The global recession has finally caught up with the luxury car maker Bentley, which has announced plans to branch out into the production of commercial vehicles. And Bentley is not alone: its first truck will soon be joined in showrooms by a bendy bus from Ferrari, and a Maybach milk float.
Actually, that’s not true. This 1956 Bentley S1 is in fact a one-off conversion that’s up for auction in Australia next Sunday. The vehicle was originally bought in London and then shipped to New South Wales, where a local coachwork company turned it into a part-timbered “ute” for Keith Rous, the 6th Earl of Stradbroke, about 20 years ago.
It has recently been on display at the Australian National Motor Museum, and is now being sold to raise money for a school library. (Mount Fyans, by the way, is a Victoria farm that rears Angus cattle.)
The S1 has no reserve price, although the auctioneer estimates that it will bring in as much as A$32,000 (£21,370). If you’re interested and in Melbourne on July 10, why not go to the auction, hosted by Shannons (shannons.com.au) at the city’s convention centre, and bid for the world’s poshest pick-up?