Named after a famous 3.7-mile (6km) long straight on the LeMans circuit in France called the Mulsanne Straight, this 1985 Bentley Mulsanne can be found posted here on craigslist in the Media Capital of the World: Burbank, California – a perfect location for a Bentley. The seller is asking $12,500. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Rocco B. for sending in this tip!
The Bentley Mulsanne was related to the Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit and the name is fitting for a company with such a long racing history as Bentley. The seller has taken photos in a classic 1940s Hollywood style, like those old portraits where they’d spread vaseline on the lens for the soft-focus effect. Although, these are different in that almost all of them have a glare that makes it hard to tell what’s going on and impossible to see any details.
What we can see, though, is promising. The dual exhaust sticking out past the edge of the rear bumper is a little unusual and maybe not in keeping with such an understated and elegant car. Not that I’m not a big fan of dual exhaust and I don’t know how else it could have been done here to make it a bit more Bentley-like and less Pep Boys $6-chrome-extention-like. Hagerty is at $11,500 for a #3 good-condition car, so this one could be on the money.
The Bentley Mulsanne was made from 1980 to 1992. The beautiful interior of this car, sadly, isn’t shown any better than the exterior. But again, what we do see of it looks nice. The thin pre-airbag steering wheel is always interesting to see in these cars for me. For such a big, heavy car to have such a delicate steering wheel speaks to the Britishness of these elegant cars. The back seat is barely shown, other than the top portion of the seat backs, but I’m assuming that this car doesn’t have the rear tray tables.
The two engine photos are the clearest of any of them in this listing, and it sure looks nice under that bonnet, as they say. The engine should be a Rolls-Royce-sourced 411.9-cu.in. (6.75-liter) OHV V8, which would have had 170 horsepower and 379 lb-ft of torque. There was a Mulsanne Turbo with 50% more power, and that would be fun as the 12.4-second 0-60 time in this car isn’t exactly neck-snapping. I know, a vintage Bentley isn’t about 0-60 times, but most of us are interested in specs, no matter what the vehicle is. The seller mentions that this car has 62,000 miles and has some checking in the paint but otherwise it sounds like a nice example. Have any of you owned a Bentley Mulsanne?
WOW! – A cheap Bentley…..er,well,maybe….
Think I’ll hold out for a turbo! Granted, it seems like a nice ride for 12.5k
I would add curb indicators.
I would add a hula girl bobble-head by the rear window.
A few pictures of cavernous pits with $100 bills being hurled within would describe this car just as well… :)
It’s remarkable that Bentley would fit a $100,000 car with aluminum wheels that look like cheap plastic covers from Walmart.
A few years back my wife spotted a Bentley on an exotic lot nearby while looking at a Jag. She ask why she couldn’t have it, it seemed ‘reasonable’. The lot guy told her it was due for a 40,000 mile service, which purportedly cost $17,000.
Cheapest part of this equation is the purchase price.
No mention as to whether it runs. Probably an oversight. Bentley reliability has never been an issue.
John, those of us who “know” stick to six cylinder Bentleys only. I grew up in Burbank and maybe 45 – 50 years ago saw a Soviet Russian GAZ 13 Chaika about a block from where many of these photos were taken!
I lived on Barham Blvd, just across from Universal for several years. I still remember putting the “No Radio” sign in my car window before turning I for the night. I loved it there.
SZ up to vin 50001 had this old-fashioned steering wheel.
The steering ratio here is very indirect. What causes a
difficult handling. The rest of it run until 1998 as Vickers
improved some things in the background. The worst
part on this cars is the single hydraulic system. But
nothing you can not fix. Most repairs on this cars cause
not knowing ‘mechanics’.
Maintenance and spare parts are not so expensive as
many expect because there are substitute parts avail
for the important sections on a car. A knowledged
mechanic is the key as always.
This RR and Bentley have had the much better overall
quality fitment and finish until BMW and VW took over.
Proper serviced Vickers built cars are cars made to last.