door and you are welcomed by a very luxurious looking interior. As you would expect in a Bentley, there is lots of leather and polished timber! The Magnolia upholstery suits the car perfectly. It also contrasts nicely with the Wild Berry external paint. The Wild Berry dash top and trim as well as the Wild Berry carpets bring it all together.

The interior presents beautifully with some very light patina. It is only the top of the storage compartment/arm rest in between the front seats that shows some wear / cracking to the leather. A good leather doctor should be able to repair this. The top of the dashboard is in excellent condition and it presents essentially as new with no cracks or bubbles evident.

When you slide in behind the steering wheel it is quite easy to make yourself comfortable. There are many adjustment options for the seats and of course they are all electric. Importantly they all work. The seats themselves are luxurious and provide ample support. The front seats are fitted with sheepskin covers. It is not possible to temporarily remove them, however, it looks as though the leather underneath has been beautifully preserved. The rear seats appear to have hardly been used if at all.

The timber, which is a real feature on a Bentley Azure, is in beautiful condition. This houses all of the instruments and controls, which are crisp, clean and in good working order.

The engine bay is neat, clean and tidy. All of the heavy duty plastic covers are in place and in very good condition. The boot is similarly well presented with minimal wear. Discreetly hidden behind a panel you will find the toolkit, jack as well as some storage space for the emergency triangle and some other tools. Attached to the underside of the boot lid you will find the Bentley umbrella.

This Bentley Azure is a sophisticated boulevard cruiser, but the reality is that it is also a wolf in sheeps clothing! Powered by a 6.75 litre turbo charged engine that produces 385hp, it is more than capable of blowing the doors off most 30 year old cars! Top speed is quoted as 241 km/hr and the car will launch from 0-100km/h in 6.5 seconds. These are mightily impressive numbers when you take into account the weight of the car and its poor aerodynamic profile. What is also impressive is how effortlessly and smooth the power is delivered. The automatic gearbox is incredibly smooth and the brakes pull the car up quickly and in a straight line when needed. Despite its size the car is very easy to drive and manoeuvre through traffic.

Out on the open road this fabulous car is an absolute delight to drive.

Given the weather, our test drive and photo shoot was naturally a top down affair. We did of course test the soft top and it operates exactly the way it should. It is a very simple exercise to raise or lower the roof. You simply press the button on the centre console and hold it down. Much like something out of a Transformers movie, all sorts of things will then start to happen. The soft top will emerge from its hiding place and when it finally locks in place you just release the button and you are good to continue your journey.

Accompanying the car is its original book set, a Rolls-Royce sound system demonstration tape, a spare wheel, jack and toolkit.

This car is ready for its next owner to use and enjoy.

Highlights:

- a stunning example of one of Bentleys flagships.
- a rare Australian delivered, factory right hand drive example. Understood to be 1 of only 7 such cars.
- finished in its original and STUNNING period colour scheme of Wild Berry with a Magnolia
- full books and service history.
- low mileage with only 36,192 km on the odometer.

Price: $179,950


Background:

The Bentley motor car company was founded back in 1919 by brothers W.O. and H.M. Bentley. The Bentley brothers were involved in the motor industry having acquired the agency to sell French built DFP (Doriot, Flandrin & Parant) cars in 1912, however, they desperately wanted to build their own cars. So that they did and the first Bentley motor car, being just a chassis with a dummy engine, was shown at the 1919 London Motor Show and in late 1921 the first production Bentleys were built and delivered to their new owners.

Bentley got the formula right and their cars proved to be luxurious, reliable and fast thus attracting buyers from the elite of society in period. The cars were also incredibly successful on the race track with Bentley achieving the ultimate success winning Le Mans in 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929 and 1930.

The difficult economic times in the late 1920s had a major impact on Bentley and they stopped motor racing soon after winning Le Mans in 1930 and ultimately fell into receivership in 1931. Rolls-Royce acquired the assets of Bentley in late 1931. In this period Bentley produced some fabulous motor cars including the 3 Litre, 4½ Litre, Blower Bentley, 6½ Litre and 8 Litre models that are all today highly sought after by enthusiasts and collectors all over the world. The first new Bentley produced following Rolls Royces acquisition was the Bentley 3½ Litre which evolved into the Bentley 4¼ Litre. Bentleys of this era are also known as Derby Bentleys as they were built at Rolls Royces factory located in Derby in the north of England. Subsequent models included the Mark V, Mark VI and R-Type.

Rolls-Royce introduced the Silver Cloud and the Bentley S-Type in 1955 and for the next eleven years these models were at the cornerstone of Rolls-Royce / Bentley production. The Silver Cloud / S-Type evolved through three major model iterations, being the Silver Cloud I / Bentley S1, Silver Cloud II / Bentley S2 and Silver Cloud III / Bentley S3 until superseded by the Silver Shadow / Bentley T-Series.

The Bentley T-Series was first introduced in 1965 and remained in production through until 1980. However, all was not well for the Bentley brand. During the 1970s and early 1980s Bentley sales had fallen dramatically to a point where they were only 5% of the combined Rolls-Royce and Bentley production.

In August 1980 Rolls-Royce Motors Limited, which also include the Bentley brand was purchased by Vickers PLC. This triggered a significant strategic change. In the early days, Bentley was known for its high performance cars and Vickers strategy was to restore Bentleys sporting image. Subsequently, Bentley sales started to rise and by 1986 the Bentley to Rolls-Royce sales ratio had reached 40:60 and by 1991 it had reached parity.

In 1991 Bentley introduced the Bentley Continental R, a two door luxury coupe powered by a 6.75 litre V8 engine with a Garrett turbo charger. At the time it was the most expensive production car in the world. This was the first Bentley to feature a body not shared with a Rolls-Royce model since the 1965 S3 Continental.

In 1995 a convertible version was introduced, the Bentley Azure. Bentley turned to legendary Italian design house Pininfarina to help turn its existing Continental R into a convertible. It wanted it to be luxurious, it wanted it to be long and it wanted it to be the most decadent 4 seat grand tourer money could buy. Pininfarina also assisted to build the car. The Italians built the shell and soft top in their Florentine factory, before shipping the whole lot across to Crewe, where it would be assembled with the trusted Bentley touch.

The Bentley Azure was produced in two versions. The first generation was produced from 1995 until 2002 and the second generation, built on the Arnage platform, from 2006 until 2009. In total 1,087 first generation Azures were produced of which only 243 were right hand drive. 716 second generation Azures were produced of which only 131 were right hand drive.