Highlights
- Turbocharged V8 drivetrain
- High specification
- 46,305 miles indicated
The Appeal
With the kind of build and cabin appointment usually reserved for luxury yachts, the Bentley Azure is a lovely way to opulently float from one’s London townhouse to the cabin in St Moritz, or the villa on Lake Como. Effortlessly powerful, elegantly styled and rather exclusive, the Azure is everything a Bentley should be.
Here we have an imported example from the US, which is ready to be given a new lease of life. With low indicated miles and a comprehensive CarFax report outlining its US history, after a little love and attention this could be a very fine machine indeed.
The History and Paperwork
- First registered in January 1996
- Three owners in the US
- Imported to the UK in early 2021
- Copy of the New York title document included
- One owner in the UK since April 2021
- Comprehensive CarFax report included
- 46,305 miles indicated
- The car has been SORN since January 2022
The Interior
- Cream leather upholstery
- Inlaid wood trim
- Electrically adjusted seats with heating and three memory functions
- Dual zone air conditioning
- Original radio-cassette system
- Electric windows and door mirrors
Quality cream leather adorns the seats and just about every other surface in the cabin. Generally, it all looks to be in decent condition, although the front seats do show some wear and creasing and would benefit from a deep clean. The leather is contrasted with dark blue piping to the seats.
The carpet set is a contrasting dark blue, with cream edge binding. It appears to be in decent overall condition, although the boot carpet shows a little more wear as you would expect. Unfortunately, the cream headlining has perished and torn badly at the rear and the entire roof assembly will require replacement.
Beautiful wood trim with inlaid detailing graces the dashboard, centre console and door caps. It presents well, with a good, deep shine. It appears as if there are some cracks developing to the wood trim in the rear of the cabin, but otherwise it all looks to be sound.
The vendor reports no faults with any of the car’s instrumentation or switchgear, and all of the controls do appear to be in good condition, with minimal signs of wear and tear considering the vehicle’s age.
The Exterior
- Metallic grey paintwork
- Dark blue convertible roof
- Original chrome finish wheels
Finished in a smart and subtle metallic grey that suits the car’s lines well, this Azure is well specified and quite handsome. Overall the paint looks to be in good order, with a few minor marks and blemishes but no significant wear or damage we could see.
As you’d expect with a Bentley, the bodywork looks to be straight and solid, with neat panel gaps and no signs of corrosion or notable damage apparent. There are a couple of minor dents or ‘car park dings’, but nothing that would overly concern us. The trim seems to all be complete and in good condition, with the brightwork still showing a nice lustre. In fact, the only damage we could see to the external trim was a small crack to the passenger side front indicator lens.
We’re told by the vendor that the roof mechanism only works intermittently, and both the outer skin and lining are damaged, so the entire assembly will require replacement unfortunately.
Wheels are the original chrome finish 17-inch alloys. They look reasonably good considering the car’s age, but appear to wear a little pitting and some minor blemishes. They are shod in a matched set of tyres that appear to have good tread levels.
Underneath, the sills and floors look nice and tidy, with no signs of damage or major corrosion that we could discern. All of the drivetrain components we could see look to be in fine fettle too.
The Mechanics
- 6.75-litre twin-turbo V8
- Automatic transmission
- Rear-wheel-drive
Utilising the iconic 6.75-litre V8, replete with a brace of turbochargers, the Azure offers the traditional Bentley “wave of torque” driving experience. In fact, despite the car’s not inconsiderable weight, it can dispatch the 0-60mph dash in just 5.6 seconds before topping out at a barely believable 171mph.
Of course, this is no racer though. It’s all about refined, smooth progress – which is exactly what the drivetrain provides. We’re told by the vendor that it starts, drives and runs very well, offering a cosseting and luxurious ride.
The vendor does not report any mechanical issues or problems, other than noting that they believe new ball joints and suspension bushes are needed.
Summary
If the idea of drifting along in a near unstoppable luxury land-yacht appeals to you, then this is certainly a car to consider. With a little light renovation, it could soon be a truly excellent vehicle – and let’s face it, who doesn’t want to say they have a Bentley on the drive?
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