2005 Bentley Continental Flying Spur

This Flying Spur is a UK specified and supplied car, first registered in October 2005. The pre-delivery inspection was carried out at 64 miles by Bentley West Country in Exeter on the 4th October. DVLA records show that the first keeper retained the car for under two months. This suggests the Flying Spur was possibly first registered to the dealership as a demonstrator.

The second lucky owner happened along in November 2005 and retained the car until August 2008. The third owner retained the car for a full six years before parting ways in October 2014. By this point the car had wafted its way through 48,000 miles, all seemingly acquired in a linear fashion.

The current owner acquired the Flying Spur in September 2020 to be come the car’s seventh keeper. At this juncture the Bentley had covered a sensible 57,000 miles. In current ownership, a further seven thousand miles have been added to that modest total.

Other than impeccable taste, what unites this Flying Spur’s various owners is a diligent maintenance routine. As we will find the Bentley comes with a comprehensive service record and has clearly been loved and cherished by its various custodians. 

This sublime Flying Spur is presented in a Dark Sapphire Blue livery (LR5W) that suits the majestic ambience of the Bentley perfectly. Despite Bentley having moved away from true coach-built cars with the arrival of the GT, the Flying Spur leaves onlookers in no doubt that this is still a very special car. Despite Bentley’s German ownership, the traditional design cues are extensive, paying homage to the marque’s illustrious past.

The nose of the car is particularly imposing thanks to its traditional looking mesh “matrix” grill siting between a pair of large, twin bi-xenon headlamps with accompanying washer jets. A black winged B badge adorns the radiator shell in case anyone is in doubt as to the provenance of the car. At the rear the upright LED taillights, winged B badging and twin oval tail pipes lends the car a clean yet sporting look.

In side profile, the Flying Spur’s five meter plus length hints at the commodious nature of the luxurious cabin. Twin “B” roundels adorn the generous C pillars and splashes of brightwork to the door handles and window surrounds adds an extra level of sophistication as if any were needed. 

This car rides on the optional 20-inch, seven spoke light alloy wheels in bright machined finish. The presentation of these appears to be excellent with no significant marks or kerb rash in evidence. The open architecture of the large wheels allows sight of the Bentley embossed brake callipers. The wheels are shod with a quality set of tyres in 275/35 ZR configuration to help quell the prodigious torque of the W12.

Overall exterior condition of the Flying Spur appears to be excellent. All panels exude a deep and lustrous shine and panel gaps appear millimetre perfect throughout. All cabin glass and light lenses appear bright and unblemished to lend the car a very well cared for look.

Although sharing a platform with the four-seater coupe GT, the Flying Spur adds a full 12-inches to the wheelbase to create an incredibly roomy luxury saloon. On opening a door, the brushed alloy, embossed Bentley sill protectors help set the expectations appropriately high. 

Our car is finished in Magnolia leather (code 99) with a full 11 hides employed to fastidiously trim the cabin. The front seats are finished with perforated and vertically box pleated centre sections. The bolsters are smooth finished, and all panels are delineated with twin needle stitching. The front seats are fully electronically adjustable with lumbar massage, memory and variable heating settings.

The commodious rear bench features sculptured outer seats incorporating lumbar and heating settings. In the centre console a range of heating and ventilation controls are accessible, forming part of the car’s four-zone climate control system.

The door cards are trimmed in matching stitched magnolia leather and are topped with panels of premium burr walnut veneer with a high gloss finish. This finish is carried forward to form the fascia panels of the dashboard. These panels are mounted into stitched and padded leather surrounds, emphasising the prestige and build quality of this cabin. The dashboard is awash with high-end, chromed fittings and legible and comprehensive instrumentation. Highlights include the Breitling cabin clock and machined alloy and leather gear selector. 

Other refinements include the optional glass, tilt and slide sunroof. Large infotainment screen, multifunction leather steering wheel and glovebox mounted, 6-CD changer. The boot is huge and finished in a dark and hardwearing carpet set.

Apart from the sublime luxury and weapons grade build quality, what ties these features together is the superb overall condition. The cabin presents very well indeed with no significant imperfections noted or reported.

The Flying Spur was noted for carrying across the full-blooded technical specification of its 200mph GT sibling in its entirety. The 6L W12 engine is developed from two V6 units to create that innovative and unique W configuration, 12-cylinder powerhouse. Fitted with twin turbochargers this unit churned out 552 bhp and 479 lb-ft of torque from a mere 1,600rpm in original condition. 

This mammoth output is routed to all four 20-inch wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission and a torsen derived permanent four-wheel drive system. This enables the Flying Spur to deploy this huge power in all conditions. 

Other mechanical innovations fitted include continuous, electronic variable damping control and self-levelling, air suspension. This includes manual driver adjustment facility for ride height and damper settings.

Lifting the bonnet reveals a pristine looking engine bay. By modern standards, the W12 is an impressive sight with full Bentley branding, impressive embossing together with “6 Litre” and “Twin Turbo” badging. This is certainly an engine bay that helps underscore the impressive maintenance records accompanying this example.

As alluded to earlier, the Flying Spur benefits from a very comprehensive service history and paperwork archive. We understand the current V5 is on hand and an advisory free MoT is in place with validity until September 2024.

The all-important service booklet is packed with provenance providing stamps with a full 20 stamps noted. These cover increments from 64 miles in 2005 right up to 64,420 miles in September 2023. Of the 20 stamps 15 are courtesy of Bentley main dealers. The remainder are from Rolls Royce and Bentley specialists, Hanwells of London. A couple of Hanwells invoices are also included from 2017 and 2019.

With the GT and Flying Spur representing Volkswagen’s opening model salvos to mark their Bentley ownership, there was no way they would be anything other than highly accomplished. The Flying Spur boasted a price tag of well over £120,000 in 2005, too, so it had to impress. And so, it did and still does. The combination of power, performance and commodious luxury is both heady and hard to rival. Given that, and mindful of this car’s £15,000 - £20,000 guide price, it is nigh on impossible to think of a better quality, performance and value proposition.

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located with the vendor in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. Viewings are strictly by appointment.  To make a booking, please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, and read our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.