“If you have to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it” is a quote that has been rightly or wrongly attributed to American financier JP Morgan. For decades that quote has probably been appropriate when discussing any car built by Bentley, but this one may be slightly different. Listed for sale here on eBay, you will find this 1955 Bentley located in Pembina, North Dakota. It is being offered in a No Reserve auction with a clear title. Bidding has seen the price rise to $18,400
1955 marked the first year of production of the Bentley S-series which is what our feature car is. The S-series replaced the R-series which had been in production since 1946. The S-series featured a number of improvements and upgrades which included a longer wheelbase, lower build height, softer suspension (with electrically controlled rear dampers) and improved brakes. At first glance, this S1 looks quite good, but I notice one or two things that I’m not sure about. At the bottom of the driver’s door, I can see something black running parallel with the door bottom. I can’t work out whether this is body or paint damage, or whether it is the door seal bulging below the door line. On the passenger side, I also have noticed some inconsistency with the door gaps. This is not usually an inherent issue with cars from Bentley, so I am curious as to why this is apparent on one side of the car but not the other. There are a couple of areas of rust, one in the left-rear wheel well and a spot in the trunk, but both are quite small. The hood also doesn’t line up fully when closed and the paint has a couple of minor chips and cracks. Exterior trim and chrome appear to be excellent.
The interior is quite sumptuous but not perfect. Some of the timber on the dash will need some light restoration, and the panels in the front foot-wells also may need re-trimming. The door trims and carpet look really good, and the leather on the seats has aged really well and still looks supple and inviting. The walnut capping at the top of each door also looks to be in really good condition. One thing that really jars is the modern CD player in that burled walnut dash. The rear passenger area looks just as good (if not better) than the front. With a little work, this could be one comfortable and beautiful interior.
Under the hood is the 4.9-liter inline six-cylinder engine which is backed by a 4-speed automatic transmission. The seller states that the Bentley runs and drives well, and even provides a YouTube video in his advertisement to demonstrate this. It certainly seems to suggest that everything works well on the car. There is some paint peeling off the firewall in the engine bay that should probably be attended to.
Bentley hand-built beautiful cars that transported people in serene elegance. The low build numbers for these cars guarantee a high level of exclusivity. General running costs for a Bentley are not as expensive as people may think, but spare parts can be horrendously expensive. Front brake shoes will set you back around $360 per set while the rears will cost you more than $400. Don’t break a windshield because you will find yourself about $1,400 poorer for the experience. I guess that when you are considering all of these prices and how quickly they can add up it might be the right time to consider JP Morgan’s words once again.
In the mid-70’s, my old man had a friend, Doc Schenkerman ( not sure what kind of doctor he was, but had money) and he had a Bentley similar to this, a bit newer, I think. He knew I worked on cars, and asked my dad if I could come look at the car. It had an annoying clicking sound. I said, well, it’s out of my league, but I’ll take a look. We go for a short ride, and “Doc” says, “there,,hear that, that clicking”? Turns out, it was the clock ticking, that’s how quiet the ride was. True story.
“At 60mph all you can hear is the ticking of the clock…”
Great story Howard, I believe you. This is how these grand old Dames should be taken care of during there life. Not like this one. https://barnfinds.com/hidden-for-30-years-1960-lincoln-continental-convertible/
Pardon me does anyone car to go get a spot of tea ? bisquit?
Long live the queen 👸.
Sorry Donald not the King 🤴
No politics, so your comment should be removed immediately.
Classic Steel is just waiting for the nightmare to be over. So am I. Oh, nice car. 😀
Elvis is Rock and Roll, not politics. Long live The King, uhhhn hunnnnhhh.
You’re a little touchy……..admire his cleverness even if you cant admit to the truthfulness of the crack.
Pardon me…. Do you have any Grey Poupon?
Remember this ad?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WuK2o55-75s
Classic Steel’s comments are reality based comedy. Donald could be anybody – Duck, King, McLean, Kirchner, or even Don Ho. Who else could he be talking about? Clearly, no one of any real importance. 😀
What part of “No Politics” don’t you guys understand?
They don’t understand that I care about as much of their opinion as they do mine. Which is none at all. Just my opinion. Which no one cares about so why did I waste my time writing this? Duh.
True That
The S-series Bentleys are one of my faves, although my preference would be for an S-2 with the V8.
Adam’s comments regarding door fit and rust would indicate that the buyer should have a good look at the bodywork before purchase. Yes, these cars DO rust!
While I agree, the car looks at home on a crushed stone driveway, the house in the background is not the type I would expect to see. LOL I would have expected a huge stone facade with double doors about 10 to 12 feet high and a door man in a cutaway long tail jacket wearing a shirt with ruffles at the sleeve.
Nightmare is right!
In the 70s my girlfriends uncle , a doctor, drove a beautiful grey one ,seen at a family gathering. Next time we saw him , he had traded it in on a …….Volare!!
