Would you like to have a Bentley Arnage Red Label to drive around in?

Of course you would...even Tony Gott, the former engineering director who was appointed chief executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars in 1999, said that the Bentley Arnage Red Label was the car that the engineers had wanted to do all along.

After the Bentley Arnage reveal, it wasn't well accepted considering Bentley's ties with BMW, which co-owned the British manufacturer with Volkswagen.

Purists and long-standing customers of the brand disapproved of BMW's power plant, which prompted Bentley to make a change by introducing their version of the six-and-a-three-quarter V8 engine. As a result, newer variants of the Arnage were born, including the Red Label, which was unveiled in October 1999. Its debut had buyers skipping the Arnage Green Label, which Bentley had unveiled earlier that year, with the same 4.4-liter BMW engine as the original Arnage, an attribute that contributed to its low sales and, hence, very low production numbers.

One common feature between the two is that Bentley added stiffer body shells and larger brakes to handle the extra power and weight, especially in the Arnage Red Label. Bentley went on revising the Arnage Red Label with minor tweaks in the interior and exterior but mostly indistinguishable from the 1999 Bentley Arnage. Production lasted from 2000 until 2002 at Bentley's plant in Crewe, England, which saw 2,273 examples through its lines, making the Arnage Red Label the most produced Bentley Arnage.

ABOUT THIS CAR

• Engine 6.75-liter turbocharged V-8 rated at 400 horsepower and 619 foot-pounds of torque.
• The Arnage Red Label - graceful lines, imposing size, long hood, classic door handles and a here-comes-somebody-important-styled grille.
• This car draws a crowd - some will even make several laps around the car to get a better look. As soon as you open the driver’s side door, you step into an environment probably way more comfortable than the Prime Minister's office at the Beehive.
• Inside, the Bentley Arnage Red Label retained a lavish use of premium leather upholstery, polished wood, and chrome trims, creating an ambiance defining automotive luxury. Leather occupies most of the interior, being on the seats and every touch surface, and where there's no leather, you're likely to find wood, which adds a sense of warmth and timeless elegance. The chrome bits, mainly used on the controls on the dashboard and center console, add a tactile and luxurious feel to the touch, enhancing the premium atmosphere within the cabin. To improve rear legroom in the Bentley Arnage Red Label, Bentley redesigned the front seats with higher, slanted backs and re positioned them slightly forward. Exquisite leather seats are offset with rich wood trim. Elegant analog gauges reminds us of Duesenberg in its heyday.  A seemingly limitless number of comfort/convenience controls are within easy reach — heated seats, navigation system (still in Japanese), dual climate control, the works. The carpeting is plush, and the doors and panels are thick and stylised. Electrochromic glass reduces the glare of lights at night. Even the rear seats can be powered around for more comfort.
• The biggest point Bentley makes with the Arnage Red Label is that the turbocharged V-8 moves the 5,500-pound car around like a sports car. The advertised zero-to-60 miles per hour time is 5.9 seconds. The engine is indeed a marvel of power, but 5,500 pounds is 5,500 pounds — no amount of performance makes the Red Label feel like a sports car. When accelerating the Red Label to high speed on the open road, you feel like you are going very fast while sitting in your living room. Thankfully, the four-wheel disc brakes are monster performers, bringing the heavy Arnage to a stop much more abruptly than one would expect.
• Speed-sensitive steering dilutes the weighty feel of the Arnage to some degree, but it also combines with a double-wishbone independent suspension, a computer-controlled adaptive elector-hydraulic damping system, stability control and ride-height control to make 70 mph feel like 40 mph. That’s not a good thing because a nearly three-ton Bentley tends to attract the attention of the boys in blue - but who cares what the cops think when you're driving a Bentley...right?
• International Bentley sales jumped 35 percent in 2000, with 1,364 units being snapped up by the rich and famous. This car is all about class, presence, magnificence, style, and a vault like attitude. Some say it may feel a bit pretentious. We say, so what...bring it on. Let the peasants drive the other stuff... :)
• Comfortable and stylish. Great for traveling, highway performance is immaculate.
• Beautiful luxury classic...Immaculate condition and FAST...Sport mode is amazing...this car has mind blowing 'jet taking off' power with only slight pedal pressure and a top of the world fit & finish and refinement, that only Rolls Royce and Bentley can do...makes Mercedes and BMW look ordinary and cheap. Definitely a car meant for the cultured to drive around in.
• Car comes with some servicing history including head gasket work.

The 2000 Bentley Arnage Red Label marked a pivotal shift for Bentley, born out of a customer dissatisfaction with the original Arnage BMW engine.

There's something about classic luxury saloons, that undeniably makes them more attractive. At these prices, the Bentley Arnage Red Label is one of the best cars you can get your hands on, shining as a prime example, and with the 6.75 liter V8 powering it, you need not worry about being under powered.

Beyond its history as a marque, the Bentley Arnage Red Label has a timeless design, and its craftsmanship will never cease to amaze even when compared to today's offerings.

If you're a connoisseur of classic luxury motoring, then look no further.

Inspections welcome and won't disappoint.

Will be sold WOF'd and Registered if sold in New Zealand.

Transport / Shipping can be organised on Buyer's behalf at Buyer's cost.

Viewing Weekdays, BY APPOINTMENT only.