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Last Bentley R-Type Continental Built Hits the Auction Block

One of only 208 Bentley R-Type Continentals and just five Franay-bodied examples is to go under the hammer at the upcoming Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este on May 21st, RM Auctions announced. The vehicle in question, completed in 1955, is expected to fetch between €590.000-€750.000, or up to $1 million.

But the list of rarities this cars brings with it don’t end here. Not only this 1955 example is the last R-Type Continental built, but it is also a rare left-hand drive car and one of only nine with automatic gearbox.

Designed personally by Marius Franay, the car sports a one-off design with unique, two-door aluminum coupe coachwork with elegant tail fins.

Finished entirely in black, the car exhibits a deep shine. Exterior highlights include a simple rocker panel molding meeting a bright stone-guard on the rear wing. The other body highlights are provided by crease lines in the panels themselves, boldly contrasted by wide whitewall tires.

The interior is done in attractive beige leather with matching carpets. The dashboard and interior woodwork are polished to a high-gloss finish, and the engine compartment is clean and correctly detailed.

“A unique and especially desirable R-Type Bentley Continental, this car comes with a documented history from Bentley Motors, its original handbook, a FIVA passport and a complete tool set. In addition, it still has the original French number plate assigned to its first owner. With the large 4.9-liter engine and optional automatic gearbox, it is ideally equipped for future concours events and certainly gran turismo motoring, for which it was intended,” RM Auctions says.
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