Obvious mental breakdown had occurred. I hope he got help. But not at the Plymouth dealer.
I really like this car! Could see my MIL,
SIL, and BIL driving this car and enjoying
it. Gotta say that it really sucks being
legally blind and unable to enjoy the simple pleasure of driving a car such as
this. But enough of the pity party. Never let it slow me down though. Taught myself to work on cars at a young age
and enjoyed it ever since. As for this car,
I’d replace the Lucas electrics and have the car rewired to American specs to safen it up before my family ever sets
foot in it, freshen up the mechanicals,
then let them drive it while I sit in the
shotgun seat and enjoy the ride.
FYI, I believe that the 1955-56 Bentley S (and equivalent R-R Silver Cloud) did not have power steering or dual circuit braking systems. From memory those arrived in 1957 along with optional air-conditioning. Some of the early cars have been retrofitted with these features.
Sold a ’56 RR S1 several years ago. RHD. Had dual master cylinders but technically not a “dual circuit brake system”. And no power steering, but you didn’t really need it. $3600. front to back brake job. A real attention getter. Sold at 30K in very similar condition.
Watched the video, seller says it is a no reserve and should sell for 40K to 50K, we are not going to sell it for 10K, and ruin the market for other sellers, we will pull the ad. B.S. flag has been raised.
If you want 40K then list it with a reserve, or buy it now price. With one day nine hours left, no way it is going to get to 40K, I would be pissed if I was the final bidder at 25K, not knowing the seller’s plan of pulling ad, is that even legal.
This car is out of Canada and I would stay away from this seller.
1955 Bentley S1 left hand drive, selling with No Reserve to the highest bidder.
That is the first line in the ad, If you do not watch the video, there is no way to know the seller, lets the cat out of the bag and will pull the ad. I live MT and if I had the money, I would bid 25K and then sue when they would not complete the sale. What do you guys think. Might be legal if he pulls the ad before the auction ends, that is why people hate EBay and all the games sellers play.
You have a valid point Jratt. I am not bidding but that bothered me, so I contacted the seller on eBay with a question about whether he would pull the sale if bidding wasn’t high enough.
Here is his response: “Lol are you f****** hahaha your not even high bid so what does it matter to you and for your info. I’ve sold over 20 units unreserved under my personal account but just was starting under my company account. I’ve always sell everything unreserved. So why waste you time sending me this if your the end buyer I will refuse to sell to you because you a d*** head.”
I think one could add up the spelling, the language and the rational of this seller and have a pretty good idea of exactly what kind of salesman you’d be dealing with on this buy.
Wow. This guy is a piece of work. Evidently a 5th grade dropout with a bad attitude and lousy salesmanship. He puts the “bent” in Bentley!
Looks like he got pissed that someone called him out, on his B. S. Like I said it is people like this guy, that turn people off from using Ebay. I have friends who have been burned so many times, they have stopped using Ebay. I still use it but I read everything in the ads, before purchase.
Bidding at $20,100 with 6 hours to go, no way it is going to get to the seller’s dream of 40K. Just another car dealer that paid 20K for something and wants to double his money.
Burke’s law was a show I would watch with my dad in the early or mid 60’s. The guy would drive around in one of these and fight crime or investigate crimes. strange show to watch even for a 7 yr old.
Me too! it was my Dad’s favorite show. I dont know why as he was a lawyer but didnt practice criminal law. I think it was just the general ambiance of the show. We also watched Bat Masterson together. Maybe he had a Gene Barry thing. LOL Man, those were great shows for kids :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2IQ-Q1eZAk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1V7upBZp8w&list=PLLgt6G6VDkhcABRW12YwkcgqyeVv6S-yG
I’m pretty sure Amos Burke rode around in a Rolls.
my biggest criticism and no other is that there is NO service history. without that i wouldnt touch it unless i was a bentley dealer or mechanic
Why hasn’t anyone said “Pardon me, do you have any . . . “
I’ve owned a few of these and they’re pretty simple to own and maintain if you start with a good one. The market for these has left the building and $25k is about all the money there is in these.
Always liked Bentley over Rolls. Just a prefrence
Me Also, I am looking at buying a 2006 Bentley Continental GT, $32K to $50K+, Rolls +$15K more than a similar model Bentley. I still cannot believe the 2006 Bentley is selling for under $50K, when they sold new for $170K
Ended: Aug 26, 2018 , 9:15PM
Winning bid:US $22,400.00
[ 44 bids ]
Neither buyer nor seller had transaction history. Interesting coincidence.
Francisco – We may see the Bentley listed again, I have seen this act before.
Plenty of buyer did not complete transaction in the new listing.
Yup, looks pretty damn shady. I bet we see it relisted “due to non paying bidder”
Yikes! 1.400,- bucks for a windshield?? -no-one knows how to ‘google’ anymore?
Those are certainly available for a lot less (from a few places?) in Europe!!…