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Rory Reid buys Britain's Cheapest Bentley
Rory’s next project car might be his most ambitious purchase yet: the cheapest Bentley in the country
Words by: Andrew Woodhouse
Additional words by: Auto Trader
Last updated on 15 July 2022 | 0 min read
Like most other things, car prices are up. Once upon a time, you could pick up a Dacia Sandero for £7,000 – nowadays you’re looking at £11,000.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with a Dacia Sandero – it’s a stylish and well-built car with an efficient engine and, for the money, it ticks a lot of boxes. You can learn more about the Sandero, the cheapest new car on the market, here. That said, we can’t help but wonder what else you’d get for that money. So, Rory Reid took it upon himself to browse Auto Trader’s used cars and came across a Bentley Brooklands for £8,995 – quite possibly the cheapest Bentley in the UK. With a 6.75 litre V8, quad lights, a waterfall grille and a rather eye-catching shade of Burgundy. Watch our latest episode where Rory reveals the costs of repairing a broken Bentley.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with a Dacia Sandero – it’s a stylish and well-built car with an efficient engine and, for the money, it ticks a lot of boxes. You can learn more about the Sandero, the cheapest new car on the market, here. That said, we can’t help but wonder what else you’d get for that money. So, Rory Reid took it upon himself to browse Auto Trader’s used cars and came across a Bentley Brooklands for £8,995 – quite possibly the cheapest Bentley in the UK. With a 6.75 litre V8, quad lights, a waterfall grille and a rather eye-catching shade of Burgundy. Watch our latest episode where Rory reveals the costs of repairing a broken Bentley.
So, what’s the cheapest Bentley like?
There are actually two separate Brooklands: one designed to replace the Arnage, and a four-door full-sized saloon designed to replace the Mulsanne in 1992. Rory’s is the latter, a 6.74 litre V8 that makes 245 horsepower (which works out to be about 36 horsepower per litre for the fans of quick maths out there).
The 1994 Bentley Brooklands drives like a modern car in terms of comfort and refinement. The ride is good too, using a hydraulic self-levelling suspension to soak up the worst of the bumps so it feels like you're floating along. There's a decent amount of torque but it’s heavy. Elements like the waterfall grill and steel valve caps feel sturdy and arguably add more than the plastic used nowadays, but there’s no denying they add to the weight. And the fact that the Brooklands doesn't have an enormous amount of power means that the best way to drive this car is to just relax and take it easy through the corners. Outside of the weight, there are other signs you’re driving an older car. The Brooklands is quite long, so not too easy to park. The leather steering wheel is a bit too big and gets in the way, and the headrests are a bit far back. The interiors are luxurious but many of the touches, from wooden features and plush mats to manual controls and funky fuel gauges, do feel a few years removed from the hi-tech dashboards of today’s electric cars. So, is Britain’s cheapest Bentley worth the money? Watch the full review to find out.
The 1994 Bentley Brooklands drives like a modern car in terms of comfort and refinement. The ride is good too, using a hydraulic self-levelling suspension to soak up the worst of the bumps so it feels like you're floating along. There's a decent amount of torque but it’s heavy. Elements like the waterfall grill and steel valve caps feel sturdy and arguably add more than the plastic used nowadays, but there’s no denying they add to the weight. And the fact that the Brooklands doesn't have an enormous amount of power means that the best way to drive this car is to just relax and take it easy through the corners. Outside of the weight, there are other signs you’re driving an older car. The Brooklands is quite long, so not too easy to park. The leather steering wheel is a bit too big and gets in the way, and the headrests are a bit far back. The interiors are luxurious but many of the touches, from wooden features and plush mats to manual controls and funky fuel gauges, do feel a few years removed from the hi-tech dashboards of today’s electric cars. So, is Britain’s cheapest Bentley worth the money? Watch the full review to find out.